FL State Senator Lauren Book Teaching K-3 About Sex Under “Safer, Smarter Kids” Program
April 7, 2022 Updated 5:54 P.M. ET
TALLAHASSEE (FCV) – According to school documents reviewed by FCV, Florida State Senator Lauren Book (D) is running an organization that, in an attempt to guard against sexual abuse against children, teaches youth as young as kindergarten about “private parts” and other sexual-specific topics.
Book runs an organization named Lauren’s Kids, and some schools are implementing their curriculum titled Safer, Smarter Kids. Officially, the listed intention of the program is to teach about “abuse prevention and personal safety.”
She is a strong opponent of H.B. 1557, the Parental Rights in Education Act.
According to the curriculum chart, children as young as kindergarten are learning about various sexual topics like “private parts,” “safe and unsafe touches,” and “safe and unsafe secrets,” all of which are listed vaguely and could be taught however explicit or censored the instructor desires.
One category that is universal across all ages, from grades K-5, is the “Crosswalk to Human Trafficking.” Listed lesson topics do not delve into specifics, with some being titled “Characteristics of Safe Adults,” “Physical Safety,” and “Body Boundary Violation.”
The organization sends parents a letter informing them of the child participating in the Safer, Smarter Kids program. It is not clear whether the program is required or optional, but wording of the letter suggests it is mandatory.
“Over the next few weeks, your child will be participating in the Safer, Smarter Kids abuse prevention and personal safety curriculum program,” it reads.
Book has been the Florida Senate Democratic Leader since 2021.
After Governor Ron DeSantis signed H.B. 1557, which bars sexual orientation and gender identity teachings as class discussion for young children in grades K-3, Book was a stark critic of the legislation, saying that the Florida Governor “signed yet another piece of divisive and particularly cruel legislation.”
“Dismissive and uninformed Republicans claims [sic] the reason for national outrage is because we haven’t read the bill. We read it.”
She claimed that the term “sexual orientation” was not defined in “simple terms” in the legislation.
“Not only will Florida teachers be punished, and school boards mired in needless litigation for allowing classroom discussion about a student’s own family structure, but children with LGBTQ+ family members will be shunned and shamed by the very institutions that protect them,” she went on.
