Conservative Christian complaining about rainbow flags was left speechless by this simple response

Attendees of a Florida state senate hearing laughed at an anti-LGBTQ+ group member and applauded after a senator interrupted his hateful rant and told him to stop talking.

Their exchange happened during a Tuesday hearing on S.B. 1120, a bill that would prevent any government building (including post offices and schools) from displaying any flag that “represents a political viewpoint, including, but not limited to, a politically partisan, racial, sexual orientation and gender, or political ideology.” The bill’s text makes it clear that it’s particularly directed against the rainbow Pride flag.

Related:

GOP lawmakers in two states are trying to ban Pride flags in schools

One of the bills would ban Pride flags even on government buildings

In a hearing about the bill, John Labriola of the Christian Family Coalition Florida told the state’s Senate Committee on Governmental Oversight and Accountability that the flag was “deeply offensive” to people of faith and not inclusive because “there is no color there for ‘heterosexual,’” The New Civil Rights Movement reported.

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“We don’t want government pushing an ideology,” he added. “We believe that this [flag and its ideology] is demonic. Why should Christians be forced to subsidize something that is demonic? The idea that a child can change their gender, that’s included in the rainbow flag, that’s an ideology — that’s included in the rainbow flag.”

“[The bill] takes the ideology and the indoctrination out of the school room and also empowers taxpayers to not have to subsidize the ideology that has harmed so many people, both parents and children,” he said without mentioning who has been harmed or how.

Florida state Sen. Tina Polsky (D) sarcastically commented, “I want to make sure we’re all aware of the terrible dangers that await our students,” then asked, “How does a rainbow flag indoctrinate students?”

“A rainbow flag is intended to promote the concept to students that there’s such a thing as transgender, that you can change gender, that sexuality, you know, should be celebrated if it goes against heterosexuality because it doesn’t, it doesn’t promote heterosexuality. It promotes homosexuality. It promotes bisexuality, it promotes everything except heterosexuality. So that’s indoctrination.”

“We kept hearing about ‘queer students,'” he continued. “An adult does not have the right to put that label on a child. That label has to do with sexual activity. If a child is below 18, that is a form of grooming and pedophilia. When you say ‘queer student’ — those two words should not be juxtaposed.”

During his brief pause, Polsky said, “You should stop talking.” People in the room then laughed and applauded as Labriola stammered and said, “I’m sorry?”

He soon continued, saying, “That is grooming and that is pedophilia, whether you like it or not. You do not put that label on a child because you’re essentially saying that child can be sexually active.”

Polsky then said, “I’m not sure what any of this has to do with flags,” before concluding, “I’m done with this person.”

Florida Christian anti-LGBTQ activist falsely says "that label 'queer' has to do with sexual activity," and using the term "queer students" is "a form of grooming."pic.twitter.com/3zRzYQDzO5

— David Badash (@davidbadash) February 7, 2024

A person can identify as LGBTQ+ without being sexually active because LGBTQ+ is an identity, not an act. Right-wingers, however, often claim that the very existence of LGBTQ+ people is sexual, pornographic, offensive, and a threat to children’s safety — just as they have claimed for decades.

Luckily, other witnesses at the hearing spoke against the proposed bill, which has been stalled in legislative committees due to the opposition against it, Florida Politics reported.

Joe Saunders, Senior Political Director of the state LGBTQ+ advocacy organization Equality Florida, said, “The intention of the bill is to target one community — my community.”

A man named Tom Nurse said the “poorly-drafted bill” was “about hate” and a distraction from “really important things that need to be done.”

Lola Smith, a 13-year-old nonbinary student, said she doesn’t want to defend her identity in school and would “rather be in math class,” Florida Politics reported. “It’s hard to be queer” in state public schools right now, she said, because they have no “safe space” for LGBTQ+ students.

Last year, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) expanded a “Don’t Say Gay” law that punishes educators from any instruction on LGBTQ+ issues. The bill has silenced LGBTQ+ allies who fear retaliation for speaking in support of queer students.

DeSantis supports S.B. 1120. “If you take a position that we’re going to fly the American flag and the state of Florida flag and that’s it, it’s not targeting anybody. It’s basically saying that we’re not going to get into this business of doing this,” he said.

The bill’s author, state Sen. Jonathan Martin (R), said his legislation is meant to “unite… everybody, regardless of who they have sex with.”

S.B. 1120 also contains a provision allowing military service members to use “reasonable force to prevent the desecration, destruction, or removal” of the U.S. flag or make it fly lower than any other flag. Martin said veterans are more entitled than civilians to care about the flag, though he said this broadly worded part of the bill wouldn’t justify assault, even though the bill and Florida law don’t specify what “reasonable force” allows.