Florida Republicans propose ban on girls discussing periods in schools

Legislation moving in the Florida House would ban discussion of menstrual cycles and other human sexuality topics in elementary grades. The bill sponsored by Republican Rep. Stan McClain would restrict public school instruction on human sexuality, sexually transmitted diseases and related topics to grades 6 through 12. The GOP-backed legislation cleared the House Education Quality Subcommittee on Wednesday by a 13-5 vote mainly along party lines. It would also allow parents to object to books and other materials their children are exposed to, require schools to teach that a person's sexual identity is determined biologically at birth and set up more scrutiny of certain educational materials by the state Department of Education.