Florida teachers sue over preferred pronouns law

Three Florida teachers filed a lawsuit against the state Wednesday for its law banning teachers from using their preferred pronouns in school, which the plaintiffs argue violates their constitutional rights.

The lawsuit takes issue with Subsection 3 of the Florida statutes that went into effect in July. This subsection states that any public school employee “may not provide to a student his or her preferred personal title or pronouns if such preferred personal title or pronouns do not correspond to his or her sex.”

The three teachers argue the law discriminates against transgender and nonbinary people who work at the schools and violates their constitutional rights.

The lawsuit said the law violates their freedom of speech because “it prohibits Plaintiffs from using the titles and pronouns that express who they are, the same way that their colleagues do.”

“Through subsection 3, Florida has stigmatized Plaintiffs, threatened their psychological wellbeing, upended the respect that is owed to them as educators and that is necessary for a safe workplace and functioning classroom, and put their professions and families’ wellbeing on the line,” the lawsuit states. “Florida’s statute must give way to the Constitution and laws of the United States and must not be enforced.”

The law is one of several measures targeting LGBTQ rights in Florida that has been enacted over the past year. The American Civil Rights Union says four anti-LGBTQ laws have been passed in the state this year.

Florida’s Orange County Public Schools earlier this year sent out a memo informing students and parents of the new law, saying no state employee can provide their preferred pronouns to students if it does not correspond with the “employee’s or contractor’s biological sex at birth.”

It also mentioned a separate law, warning transgender employees and students would have disciplinary actions taken against them if they use a bathroom that corresponds with their gender identity.

The Florida Department of Education declined to comment on pending litigation.

The Hill has reached out to the office of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) for comment.

Updated at 4:44 pm.