Coco Gauff Speaks Out Against Florida’s Anti-LGBTQ Bill

Coco Gauff noted Wednesday her opposition to a bill in her home state of Florida that would prohibit classroom discussion of sexual orientation and gender identity.

The “Parental Rights in Education” bill has been a point of controversy in across the country in recent weeks. The Republican-backed measure “bars classroom instruction in public schools on sexual orientation or gender identity for children in kindergarten through third grade, or from about ages 5–9,” per Reuters.

“I'm against it,” Gauff told reporters Wednesday ahead of her first match at the Indian Wells tennis tournament in California. “I think these conversations are important, and for me, who has friends in the LGBTQ+ community, I couldn't imagine not being able to talk about your identity. I feel that's something that is normal.”

“Every [LGBTQ+] person I've known has known that they were part of that community since they were young," Gauff said. “I think it's important that they have those conversations in school, because that is supposed to be a safe space to talk about everything.”

Gauff, 17, sports an 87–44 career record, including a win over Venus Williams at Wimbledon in 2019. She will face fellow American Claire Liu in her first match at Indian Wells on Friday.