(AP Photo/Chiang Ying-ying)
A gay pride parade in Port St. Lucie, Fla., has been called off, and other pride events have been limited to individuals aged 21 and above. This move was made in anticipation of the signing of a bill by Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis that aims to prevent children from participating in drag shows, according to a report from WFLA.The “Protection of Children Act” or SB 1438 has been passed by both the state House and Senate. The act declares that businesses and individuals can be penalized for intentionally allowing a child to attend an adult live performance. Those who violate the law may be charged with a first-degree misdemeanor, resulting in a maximum of one year imprisonment and fines, as per the law’s provisions.
The Pride Alliance of the Treasure Coast announced the cancellation of the event on Wednesday.
“As all of you know, the political climate that we are currently in has us all very concerned for our community. After multiple meetings with city officials, it is with a heavy heart that Pride Alliance of the Treasure Coast has to announce that this weekend’s Pridefest will now be a 21 and older event,” the group explained in its Facebook post. “The city has decided that with the likelihood that the Governor will sign the latest bill into effect this evening, that we will need to be on the side of caution and has required us to make this necessary change. We are obviously upset and dishearten[ed] that it has come to this. We also regret to announce that we will have to cancel our plans to bring back our beloved parade.”
The bill defines “adult live performances” as any presentation that is performed in front of a live audience and displays or simulates nudity, sexual behavior, excitement, specific sexual acts, lewd conduct, or the indecent exposure of prosthetic or imitation genitals or breasts.
So, let’s recap the situation. Adults chose to cancel an event because they would not get to expose children to the sight of adults performing lewd acts in public. This raises the question: Are these events truly about celebrating gay pride, or are they instead intended to groom children?
The answer has been made plainly obvious. These people think if they can’t include young, impressionable children, then there’s really no point in having the event at all. Statistics show that younger generations are increasingly identifying as LGBT — particularly those who identify as transgender. A recent Gallup poll showed that fewer than 1% of Americans born before 1946 identify as LGBT, along with 2.6% of Boomers, 4.2% of Generation X, 10.5% of millennials, and 20.8% of Gen Z.
