EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) — Senate Bill 12 is quickly coming up to one month since going into effect and those whom it impacts the most continue to navigate its “vague” language.
“It is not OK to pass legislation that is so vague that what you end up doing is making sure nothing is available to anybody, and that includes the counselors and the teachers. That extends to the students who have no one to turn to and that includes the parents who really may not really know what all of this entails,” said Amber Perez, the executive director of the Borderland Rainbow Center.
Under SB 12, Texas public schools are required to receive parental consent for certain educational practices and inform parents about their rights regarding their child’s education and health services. Under the law, should an educator or counselor render services without explicit permission they are required to be disciplined by the district.
Also in SB 12 is the prohibition of diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives, meaning discussion and programs that reference DEI is not allowed. This immediately puts an end to the formation of student clubs and activities that focus on in-school groups that deal with sexual orientation and identity issues.
“We’re going to see people with higher rates of anxiety, higher rates of depression, higher rates of more than likely people dropping out as well. We’ve already seen some instances where queer youth have decided to kind of drop out and go into an expedited process of getting their high school diplomas and what not,” Perez said.
Supporters of SB 12 believe, however, that the way the bill is structured gives parents and guardians more rights and control over their children.
“This is supposed to be the government for the people, by the people, not government on the people, upon the people hindering the people. Right, and teachers in the schools are part of the government. They’re not supposed to be controlling the parent-child relationship,” said Michael Aboud, the chairman of the El Paso County Republican Party.
“I’m very much for something that straight and strengthens the parent-student relationship and enables parents to protect their kids from a lot of what’s going on in the world today. Schools, while they’re a great place, they’re not always the greatest. Parents need to be able to have a say in what happens with their children,” Aboud said.
On the Texas Education Agency’s (TEA) website, parents and guardians can find multiple resources about SB 12. TEA reports each district is supposed to provide parental rights forms to parents upon enrolling in the district or at the start of the school year. The forms are also supposed to be made available in an easily accessible location on the district’s website.
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