- Nebraska’s state legislator claimed that schools provide litter boxes to students who identify themselves as cats.
- During a Monday televised speech on the floor, state senator Bruce Bostelman repeated the debunked rumor.
- After calling several schools in the region, he realised that his claim was not true and he later retraced his steps.
Monday’s apology came from a Nebraska state legislator after he falsely claimed that schools were providing litter boxes to students who self-identify themselves as cats.
The internet went wild this week when Republican Senator Bruce Bostelman made comments during a televised debate on a bill to help students with behavioral issues.
Bostelman stated that he wanted to talk about a topic that had left him feeling uneasy during his floor speech “a little shocked.”
“It’s something called furries,”He stated. “If you don’t know what furries are, it’s where school children dress up as animals, cats or dogs during the school day. They meow and they bark and they interact with their teachers in this fashion.”
—Jon Kipper (@jonnykip21) March 28, 2022
Bostelman said that he had heard stories about schools accommodating these children by putting litter boxes in their bathrooms. Bostelman claimed that a student who identified himself as a cat was refused admission.
litter box
And then he defecated on a floor.
“How is this sanitary?”He was curious.
This rumor, although debunked, has been persistent online among conservative parental rights groups ever since December, when a member brought up the subject at a Detroit-area school board meeting. The Associated Press.
The claim gained popularity in a private Facebook group, called “Protect Nebraska Children,”The outlet reported that the outlet had received an “” Iowa school districtIn this instance, the superintendent was forced by the parents to write a denial letter. “emphatically not true” rumor.
Bostelman stated that he would talk to the CEO of Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services regarding the Monday floor speech. “disruptive”The nature of the alleged accommodations.
Bostelman’s claims were rejected by several local school officials, who later told local news station KMTVThe accusation was true “ridiculous”And an “ugly rumor.”
Bostelman admitted that his initial remarks were false hours later. After making the public declaration the lawmaker stated that he had reached out over lunch to several schools with State Sen. Lynne Waltz, a Democrat, and discovered that they were false. In fact, educators weren’t providing litter boxes to children.
“It was just something I felt that if this really was happening, we needed to address it and address it quickly,”According to The AP Bostelman claimed.
Bostelman did no immediate respond to Insider’s request.