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Original poster

Mother challenges school over compulsory Pride march

69 replies

Imnobody4 · 31/01/2023 18:34

This looks like an important case.
christianconcern.com/news/mother-to-challenge-school-that-forced-4-year-old-to-take-part-in-pride-event/

A Christian mother whose four-year-old son was required to take part in a school’s LGBT pride parade against her will is to have her legal case heard in court this week.

Izzy Montague made national headlines after being aggressively told by the headteacher of Heaver’s Farm Primary School in Croydon, South London, that her son could not opt-out of the Pride event, despite the families’ Christian beliefs.

The case is the first time that a UK court will scrutinise the legality of imposing LGBT ideology on primary schools. The court will look at the impact it has on religious discrimination, the human rights of parents and their children, the right to opt out of sex education, and a schools’ duty of political neutrality. The case is set to be heard at Central London County Court for eight days, from Wednesday 1 February 2023.

The deputy head teacher was a trained Stonewall ‘champion’ who was given a brief by the school to focus on the theme of “no hierarchy of equalities” during so-called Pride month (June). No advance warning was given to parents, and Izzy only learnt of the parade from a newspaper article.

After requesting that her son be withdrawn from the parade, Izzy was told that if her son did not attend it would be seen as a behavioural issue.

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ScrollingLeaves · 26/04/2023 20:12

It seems extraordinary that
a child is supposed to go on any pride March for any reason whatsoever.

It would be interesting to see a transcript of the whole court hearing. Would it have failed because of some terms relating to what Christianity is? Or because a Pride March May not explicitly promote an anti-Christian stance?

IcakethereforeIam · 26/04/2023 18:59

Yes, thank you @Magenta82 it worked. The mother says she is going to appeal.

PurpleBugz · 26/04/2023 17:49

I wonder if it would have gone differently had she not been Christian. Or not challenged based on faith but on the appropriateness of sexual information to a 4 year old.

That said it wouldn't protect the kids as they got older

ScrollingLeaves · 26/04/2023 17:34

It was reported in the Times today that the mother lost her case. Unfortunately I do not have a share token.

Here is another report I found:
christianconcern.com/news/parents-to-appeal-in-4-year-old-forced-pride-parade-case/

Notaflippinclue · 04/03/2023 15:36

The judge has not ruled yet - Izzy Montague the mum of the 4 year old is a brave woman to push back on this bullying ideology, let's hope the judge sees sense. The worms are definitely turning.

SinnerBoy · 04/03/2023 13:51

happydappy2 · Today 10:08

Unless the Mother threatened violence she should not have been banned from the school-staff claiming feeling 'unsafe' due to a differing point of view is ludicrous & unprofessional.

It's absolutely ridiculous, isn't it? Compare it to the teacher posting here, who was subjected to 25 minutes of aggressive abuse by a child's father and had no back up at all.

PorcelinaV · 04/03/2023 11:00

happydappy2 · 04/03/2023 10:08

OP please update this thread when you hear more. Unless the Mother threatened violence she should not have been banned from the school-staff claiming feeling 'unsafe' due to a differing point of view is ludicrous & unprofessional. (Not in the best interests of the child at all.) Schools are in a tricky position at the moment-how can they promote acceptance of LBG and T when T is actually incredibly homophobic-denying the existence of same sex attraction! Good luck to this Mother, I think the 3 hour detention is crazy, and the Head teachers daughter clearly is pushing her own agenda.

Schools could either just stay out of it completely, or allow both viewpoints, including e.g. that homosexuality is sinful, and "GC" views on the trans issue.

It's actually not that difficult imo whichever way you go. It's just that schools don't want to be impartial in some cases.

happydappy2 · 04/03/2023 10:08

OP please update this thread when you hear more. Unless the Mother threatened violence she should not have been banned from the school-staff claiming feeling 'unsafe' due to a differing point of view is ludicrous & unprofessional. (Not in the best interests of the child at all.) Schools are in a tricky position at the moment-how can they promote acceptance of LBG and T when T is actually incredibly homophobic-denying the existence of same sex attraction! Good luck to this Mother, I think the 3 hour detention is crazy, and the Head teachers daughter clearly is pushing her own agenda.

PorcelinaV · 04/03/2023 09:16

The objection to section 28 was always along the lines, "we don't want to promote homosexuality, but this scares teachers away from being able to mention it at all".

Funny that we now see the promotion of homosexuality in schools.

PorcelinaV · 04/03/2023 09:07

Southwestten · 03/02/2023 22:27

We don’t force religion on children. Why should we force this?

Agree.

Well we do force religion on children at schools by law, but the parents can opt-out.

PaterPower · 03/03/2023 08:28

from the earlier linked article:

”Where we could bring everyone together and say they were proud of what they had learnt”

This smacks of disingenuousness from the Head. The ‘Pride’ event / march they held was clearly Pride with a capital P, not pride in “what they had learnt”

Original poster
Imnobody4 · 02/03/2023 10:22

I haven't seen anything. There hasn't been any coverage of the head being cross examined which I always find the really revealing bit.
Ì think we're just waiting for the verdict which seems to take ages.

OP posts:
tenthousandmaniacs · 02/03/2023 09:50

Has anyone got an update on this?

FlawlessSquid · 11/02/2023 10:27

It's highly likely in these extreme cases, the school staff, headmaster or relevant teacher, belong to the LGBTQ+ group & I won't be surprised if they don't have their own biological children. Any reasonable parents wouldn't treat children like this.

MorvenOfMalvern · 10/02/2023 11:45

The stuff about the detention is really shocking. It seems this 5 ye old has been treated really badly. Where's Ofsted? The LA safeguarding? No school should be testing Reception children like this. I can't believe their defence is justifying it in court...

"No, all children misbehave, but not like that,’ said the father.

‘And you agree when a child misbehaved at school the school is entitled and must address those issues...your son misbehaves and gets sent to leadership room, you accept that?’ asked Mr Clarke.

‘No I don’t accept that and I don’t accept that they kept him there for over three hours and that he has another detention the following day,’ said Mr Montague.

Mr Clarke said: ‘You say that your son has been picked on because you and your wife complained about LGBTG event yes?’

‘Yes,’ replied Mr Montague."

ScrollingLeaves · 08/02/2023 16:21

+Ms Papas said: ‘I was trying to support members of staff who said they did not feel safe around her*.

Safe from being beaten up by her? Or safe from hearing her say she doesn’t want her child taught certain things such as TW are not W?

dinosauriam · 08/02/2023 16:20

In my experience, detention is strictly a senior school thing and more like 30 minutes than 3 hours. Hard to believe a Mother as switched on as this lady would have been willing to leave her child in detention at this school where staff inappropriately wear political slogans on their clothing.

BashirWithTheGoodBeard · 08/02/2023 16:19

I tend to smell a rat if black women are portrayed as threatening when they happen to be saying something an institution doesn't like.

Original poster
Imnobody4 · 08/02/2023 16:03

The Head teacher is on the stand now being questioned by her own solicitor, I'll be interested in the cross examination. I can't get my head around a 3 hour detention for a 5 year old. Is this normal.

www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-11723581/Christian-mother-banned-four-year-old-sons-school.html

Giving evidence Ms Papas said the mother was banned from the school because staff ‘did not feel safe around her’.

Ms Papas told the hearing the aim of the parade was ‘to pull everything together, to have a happy cheerful event at the end of the year.

‘Where we could bring everyone together and say they were proud of what they had learnt and reflect on topics we’ve covered over the year, bringing everyone together with everyone’s families.’

Ian Clarke, representing the school, asked the headteacher: ‘What was the purpose behind the teaching of the home in reception?

Ms Papas replied: ‘The teaching in reception was simply to know there were different kinds of families in the class and other families existed in the world.’

Judge Christopher Lethem said: ‘So, no hierarchy of equalities?’

Ms Papas said: ‘In reception level it was just how they could all feel comfortable that other families exist or if their family didn’t look like the others, that’s ok.’

Mrs Montague has claimed the school ‘picked on’ their son and teachers gave him a three-hour detention after she made the complaint.

She was banned from the school after a series of concerns surrounding her behaviour towards staff, the court heard.

‘What were you trying to achieve in banning Mrs Montague from the school?’ asked Mr Clarke.

Ms Papas said: ‘I was trying to support members of staff who said they did not feel safe around her.

OP posts:
Whitefly · 06/02/2023 13:36

This was covered on BBC2 at lunchtime as was misogyny hate crime.

The BBC were very disingenuous. They had trans activist MPs and were not covering the topic from the view that misogyny hate crime being used by men against women.

There were three failed attempts to speak to the mother 😬, they were not accepting that there are potential sterilising of her son issues, safeguarding issues and gaslighting.

It was reframed as the only society that's acceptable is the world view of the panel, no inclusion of this family. Lots of bigot allusion, deliberately talking about two mums not a penis haver called Janet rubbing his thighs at the though of a four year old getting unfair detentions.

I raised an eyebrow at Emily Thornbury calling others deluded earlier in light of her opinions.

I was chatting to a man recently who brought up the unrealistic PC on the TV, he told me, how all the men he knew were complaining it's just not reality. Smug Emily thinks her world view is accepted by all, it's not.

TheWitchesAreBackInTown · 05/02/2023 11:12

I know a reception age girl who won’t use the toilet at her school because the toilet door opens straight into the classroom and she’s freaked out about the idea of boys being right outside her door when she has her pants down.

I also knew of a mum who was sexually abused as a child who needed a lot of support and reassurance that her little girl would be absolutely safe in the school environment around toilets and changing for PE etc. I can't imagine the anxiety and stress she is going through as her daughter goes through the school system in such environments.

BashirWithTheGoodBeard · 05/02/2023 09:01

DemiColon · 04/02/2023 22:34

People put a line between ideology that they see as religious, and those they don't. It's pretty artificial, though.

Show quote history

Yes, I think that about sums it up.

Stardu · 04/02/2023 23:19

MorvenOfMalvern · 31/01/2023 19:54

There's a link to an article from 3 years ago. Apparently a yr 1 child wrote that their dream was for boys to use the same toilets as girls..

www.thetimes.co.uk/article/mother-sues-croydon-primary-school-over-pride-parade-h6mv5cvnw

Wearing a t-shirt like that as SLT is completely unacceptable! Am so shocked!

I know a reception age girl who won’t use the toilet at her school because the toilet door opens straight into the classroom and she’s freaked out about the idea of boys being right outside her door when she has her pants down.

She comes home with painful tummy/ constipation, or wets herself during the day.

But sure, let others ‘dream’ about a world in which little girls have no privacy from the male gaze at all.

DemiColon · 04/02/2023 22:34

TheWitchesAreBackInTown · 04/02/2023 13:57

Most Jehovah Witnesses I met withdraw their children from religious content or celebrations. They are accommodated. Why should this be any different for a different group of people about a different ideology?

People put a line between ideology that they see as religious, and those they don't. It's pretty artificial, though.