Florida teen who gave presentation on Stonewall shows concerning photo from new classroom …

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Will Larkins, a 17-year-old junior at Winter Park High School in Winter Park, Florida, recently went viral online for giving a presentation on the 1969 Stonewall uprising to their history class. Larkins gave the presentation on March 31 and requested that a classmate film the presentation, which they gave in a dress and pearls, to post to social media later. Larkin reportedly received permission from their teacher to give the presentation, though according to the Washington Post, the teacher wasn’t actually familiar with Stonewall to begin with.

The class was learning about history from the 60s and 70s in the United States, and Larkin reportedly asked the teacher if they’d be covering Stonewall, and the teacher replied by asking what Stonewall was. According to the post, the teacher reviewed the 10-minute PowerPoint presentation Larkins put together before they spoke in front of the class.

Larkins, who founded the Winter Park High’s Queer Student Union, has openly opposed Florida’s hateful Don’t Say Gay bill, and has organized a walkout for students in protest of the discriminatory legislation. They’ve also written about their perspective for The New York Times and even testified against the bill in the Senate in Tallahassee, Florida, at the end of February. Now, according to Metro Weekly, Larkins has been moved to a different class and placed under an “investigation.”

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“Essentially, people were fed up with the abuse,” Larkins (accurately) explains in the video clip, adding that Stone was a “tipping point” for many LGBTQ+ people after decades of being discriminated against and targeted by police.

Here is the initial tweet and video from Larkins about their presentation.

According to updates Larkins shared on Twitter, the student they asked to film the class received a “referral” from school officials, and several other students who filmed the presentation did not. Larkins also shared a photo from a location they describe as their new history class which features a yellow “Don’t Tread on Me” sign on the wall. While the meanings of this flag have changed throughout history, it’s now commonly understood to be a symbol of the far-right.

“All of this really plays into a larger issue of adults not really respecting the youth’s voices,” Larkins told LGBTQ+ outlet Xtra in an interview. Larkins went on to say they do have some “allyship” within the school’s administration, but they still don’t understand why they’re effectively being punished. 

“When I look back to elementary school, I wonder how different my childhood would have been had my classmates and I known that I wasn’t some tragic anomaly, a strange fluke that needed to be fixed,” Larkins shared in their Times op-ed that ran on March 12.

“People in support of the bill always ask, ‘Why do these subjects need to be taught in schools?’ To them I would say that if we understand ourselves, and those around us understand us, so many lives will be saved,” they continued.

Larkins is right, of course. We already know LGBTQ+ youth report higher rates of depression, anxiety, bullying, and harassment. We already know they’re more likely to leave high school without a diploma. Trans youth, in particular, are being unfairly targeted over sports opportunities, in addition to basic dignities like using the bathroom and locker room. All students deserve to learn accurate, inclusive history, and that includes LGBTQ+ history. 

In terms of the Don’t Say Gay bill, this situation is actually a great example of how far the decidedly vague legislation can go. Supporters of Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis have said the bill only refers to young students, up to the third grade, and suggests people are overreacting by how far it can go.

But the bill drops some very broad language, referring to age-appropriate curriculum for any level, and this example from a high school classroom is a great demonstration of that. Who decides what’s appropriate, especially if the subject is inherently inappropriate at least some of the time?

There’s no level of LGBTQ+ inclusion conservatives are going to agree is appropriate—especially not if this becomes an easy issue they can latch onto just in time for midterm elections.