On Tuesday’s Jose Diaz-Balart Reports on MSNBC, correspondent Sam Brock decried Florida’s new law that would prohibit all grades third and under from discussing issues of gender identity and sexual orientation as unscientific, while asking a same-sex couple if “this is an example of just unadulterated bigotry.” Meanwhile, guest host Yasmin Vossoughian interviewed a kindergarten teacher who feared he would not be able to talk to his students about his personal life.
After decrying the law as “extremely vaguely written,” Brock declared that Florida deserves the blowback it has received, “it seems to be that is based on this idea that kids are exposed to conversations about those two things: sexual orientation or gender identity, might change who they love or how they feel or how they self-identify. Not only has that been debunked by science but that’s one of the reasons why you're seeing such a visceral reaction nationally to this law.”
Brock then introduced a clip of “two fathers who are same-sex parents...I asked do they believe this is an example of just unadulterated bigotry.”
Unsurprisingly, Brock’s interviewees agreed. One of them, Jeff Delmay, lamented, “we were told when we went through marriage equality and we won this great, sort of, success of equality, that just, be--be—ready—be ready-- for the opposition. Be ready, that they’re gonna come back in some way, full force. The real unfortunate thing in this situation is they’re dealing with it in the schools, that where kids are involved. I mean, come on. Children.”
MSNBC portrayed Delmay as an ordinary concerned citizen with a chyron that read, “Father of 12-year-old son, Same-Sex Parent,” but not only would 12-year olds be unaffected by the K-3 provisions, Delmay is also an activist and co-chair of Equality Florida.
After Brock’s report, such as it was, Vossoughian welcomed kindergarten teacher Cory Bernaert, who decried the legislation, “Yeah, you know, it’s—it’s-- two-fold, it really hits hard in my heart professionally and personally both ... I know my kindergarten standards through and through and nowhere in our curriculum does it have anything about teaching sexual orientation or sexual identity.”
Bernaert and Vossoughian also suggested that the law would not allow him to talk about his personal life, “I don't want to have to hide that my partner and I went paddle boarding this weekend, because then they ask, ‘what does partner mean, Mr. Bernaert?’”
For her final question, Vossoughian wondered, “How do you expect to navigate that—that—situation, because for, as a parent of a young child, I want to celebrate difference, and I want my child to celebrate differences as well and to learn about them?”
Bernaert decried the supposed hatefulness coming out of Florida, “Absolutely. You know, it is hard to navigate, especially when you have words that are ‘injecting,’ ‘indoctrinating.’ When you have those words coming from, you know, our state legislators, and our, you know, our higher government, those words, those are synonymous with some very hurtful words.”
If it is true this isn’t part of the curriculum, then Bernaert shouldn’t have any problems.
This segment was sponsored by E-Trade.
Here is a transcript for the March 29 show:
MSNBC Jose Diaz-Balart Reports
3/29/2022
10:51 AM ET
SAM BROCK: Yasmin, good to be with you. Certainly there has been no shortage of reaction here in Florida and across the country to this. Governor DeSantis saying it was absolutely necessary to pass this bill because he thinks parents need to have some level of agency or discretion over what their children are exposed to. Now, whether you support the law or you oppose the law, one thing, Yasmin, is very clear. It is extremely vaguely written. You mentioned a second ago, for those who are between kindergarten and third grade, they can't receive instruction or have conversation about sexual orientation or gender identity. Then beyond that age group though he says it has to be age dependent, or—or-- appropriate I should say, or developmentally appropriate.
What that actually means would have to be figured out by the court, so we're not there yet. Also, in terms of the underpinning of the law, it seems to be that is based on this idea that kids are exposed to conversations about those two things: sexual orientation or gender identity, might change who they love or how they feel or how they self-identify. Not only has that been debunked by science but that’s one of the reasons why you're seeing such a visceral reaction nationally to this law. Now, I spoke with two—two—fathers who are same-sex parents. They’ve brought their young child, Blake, since he was kindergarten to schools where they’ve been embraced by the community here in South Florida, they’re from Hollywood. I asked do they believe this is an example of just unadulterated bigotry. Here is their response.
JEFF DELMAY: Absolutely. Absolutely, and we were told when we went through marriage equality and we won this great, sort of, success of equality, that just, be--be—ready—be ready-- for the opposition. Be ready, that they’re gonna come back in some way, full force. The real unfortunate thing in this situation is they’re dealing with it in the schools, that where kids are involved. I mean, come on. Children.
…
YASMIN VOSSOUGHIAN: Just give me, first, your reaction—
CORY BERNAERT: Thank you, Yasmin, for having me. Excited to be here.
VOSSOUGHIAN: --to the Florida governor signing this into law.
CORY BERNAERT: Yeah, you know, it’s—it’s-- two-fold, it really hits hard in my heart professionally and personally both. Professionally it—it-- truly makes me feel like I am not trusted as a professional. I know my kindergarten standards through and through and nowhere in our curriculum does it have anything about teaching sexual orientation or sexual identity. So for them to say that that's happening that, you know, it is kind of crazy, but we should be able to have discussions and that's what we're encouraged to do in kindergarten and then personally because my—my-- kids do have discussions. They want to know who my partner is in pictures outside the classroom and I should be able to speak to them.
VOSSOUGHIAN: So—so--, do you worry that you won’t even be able to talk about your own personal home. Look, I have a child in kindergarten right now. I know exactly that my child has two teachers. One of which has a daughter at home and is single. The other is married and has four children. I—I-- know everything about their lives because my kid tells me.
BERNAERT: Absolutely and you are 100% correct. That's what we do as educators, we build relationships with our kids and in order to build relationships, you talk about your home life, you talk about what you do on the weekends as building community. I, it scares me to death that I am not going to be able to have these conversations with my children because they're going to ask about what I did on the weekend. I don't want to have to hide that my partner and I went paddle boarding this weekend, because then they ask, “what does partner mean, Mr. Bernaert?”
And you know, I’m worried, can I tell them what it means? I’m also worried for my kids. I have a little girl this year who has two moms and the kids are curious about her two moms, they want to know about her two moms. You know, if they come to, if they go to her and ask her about her two moms and she doesn’t know what to say, they're going to come to me and ask me and then, you know, so what do I do? It just, it opens up, for parents, to really take some legal action against the schools and teachers and I—I-- am afraid for myself, my colleagues, and my students.
VOSSOUGHIAN: How do you expect to navigate that—that—situation, because for, as a parent of a young child, I want to celebrate difference, and I want my child to celebrate differences as well and to learn about them?
BERNAERT: Absolutely. You know, it is hard to navigate, especially when you have words that are “injecting,” “indoctrinating.” When you have those words coming from, you know, our state legislators, and our, you know, our higher government, those words, those are synonymous with some very hurtful words. And, so when we think of, when I think about navigating this bill, you know, I—I-- am going to be mindful, but I'm going to follow my kids' discretion and what they want to discuss and if they ask me, I’m going to be true and honest to them because it’s who I am.
VOSSOUGHIAN: That’s who you are. Cory Bernaert, we celebrate who you are. Thank you.
