Trans+ Education in Schools

[inkysplatter]

I I came across this article earlier about a dad facing jail and/or a £2,500 fine for keeping his son out of school for sex ex.

The whole thing is ghastly, especially the book about the teddy. What would you do as a parent?

Quote:

'During a protest outside the school in September, Mr Hussain told BirminghamLive: “We are not against anyone expressing their sexuality or being homosexual if that’s what they want.

‘We have no issue if Mr Moffat wants to put on a dress, or dance around like a ballet dancer, or put on a skirt, we have no issue. We have an issue with teaching that nonsense to our kids.”
In his legal challenge, he also claimed the school ‘goes well beyond teaching acceptance for different types of families. For instance, it advocates for children to be whatever they feel they might be (including in relation to gender)…’
The letter to the council also stated the programme “reinforces the message that it is ‘good’ to be transgender” and claimed – wrongly according to Mr Hussain – that gender identity is a protected characteristic under the Equality Act 2010.
The book ‘Introducing Teddy’, used as part of the No Outsiders programme in the school, was held up as an example of the content that Mr Hussain condemned.

The book is about friendship and features a boy teddy who reveals he would rather be a girl teddy.'

metro.co.uk/2020/02/03/dad-refuses-send-son-school-lgbt-lessons-facing-jail-12175523/

Take it to court and escalate it as high as possible, while involving everyone I could possibly think of.

Other people have rights too.

It's interesting because this school is very open about its message but I worry that some schools will put across the same information but parents will not know.

Well yes OP, there are many many organisations doing the same, I could name about 10 off the tops of my head, every parent with a child in school needs to check a number of things including the PSHE and RSE lesson content and the red flags from SSA

safeschoolsallianceuk.net/resources-2/factsheets/

This is also useful for parents with children who might need help.

www.bayswatersupport.org.uk/toptentips

Do you ever stop and think, “I’m on the same side of the argument as an obviously homophobic arsehole - this can’t be a good thing.”

Do you ever stop and think, “I’m on the same side of the argument as an obviously homophobic arsehole - this can’t be a good thing.”

Says the person on the Jonathan Yaniv side of the argument. Is it possible that one bad person believing a thing doesn't automatically make the entire argument black and white?

What has happened in Birmingham is terrible. Clearly much of it is motivated by Homophobia. Still I would not like that book being read to my kid, or one or two other bits of the (generally good) no-outsiders programme. I wish the school had found a way to accomodate concerns, while keeping the inclusive message.

The book is here, in case anyone wishes to look:

Do you ever stop and think, “I’m on the same side of the argument as an obviously homophobic arsehole - this can’t be a good thing.”

No, because I don't base my opinions on 'whose side I'm on' and haven't since I was about fifteen?

Shades of grey. Individual positions. You don't have to plan your moral stance on every issue by finding someone nice to hold hands with.

I’m gender critical but increasingly accept that, particularly in the under 25 age group, those views are like hen’s teeth. That man’s views -that it’s wrong to teach children it’s ok to be gay -are shocking to me. To a lot of young women and girls our gender critical views are as shocking as that obvious homophobia.

I’m going to put my energy into fighting for the rights of women and girls in a way that is acceptable to that age group too. I’m not going to fight a losing battle on the definition of ‘woman’. That fight is over in schools up and down the country. I’d rather fight for the safety and dignity of girls in gender neutral toilets and changing facilities and the adequate provision of facilities for ‘menstruators’. Use their language and you can still make changes, arguing for floor to ceiling cubicles and wash basins within the toilet stalls. Try to talk about your concerns about those with penises in women’s changing rooms and toilets and your views are easily dismissed.

That fight is over in schools up and down the country.

That may be, but not because of the kids. I teach children. A recent cluster of ROGD has meant that this gets discussed quite a bit amongst my youngsters. Belief in Genderism is certainly not the majority.

Many have heard misconceptions about the Science and most are very tolerent- even protective- of though having difficulties; but the majority who I've heard see through the twaddle.

To a lot of young women and girls our gender critical views are as shocking as that obvious homophobia.

I don't think it's true that concern for women's rights (expressed with respect and kindness for those with whom those rights may conflict) gets mistaken for analagous to homophobia by anyone except nasty TRAs.

Really? That’s comforting.

I've watched the video of that book about the teddy. Teddy changes gender so easily - because teddies have no sex and just a made-up identity. Not comparable to a person in any way! Also I missed the page about teddy going off to be put on puberty blockers and looking at surgery down the line. If I read that as a child I'd think changing sex was as easy as snapping your fingers. It's one big fucking lie and I am really angry that is being given to children.

Even of those young people who don't understand GC views, IMO they are going to be very shocked when one day to discover a lot of what they have believed begins to fall apart. All this business about sex being nonbinary, and medical transition of adults and kids, etc, is not going to hold up in the face of reality.

Biological reality came as quite a shock to a lot of us.

Do you ever stop and think, “I’m on the same side of the argument as an obviously homophobic arsehole - this can’t be a good thing.”

I dunno, Floribundance, do you ever stop and think "I'm on the same side as a bunch of male rapists trying to get into women's prisons"?

I'm not sure you actually are gender critical, based upon what the words 'gender' and 'critical' mean. I acknowledge that you identify as such, of course, but I would say you don't appear to be very critical of gender at all, judging by your posts.

If the whole thing can be resolved by one side "using the other's language" then I'd just as soon have the people with penises use 'men' for themselves, rather than women being degraded to menstruators, gestators, or cervix havers. Thanks all the same though.

I’m not going to fight a losing battle on the definition of ‘woman’. That fight is over in schools up and down the country.

Yeah, so that's not how fighting something actually works. That's called rolling over and giving in.

And yes it turns out I am in an agreement with a homophobe on this. Incidentally I had my nose broken by a large group of homophobes many years ago, and yes I'm still okay with our shared stance.

Have you even heard of lesbian erasure? Bi erasure?