Every year, the best debaters from across the state of Florida attend FFL Varsity State, the Florida state debate championship run by the Florida Forensic League (FFL). This year, FFL chose to include a uniquely problematic bill in the finals docket of the congressional debate division. We petition for FFL to remove or replace this bill.

The bill in question bans gay conversion therapy for minors. This is an unequivocally good policy. However, in a debate round, there must be arguments made on both sides. There is no real negative argument that is not rooted in homophobia and violence. It is extremely irresponsible to put a room full of high schoolers in a position where they may have to defend or trivialize human rights violations against gay people.

This bill should be replaced or removed from the docket for several reasons.

1. This is an egregiously one-sided debate. Negation speakers could make squirrelly arguments about the "futher resolved" clause's policy of compensation, or they could they defend voluntary conversion therapy. These are not strong arguments, and are outweighed by the benefits of banning conversion therapy. At this point, negation speakers would have to mitigate or trivialize the harms of conversion therapy At the state championship, we should debate bills where there are interesting, engaging, and educational arguments to be made on either side of the bill - FFL has not met that bar.
2. This debate creates an opportunity for outright homophobia. I can only hope that any reluctant negation speakers would limit themselves to the above arguments, but Florida is home to burgeoning anti-LGTBQ sentiment. This debate creates an opportunity for prejudiced individuals to make downright hateful arguments in the negation of the bill. Although I'm sure this would not be tolerated by FFL, why even create the conditions for homophobia to rear its ugly head?
3. This discussion is inherently exclusionary. Many young Floridians have been victims of violent homophobia. There is absolutely no reason to subject them to a discussion where their rights and identity are put in question. It is harmful and downright reprehensible to put these victims in a position where they have to listen to bad-faith arguments against banning conversion therapy, or reject competitive opportunities to keep themselves safe.
4. This bill sets a very poor example. It is common for both students and tournaments to reuse topics from prior competitions. When the Executive Board of FFL signals that this is an appropriate subject for debate, they may perpetuate these same harms at multiple future tournaments.

How should FFL fix this? They could simply replace the bill. That would be pretty easy.

It is worth mentioning that, last year, the Texas state championship run by the Texas Forensic Association, decided to include a very similar bill in its docket. Students, educators, and coaches were extremely disappointed. A petition to remove the bill from the docket with 202 signatures succeeded.

Speech & debate is an incredible activity. The state championship is a wonderful opportunity for debaters from across the state to meet and compete with each other. That opportunity is a privilege we must protect by advocating for healthy norms, safe discussions, and engaging debates. The pressure on FFL to replace this bill starts with your signature.