Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey (R) this week signed a bill into law that removes anti-LGBT language from the state’s sex education curriculum, MetroWeekly reported.
The new state law, which goes into effect July 1, removes the requirement that educators teach that homosexuality isn’t an acceptable lifestyle and that being a homosexual is a criminal offense in the state.
The law also will require schools to notify parents about their intent to provide instruction about sexual education or human reproduction, with teachers sending copies of the teaching materials to parents upon request, according to MetroWeekly.
The bill was sponsored by House Rep. Laura Hall (D), who said that she downplayed the removal of the condemnation of homosexuality to focus on making the bill age-appropriate and accurate for the sexual education curriculum.
Courtney Roark, Alabama policy and movement building director for Unite for Reproductive & Gender Equity (URGE), said the new law is a hard-won fight for advocates who have been working toward this for years.
“We are proud that young queer and trans folks, in particular, made their voices heard in ending this harmful requirement. This win is just one step in the direction of the sex ed we’d like to see in Alabama, which is sex ed that is comprehensive and LGBTQ+ affirming,” Roark said in a statement.
This comes as Ivey signed a bill into law last week stating that transgender individuals are prohibited from competing on sports teams that align with their gender identity and another bill being pushed by state lawmakers for banning transgender youth from receiving gender-affirming health care.