Inspirational student banned from saying ‘gay’ in grad speech - so he said ‘curly hair’ instead

A student who banned from using the word “gay” in his graduation speech has gone viral, after talking about his “curly hair” as a euphemism in inspirational footage.

Zander Moricz is the first openly gay class president of Pine View School in Osprey, Florida, but was forbidden to mention his sexuality in his speech.

Before addressing his fellow students, Moricz posted about his feud with the school administration on social media and said he was warned that his microphone would be cut off if he mentioned his activism during his speech.

The clip, which has been shared far and wide by moved social media users, sees him speak about Florida's humid climate towards people with "curly hair".

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"I used to hate my curls. I spent mornings and nights embarrassed of them, trying desperately to straighten this part of who I am—but the daily damage of trying to fix myself became too much to endure,” he says in the speech.

"So, while having curly hair in Florida is difficult—due to the humidity—I decided to be proud of who I was and started coming to school as my authentic self.”

Zander Moricz Grad Speechwww.youtube.com

He also said that his teacher Miss Ballard answered his questions "because I didn't have other curly-haired people to talk to.”

"It's because of the love I've drawn from this community that I came out to my family. Now I'm happy… And that is what is at stake. There are going to be so many kids with curly hair who need a community like Pine View and they won't have one,” he added.

He later said in an interview with Good Morning America: "I knew that the threat to cut the mic was very real, so I wasn't going to let that happen. I just had to be clever about it.

"But I shouldn't have had to be because I don't exist in a euphemism. I deserve to be celebrated as is."

It comes following a controversial piece of legislation aimed at restricting schools in the Sunshine State from teaching students about sexual orientation and gender issues.

Dubbed the “Don’t Say Gay” bill by its critics but formally known as the “Parental Rights in Education” bill, the text of the legislation states that “classroom instruction by school personnel or third parties on sexual orientation or gender identity may not occur in kindergarten through [third grade]” or “in a manner that is not age appropriate or developmentally appropriate for students in accordance with state standards” in other grades.

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