DESANTIS GOES AFTER DIVERSITY MAJORS LIKE ‘GENDER STUDIES’

Jason Parsley

Students looking to major in Gender Studies may have to avoid Florida if a new law passes, banning majors disfavored by the Republican controlled legislature.

HB 999 already passed the House.

The Foundation for Individual Rights in Education blasted the bill.

“Efforts to purge universities of gender studies because of the viewpoints they advance are reminiscent of attacks on academic freedom abroad,” wrote Adam Steinbaugh on the organization’s website.

The law, if passed, would also prohibit majors and minors relating to Critical Race Theory, and Intersectionality.

reads. “Students gain tools for analyzing the construction of gender, the relationship between gender and power, and the intersection of gender with sexuality, nationality, race, ethnicity, religion, class, age and ability.”

The University of South Florida hosts a Department of Women’s and Gender Studies.

Efforts To Purge Universities Of Gender Studies

Some universities in the state have entire departments dedicated to women and/or gender studies like the Center for Women's and Gender Studies at Florida International University.

“Established in 1982, we promote scholarly inquiry related to women and gender,” the webpage promoting the center

“The mission [...] is feminist education, research, and practice. We promote social justice by engaging students in the discovery and production of knowledge that emerges from feminist perspectives on culture and society,” their webpage reads. “We teach students to use the analytic skills that emerge from engaging the intersections of gender, race, ethnicity, class, sexuality, ability, and nation in order to promote responsible citizenship in a diverse transnational environment.”

It’s unclear what would become of these departments if the legislation becomes law.