Illinois Governor Signs Law Requiring Public Schools to Teach LGBT History
LGBT history will be mandated in curriculums in the state
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Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker (D) signed a new bill into law mandating public schools to teach LGBT history in their curriculums in the state, according to reports.
According to the new legislation:
"In public schools only, the teaching of history shall include a study of the roles and contributions of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people in the history of this country and this State."
The new law will take effect on July 1, 2020.
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State Sen. Heather Steans (D), who is one of the bill's co-sponsors, stated after its passage in May:
"It is my hope that teaching students about the valuable contributions LGBTQ individuals have made throughout history will create a safer environment with fewer incidents of harassment."
Steans continued:
"LGBTQ children and teenagers will also be able to gain new role models who share life experiences with them," according to The Hill.
The executive director of non-profit LGBTQ organization the Legacy Project, Victor Salvo, issued a statement on Friday celebrating the law's passage:
"We applaud and thank Gov. Pritzker for approving this law and for his commitment to LGBTQ inclusion. Illinois is on the right side of history with this important, life-saving law."
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Illinois will join four other states that have recently passed legislation, these include:
- California
- Colorado
- New Jersey
- Oregon
The new law in Illinois "also includes similar mandates for African American history and that of various other groups, including Polish, Irish, Italian, Hispanic and Asian Americans," The Huffington Post reported.
According to the text of the Bill, "the teaching of history also shall include a study of the role of labor unions and their interaction with government in achieving the goals of a mixed free enterprise system."
Meanwhile, in London, UK, a headmistress of a school suspended two ten-year-old Christian students for "homophobia" after they requested to opt-out of an LGBT lesson during “Gay Pride Month," in July.
The headteacher of Heavers Farm Primary School, Susan Papas, punished the two students after one of them asked their teacher for permission to not participate in the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender class.
