Sorry To Be Posting About KOSA Again, I Dislike Getting Involved In Politics, But As A Queer Minor On

Sorry to be posting about KOSA again, I dislike getting involved in politics, but as a queer minor on the internet this is the one time i will.

I had a theory a while back that i considered withholding because it’s honestly really upsetting to think about. Realizing that it could even be a possibility hurt, and i’m sorry if it hurts you too.

I’ll keep it short. What if the governors who are trying to pass these bills know that cutting LGBTQ+ kids from information WILL encourage them to commit suicide, and they’re doing it to cleanse the “filth”? They’d have to find a roundabout way to end LGBTQ+’s future because they can’t just outright kill them.

I don’t know if it’s true, but it feels like it’d be pretty on-brand. Nevertheless, encouraging minors to off themselves in any way is RANCID, and even if they are trying to protect kids this is a shitty way to do that.

So how do we ACTUALLY keep minors safe on the internet?

TEACH THEM SHIT. Talk to them about how grooming happens, how to avoid getting into dangerous or illegal situations, how to be FUCKING KIND and MINDFUL, both because people are inclined to retaliate against rude comments even if they’re from children and because it’s just good to know how to be polite.

Wiping LGBTQ+ off the internet isn’t going to protect kids from a made-up threat of queer people brainwashing them into being gay. LGBTQ+ media isn’t going to make them gay either, because we grew up watching content with typical straight relationships and we still know who we are.

You know what i’ve seen firsthand? A little boy pretending to be trans like his big sibling. But that was okay, because at the end of the day he knew who he was.

Why do they think kids have no sense of their identity, and the notion that people can change their gender will immediately make them trans too? What significant damage will that do? Minors aren’t really allowed to get gender changing surgery besides puberty blockers so they can’t worry about kids “destroying” their bodies, and if they’re a functioning member of society then I don’t see the problem?? Maybe capitalism would benefit from accessible gender affirming care. Just sayin. More cash being circulated is better than a bunch of dead bodies :/