Nebraska State Senator Apologizes After Making False Claim That Students Are Dressing As Cats And Dogs And Shitting In Classroom Litter Boxes
[image via Helix Studios, which is not in Nebraska]
A Nebraska state senator has apologized after making the false claim that children are increasingly becoming “furries,” and schools are accommodating them by putting litter boxes into classrooms so they can piss and shit without having to leave and go to the restroom. This alternate reality sprung from fake news stories on Facebook (of course) that have been repeatedly debunked, but the lawmaker spoke about it anyway during a recent floor speech. So, in other words, just another typical day of utter GOP nonsense and Republican ramblings designed to provoke fear and hatred among brain dead voters and QAnon psychos. TribLive via AP:
A Nebraska state lawmaker apologized on Monday after he publicly cited a persistent but debunked rumor alleging that schools are placing litter boxes in school bathrooms to accommodate children who self-identify as cats. Sen. Bruce Bostelman, a conservative Republican, repeated the false claim during a public, televised debate on a bill intended to help school children who have behavioral problems.
“They meow and they bark and they interact with their teachers in this fashion,” Bostelman said during legislative debate. “And now schools are wanting to put litter boxes in the schools for these children to use. How is this sanitary?”
The rumor has persisted in a private Facebook group, “Protect Nebraska Children,” and also surfaced last month in an Iowa school district, forcing the superintendent to write to parents that it was “simply and emphatically not true.”
Still, the baseless rumor has spread across the country, and become fuel for political candidates, amid the culture wars and legislative action involving gender identification in schools.
Hours after his remarks, Bostelman backtracked and acknowledged that the story wasn’t true.
“It was just something I felt that if this really was happening, we needed to address it and address it quickly,” Bostelman said.
The furor over public school restrooms comes as a growing number of conservative states seek laws to ban transgender students from using bathrooms that match their gender identity.
[TribLive: Nebraska lawmaker Bruce Bostelman apologizes for debunked litter box claim]
Here was Bostelman’s speech to the Nebraska Legislature, which at least gives us something to laugh at during these troubling times:
Nebraska State Sen. Bostelman (R) falsely says that school children are being encouraged to identify as cats: “If you don’t know what furries are, it’s when kids dress up as cats or dogs, during the school day… Schools are wanting to put litter boxes in… for kids to use.” pic.twitter.com/MeQ9wiMVRw
— Heartland Signal (@HeartlandSignal) March 28, 2022
