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Georgia bill: Bar teacher-student discussion about gender

Former Division of Children and Family Services Director Tom Rawlings, front seated left, and Republican Georgia Sen. Carden Summers, seated right, of Cordele, testify on Tuesday, Feb. 14, 2023, at the state Capitol in Atlanta. They favor a bill that would stop teachers from talking to students about gender. (AP Photo/Jeff Amy)
Jeff Amy/AP
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AP
Former Division of Children and Family Services Director Tom Rawlings, front seated left, and Republican Georgia Sen. Carden Summers, seated right, of Cordele, testify on Tuesday, Feb. 14, 2023, at the state Capitol in Atlanta. They favor a bill that would stop teachers from talking to students about gender. (AP Photo/Jeff Amy)

A Georgia senator says he wants to stop teachers from talking to students about gender identity. But Republican Sen. Carden Summers of Cordele admits his bill remains full of unintended consequences and must be redrafted. Summers defends the bill’s key premise, saying a law is needed to keep teachers from indoctrinating their students about changing gender identity. He also says a law should keep teachers from hiding a student's gender identity change from parents. Opponents say the bill would discriminate against students who are already emotionally vulnerable and even prone to suicide. They also reject the claim that educators are proselytizing to children about the topic.