Brody's Notes... Michigan Senate's GOP Passes Anti-Bullying Bill That Critics Charge Will Justify Anti-Gay Bashing

By Brody Levesque | LANSING, MICHIGAN -- The Michigan Senate Republicans in a 26 to 11 vote Wednesday passed the "Matt's Safe School Law" with virtually all Democrats voting against it. The bill is named for Matt Eppling, an East Lansing 14-year-old who committed suicide after being bullied by classmates in 2002. Under a last minute addition by Senate Republicans, critics charged that "students would be allowed to victimise others for any reason and cite a “moral conviction” as a basis for doing so."

The Senate Minority Leader, Democratic Senator Gretchen Whitmer, who represents East Lansing and environs, took to the floor angrily denouncing the legislation telling the GOP majority that; [...] "Here you're saying you're trying to protect kids when actually you're putting them in more danger." Whitmer was referring to the change in the measure's language which includes a section noting it doesn't abridge First Amendment free speech rights or prohibit expression of religious or moral viewpoints — a provision the minority leader said could be used to justify harassment of LGBTQ students.

In a phone call today, Senator Whitmer's Communications Director, Bob McCann told LGBTQNation that none of the Senate Democrats knew about the change in the language as it was introduced only a half hour before the vote. McCann noted that any "good intention the GOP may have had was ruined by the change in the bill's language." McCann also lamented that this measure "nullified all of the hard work that supporters, particularly all of the kids who came to Lansing to lobby for the bill, had put into getting it through the legislature."

Emily Dievendorf, Director of Policy for Equality Michigan said;

“Shockingly, Senate Bill 137 will do more harm than good. Senate Republicans left our students behind in favor of partisan politics and passed a bill that actually allows more bullying. Students and parents expect lawmakers to lead the charge against bullying, but instead Republicans made ideology more important than school safety.”

“Research clearly shows that only states with enumerated bills see a reduction in bullying. We need a bill that mentions the most affected populations and requires statewide reporting of bullying and harassment. SB 137 simply does nothing to reduce bullying in our schools.”

“We are grateful for the Democratic Senators that stood up for the right thing today by opposing it. It’s clear that they remain committed to keeping our kids safe and won’t settle for anything less. We hope that our representatives in the House will follow their lead and put our kids first.”

Senate Democrats unsuccessfully attempted to attach an amendment to the final version that would list characteristics — such as race, gender and sexual preference — which would be off-limits for bullying. Senator Glenn Anderson telling his colleagues that such policies which include detailed exemptions have held up under legal scrutiny in legal challenges that ultimately reach the U.S. Supreme Court.

"The Supreme Court … clearly says that enumeration is important," Anderson said.

The Senator also read a letter from Kevin Eppling, Matt's father, in which the elder Eppling stated:

"I am ashamed that this could be Michigan's bill on anti-bullying when in fact it is a 'bullying is OK in Michigan law.'"

Senator Whitmer, outraged, told her senatorial colleagues; "You have explicitly outlined how to get away with bullying!"

McCann says that the next step for the measure is the Michigan House, but he was not willing to predict the outcome only saying that "this wasn't the end of our efforts."

WATCH: Senator Gretchen Whitmer Responds to Pro-Bullying Legislation