Shakespeare's Works Fall Under Censorship of Florida's "Don't Say Gay" Law
Students in Florida's school district will only read excerpts from William Shakespeare's plays, not the full texts. This decision comes as a consequence of laws enacted over the past two years, which prohibit LGBTQ+ and gender-related discussions as well as the use of sexually explicit materials in classrooms, reports the Associated Press.
The first law, dubbed "Don't Say Gay" by critics, was passed last year and forbade discussions about sexual orientation or gender identity in younger grades.
The second law, passed this year, expanded the ban on discussions about sex and sexual orientation to other grade levels.
The law also prevents the use of pronouns that do not correspond to a person's biological sex and strengthens a system through which individuals can challenge school textbooks.
Legislators stated that the legislation aims to protect children from sexual content. Some of Shakespeare's plays include bawdy jokes and allusions, and there are references to premarital sex in works like "Romeo and Juliet."
"There is some bawdiness in Shakespeare," said Joseph Cool, a reading teacher at Gaither High School in Hillsborough County, to the Tampa Bay Times. "Because that's what sold tickets in his day. But to remove Shakespeare entirely because somehow Romeo and Juliet's relationship exploits minors, that's just absurd," Cool added. "I think the rest of the nation – no, the world, is laughing at us."
Shakespeare's works are still available for checkout in school media centres.
"First and foremost, we did not remove Shakespeare from our high school program. The textbooks continue to be available to students to read excerpts from in class," the official statement reads.
"Instructional materials are continually reviewed and refined throughout the year to ensure they align with state standards and current laws," the statement emphasizes.
As noted by the Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC), this treatment of Shakespeare's works is not new, as "early editions of Shakespeare's plays were sometimes ignored or censored for slang and sexual language. But the First Folio, published in 1623, presents a text full of 'innuendo and rudeness.'