Tim Walz did not sign Minnesota law protecting pedophiles

After US Vice President Kamala Harris named Tim Walz as her running mate in the 2024 presidential election, claims resurfaced online that the Democratic governor signed a bill protecting pedophiles in Minnesota. This is false; while lawmakers did remove a reference to pedophilia in the state's human rights law, sexual abuse of children remains illegal.

"Last February, the state of Minnesota (& Governor Walz) updated the law's definition of s*xual orientation to SPECIFICALLY INCLUDE adults who are attracted to children in a physical or s*xual manner," says the caption of an August 7, 2024 Instagram post from Isabel Brown, a conservative activist and podcast host, that accumulated thousands of interactions.

"No, this is not satire or hyperbole. Still think these people aren't trying to normalize this stuff? Make sure you know who you're REALLY voting for, America."

The same claim spread elsewhere on Instagram, Facebook, X, Threads, Reddit and other websites. Some conservative news outlets also reported on the legislation after Harris announced Walz as her pick for vice president in August 2024 (archived here).

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Screenshot from Instagram taken August 8, 2024

Walz, a former schoolteacher and member of Congress, has served as Minnesota governor since 2019. Harris named Walz as her running mate at the end of a three-week "veepstakes" following President Joe Biden's decision to end his reelection campaign.

Since being named to the Democratic ticket, conservatives have criticized Walz for his liberal policies as governor, including supporting legislation legalizing recreational marijuana use and a bill that allows undocumented immigrants to apply for driver's licenses.

However, Walz did not sign a law giving pedophiles legal protections in Minnesota. The claims build on a long-standing disinformation trope tying the LGBTQ community to pedophilia.

The posts reference the Take Pride Act, which Walz signed in 2023 as part of a larger public safety law (archived here and here). Among other measures, the legislation removed a line from Minnesota's human rights law saying pedophilia could not be considered a sexual orientation.

Democratic state Representative Leigh Finke, who introduced the legislation, said in a 2023 panel discussion that the bill "modernizes" the text of Minnesota's Human Rights Act and aligns the law with a "more contemporary understanding" of gender identity (archived here and here).

Some Republican figures criticized the proposal over concerns that removing the line about pedophilia could be interpreted as granting legal protections.

Republican state Representative Harry Niska introduced an amendment adding the line: "The physical or sexual attachment to children by an adult is not a protected class under this chapter." Lawmakers approved the amendment but later removed it, and it was not included in the final version that Walz signed (archived here).

Other news organizations debunked false and misleading claims about the Take Pride Act when it was introduced and debated in 2023.

Law 'clearly prohibits' pedophilia

Finke said the Take Pride Act removed "harmful" language from Minnesota statutes -- and that sexual abuse of children is still illegal.

"No serious observer of the Take Pride Act would conclude that pedophilia is a protected class in Minnesota, and we are not concerned that any court would find such an absurd claim based on the law in Minnesota," she said in an email on August 8, 2024.

Naomi Cahn, a University of Virginia professor who specializes in family law (archived here), said the claims circulating online are "false" and that the Take Pride Act has no effect on the government's ability to prosecute pedophiles.

"It was designed to update the language of the state's human rights laws, and one major purpose of the act was to protect against gender identity discrimination," she said in an email on August 8, 2024.

"There is no tangible effect in removing the pedophile language; the bill did not affect the criminal laws concerning sexual contact with a child."

Jill Hasday, a University of Minnesota professor who teaches family and anti-discrimination law (archived here), agreed that the state "clearly prohibits" sexual abuse of children.

Under Minnesota law, an adult who engages in penetration with a person under 18 or who has any sexual contact with a child younger than 14 can be charged with a first-degree felony, which carries a 30-year prison sentence, a $40,000 fine or both (archived here).

AFP has debunked other claims about the 2024 US presidential election here.