And the falsehoods just keep piling up from the Biden administration.
Speaking out of…well, probably not her mouth on Thursday, White House Press Secretary and resident diversity hire Karine Jean-Pierre proved yet again that the narrative is more important than the truth when she falsely claimed - again - that Florida's Parental Rights in Education law prohibits public school teachers from displaying photos of their same-sex partners on their desks at school.
“As this measure takes effect, it will prohibit all students, up to seniors in high school, from learning about our — learning about or discussing LGBTQI+ people in the classrooms,” KJP fibbed. "Teachers in Florida have already faced the devastating consequences of the existing law. Under threat of having their licenses revoked, gay teachers have been forced to take down pictures of their spouses from their desks and censor their classroom materials."
KJP claims that it's illegal for gay teachers in Florida to have pictures of their spouses on their desks. pic.twitter.com/lzRN0o7d38
— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) April 20, 2023
Which raises two important points: first of all, who is putting pictures of their spouses on their desks in a classroom?
And secondly, who is buying this ridiculous line?
Related: New UN-Backed Report Says Children Can Consent to Sex
A lot of people, apparently - but that doesn’t make it true. While the Republican-controlled Florida state legislature did pass a law last year banning teachers from teaching young children about crossdressing and transgender issues or providing pornographic materials in school classrooms and libraries, nothing in the law - intentionally misnamed the “Don’t Say Gay” bill by leftist critics - prohibits gay teachers from talking about their same-sex partners or putting pictures of them on they desks.
The law also doesn't prohibit schoolchildren from being taught about LGBTQ issues, history, or public figures, though it does mandate that public school faculty and administrators can't affirm a child's "gender identity" by recognizing their preferred name and pronouns or helping them socially transition at school without first consulting with the student's parents.
In fact, after confusing guidance was issued last year during the law's initial rollout, Orange County Public Schools clarified that teachers were more than welcome to have pictures of their families - including same-sex partners - in the classroom.
“All teachers are encouraged to keep pictures of their families in the classroom,” the Orange County school district told its union members. “However, in K-3, it was cautioned against specific discussions in the event those discussions could be deemed classroom instruction on sexual orientation or gender identity.”
KJP’s lie was so egregious that Twitter, courtesy of its users, slapped a label on her claim, flatly calling it “untrue.”
“This claim is untrue. It is not illegal in Florida for a teacher to have a picture of their same sex spouse on their desk,” the disclaimer reads.
But if you’re waiting for KJP or the White House to admit their lie, I wouldn’t hold my breath.