Kentucky’s ‘Don’t Say Gay’ Law Inflicts Hardship on LGBTQ+ Students

This blog originally appeared at Advocate.

The legislation poses a threat to gay-straight alliances and is leading to additional challenges for LGBTQ+ youth.

The enactment of Kentucky’s version of a “don’t say gay” law is causing numerous challenges for LGBTQ+ students, along with the parents and educators aiming to provide support.

In March, Kentucky’s Republican-majority legislature overrode Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear’s veto to pass one of the most expansive anti-LGBTQ+ laws in the nation. Senate Bill 150 includes a prohibition on all gender-affirming care for minors and restricts public school instruction on sexual orientation and gender identity across all grade levels. Additionally, it mandates that school districts, at the very least, prevent transgender students from using restrooms that align with their gender identity. The law also compels school personnel to disclose confidential discussions with students about sexual orientation or gender identity to parents, essentially forcing the disclosure of such information. Furthermore, it allows teachers to disregard students’ chosen pronouns.

“What initially began as a bill primarily addressing pronouns and restroom use has evolved into an extensive piece of legislation that prohibits conversations about gender and sexuality across all subjects and grades,” remarked Jason Glass, the former Kentucky commissioner of education, in a recent interview with the Kentucky Lantern. Glass stepped down from his position in September and accepted a role at Western Michigan University in the face of criticism from Republicans who opposed his backing of LGBTQ+ students, with some demanding his termination.

Numerous educators and administrators who offered support are discovering that Kentucky is no longer a conducive environment for them. Willie Carver, a gay individual honored as Kentucky’s Teacher of the Year in 2022, has exited the teaching profession due to the animosity directed at him—a plight that students continue to endure. “We’ve stripped away all of the school support from the students, so they’re consistently miserable and hopeless,” he lamented to the Lantern.

The recent law has made it more challenging for gay-straight alliances, often referred to as gender and sexuality alliances, to function in schools, despite their heightened necessity. In the small rural community of Owenton, the GSA, named PRISM (People Respecting Individuality and Sexuality Meeting), has ceased operations due to students’ apprehensions. While Owen County High School Principal Renee Boots mentioned that the club has adjusted its focus, parent Rachelle Ketron asserted that students were too frightened to persist with their meetings.

Ketron played a pivotal role in establishing the club after her transgender daughter, Meryl, tragically died by suicide in 2020. Initially meeting at the local public library, the club later gained approval as a school organization in 2022. Despite Ketron’s efforts to revive the group outside the school, students are hesitant, mainly because many of them haven’t disclosed their identities to their parents.

This year, Ketron experienced the devastating loss of another foster child, who was also part of the LGBTQ+ community, to suicide. Ketron and her wife, Marsha Newell, have been actively involved in fostering LGBTQ+ youth. Despite facing challenges and prejudice, Ketron emphasizes the importance of creating a supportive environment for queer youth in communities like Owenton. She has observed firsthand the bullying her children faced due to their LGBTQ+ identity and having two mothers.

Even in more progressive communities like Lexington, where the University of Kentucky is located, queer youth and Gender and Sexuality Alliances (GSAs) are encountering difficulties. In a local high school in Lexington, a GSA has opted for a lower profile, refraining from announcing its meetings over the school’s public address system due to concerns that administrators might take action to shut it down, according to a trans and nonbinary student interviewed by the publication.

“The school felt much safer with the knowledge that a GSA existed because there were students like you elsewhere,” expressed Anna, a student identified by that name. “You could enter and say, ‘Hey, I’m experimenting with this set of pronouns. I’m exploring more about myself. Can you all call me this for a couple of weeks?’ It provided a space where students like me could go.”

Across the nation, the count of GSAs is currently at its lowest in two decades, as per GLSEN. This decline could be attributed to students discovering alternative support systems and schools becoming more inclusive—or conversely, due to an anti-LGBTQ+ atmosphere making it challenging for them to function.

Ketron expressed her determination to persist in advocating for GSAs and is actively arranging a summit for LGBTQ+ youth. She emphasized that at its essence, a GSA serves as a protective element and is incredibly crucial, particularly in rural communities.