MIAMI — Florida lawmakers voted to ban most abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy on Thursday, severely limiting access to the procedure in a state that has been a haven for women from across the South for decades.
A bill modeled on a similar Mississippi abortion ban that the U.S. Supreme Court appears willing to uphold is now heading to Gov. Ron DeSantis’ table as part of a determined Republican push to put the state at the forefront of national culture. war. Other legislation that is on the verge of passing includes banning the teaching of sexual orientation or gender identity in some elementary school classrooms and allowing parents to sue public school districts if students believe their teacher was trying to make them feel uncomfortable about history. event because of their race. , gender or national origin.
Passionate critics have dubbed this first proposal the “Don’t Say Gay” bill. Eager supporters dubbed the second bill the “Stop Wake Up Act.” Both are expected to be passed by the last day of the legislative session on March 11.
“We’ve accomplished more in this state than anyone could have imagined,” Mr. DeSantis told a rowdy crowd at the Conservative Political Action Conference in Orlando last week, “but I’ll tell you this: we’ve only just begun to fight.”
The effort comes amid a surge of conservative activism on state-level social issues across the country. On Thursday, Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds signed into law a law banning transgender girls and women from competing in women’s competitions. sports in public schools and colleges. In Texas, where the Legislature meets in 2021, Republicans have restricted abortion and the teaching of race in schools and expanded gun rights.
Republicans have controlled the Florida governorship and both legislative chambers since 1999. But the state has remained highly competitive in presidential and some state elections, a reflection of how its policies have mirrored those of the country: often evenly matched, and its leaders wary of alienating voters. if they went too far in extremes.
However, as national politics became more polarized, so did Florida. The state’s more robust conservative bias, a favorable environment for Republicans in the upcoming midterm elections, and Mr. DeSantis’ apparent presidential ambitions have spurred Florida leaders to pass legislation that previously seemed too divisive.
Last week, state officials passed a law that prohibits the teaching of sexual orientation or gender identity between kindergarten and third grade, “or in a manner that is not appropriate for the age or development of students according to state standards.”
On the same day, representatives also approved legislation that would ban schools from using educational materials and businesses from providing training to their employees that says a person is “inherently racist, sexist or oppressive, consciously or unconsciously.”
Proponents argued that the proposals empowered parents. The message has become a national Republican rallying cry against the doctrine of institutional racism in the aftermath of the police killing of George Floyd, as well as school closures and mandatory masks during the coronavirus pandemic.
Opponents countered that the sexual orientation and gender identity bill would have a chilling effect in classrooms outside of elementary school and would harm and exclude LGBTQ youth who are already at higher risk of bullying and suicide than their peers, and that a bill stating that how to teach History tries to unfairly punish teachers and reject the country’s racist past.
Last month President Biden criticized the bill on gender and sexual orientation on Twitter, calling it “hateful”. In Tallahassee, seven Republicans in the House of Representatives broke party ranks and voted no.
There are so few Democrats in the State Capitol that they can’t block or change most laws. Senator Lauren Book of Plantation, the minority leader, called the days remaining before the end of the session a “hell week.”
“This is probably one of the worst sessions I’ve ever seen where we discuss issues that will profoundly and profoundly affect the people of Florida,” she said.
Last year, the Legislature passed laws toughening penalties against protesters and banning transgender athletes from competing for some public school teams. Wallet issues, such as the high cost of housing across the state or the number of low-income Florida residents without access to health care, have largely gone unaddressed, Democrats lament.
Their frustration led to an agonizing public debate, sometimes with raised voices and tears. Women lawmakers on both sides of the abortion issue have shared deeply personal stories of their own sexual harassment, pregnancies and abortions. In one case, Democratic lawmakers said they were insulted by a Republican spokesman after a protest erupted at the end of a five-hour debate on an abortion bill that had passed a mostly partisan House of Representatives.
Florida currently allows abortions up to 24 weeks, with fewer restrictions than other southern states. The new, more restrictive proposal, which does not include exemptions for cases of rape or incest, was passed Thursday night after an emotional debate in the state Senate. It was approved by the State House last month, and Mr. DeSantis has pledged his support.
This summer, the Supreme Court is likely to uphold a similar Mississippi law. Such a decision would call into question Roe v. Wade’s 1973 decision, which established a constitutional right to abortion and prohibited states from banning the procedure until fetal viability, i.e. until about 23 weeks. Similar 15-week bans are being considered in Arizona and West Virginia.
In Florida, anti-abortion advocates after 15 weeks of gestation argue that significant fetal development is taking place by this point. They also directly referred to the Mississippi case and stated that they wanted Florida to be able to reduce the number of abortions immediately after the passage of a ruling supporting this law.
Florida has been on the cusp of a significant abortion restriction for some time now, with opponents targeting the state due to its relatively high rate and abortion rate. Pregnant women from other southern states with stricter laws have long been coming to Florida for the procedure.
In the past, the Florida Supreme Court has interpreted the right to privacy included in the state constitution as extending to the right to have an abortion. But in recent years, the court has become more conservative with the resignations of several judges who have been replaced by DeSantis appointees.
Some Republicans hoped to push for a ban on abortion after six weeks of pregnancy, as was done last year in Texas. The sponsors of Florida’s 15-week ban have presented their legislation, which at one time might have seemed unthinkably restrictive given U.S. Supreme Court rulings, as a compromise. (Exceptions are allowed if two different physicians can detect a “fatal fetal anomaly”.)
“This is a great start,” Andrew Shirwell, founder of anti-abortion organization Florida Voice for the Unborn, told Senators at a committee hearing. “But you all need to do a hell of a lot more.”
Of the approximately 68,500 abortions performed in Florida last year, about 4,100 were between 13 and 24 weeks of gestation, according to state data compiled for the Senate.
“If we pass this bill, babies will be more protected,” said Senator Kelly Stargel, the Lakeland Republican who initiated the bill in the Senate. “I’m going to do everything I think I can do to protect these kids.”
Mary Ziegler, an abortion law expert at Florida State University, said the approach shows that Republicans have realized they can go that far without alienating large parts of the electorate.
“At least some Republicans in Florida believe that the Florida electorate is more likely to vote than those in Georgia or Alabama,” she said. “They’re trying to do enough to please pro-abortion and anti-abortion donors.”
If Mr. DeSantis signs the bill or allows it to become law without his signature, Florida could serve as a trailblazer for conservative states that won’t immediately decide to ban abortion outright if Roe v. Wade is overturned, she added.
“If you listen to the Florida Republicans, they say, ‘We don’t think it’s a really good idea to do anything else right now,'” she said. “So Florida is a place to watch.”