Mother challenges school over compulsory Pride march

[Imnobody4]

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After requesting that her son be withdrawn from the parade, Izzy was told that if her son did not attend it would be seen as a behavioural issue.

How is compulsory ideology going to foster inclusion?
If the family/child want to attend it should be up to them. Imposing acceptance through power is not acceptance.

I hope her case wins. Even if the school were morally right - allowing primary schools to aggressively champion overt political agendas onto primary school children is a dangerous precedent.

given a brief by the school to focus on the theme of “no hierarchy of equalities” during so-called Pride month (June)

So we’re to assume, of course, that as part of their sterling efforts to flatten the ‘hierarchy’ of equalities, they made sure they had a disability awareness parade as well?

And that they covered off misogyny, the right to practice religion and age discrimination?

Guess we’ll find out during the court case!

Do we know if Tribunal tweets, or similar will be covering the case?
Good luck to the parents anyway.

Of course its wrong to be made to take part at the age of 4.

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!

The case has begun. I wish Tribunal Tweets were covering it. This is all I've found.
www.express.co.uk/news/uk/1729512/Christian-Concern-Heavers-Farm-School-sued-Pride-march-LGBT

The court heard that Mrs Montague attended a meeting with Susan Papas and the headteacher’s daughter was there, with a t-shirt on which had the slogan: “Why be racist, sexist, homophobic, or transphobic when you could just be quiet?”

Giving evidence Mrs Montague was asked by Ian Clarke, representing the school, about her reaction to the letter she received about the Pride march.
He said: “So you get this letter on June 19 and you see that it is about celebrating 'the things that make our family special.'”
“You say the letter is forcing you into the indoctrination of an LGBT lifestyle, where does it say that?”

Mrs Montague replied: “I don't know I just felt a topic had come up.
“I clearly was not in the know about it, but this was the way, in my opinion, to try to indoctrinate it onto us by passing it off that it was part of law or part of British values, or it was part of the national curriculum, it was trying to sell something no one wanted to buy.”
In a blog published by the school about the event it said: “This June, the celebration of pride is about learning about the diversity of our whole school community and tackling bullying.”

Mr Clarke asked her: “As I understand you don't have a problem of celebrating the diversity of the whole school community and tackling bullying?”
Ms Montague said: “Me personally, it's not something I would celebrate . . . It's not something I would choose to celebrate.
“I think it's good the wider community comes together, and we learn and live together.
“I don't know if you mean celebrate as have a party, it's not something I would attend.”

Mr Clarke asked: “Isn't the school simply using the month of June to celebrate wider issues of diversity and tolerance?”
Ms Montague replied: “I believe it's using Pride month and other issues around that time to sell Pride month.
“I think you can easily celebrate diversity without even having anything do with Pride month.”
And when she was asked whether she would still be suing the school if the event hadn’t taken place in Pride month, she said: “If they did any form of celebration of any sexual lifestyles we will still be sat here [in court].”
“A month that celebrates sexual lifestyles Is a problem in any month.”

Mail Online reports that Montague, supported by the Christian Legal Centre, is suing the school on the grounds of direct and indirect discrimination, victimisation and breach of statutory duty under the Education Act 1996 and the Human Rights Act 1998.
This is the first time a UK court will scrutinise the legality of imposing LGBT ideology in primary schools.
The hearing continues.

That’s wild. What on earth was the head teacher’s daughter doing in the meeting? (Let alone the t-shirt and the massive shit-bomb of implying that a black woman might be racist and sexist and should be quiet! Mind boggling.)
And good for the mum for making one of her key objections that pride is one of the deadly sins. I’m not religious but that is a value that was once a part of British culture and has sadly been largely lost.

As an inside, is it safe to presume that this “march” took place on school grounds?

Absolutely fantastic move! Well done to this mother!

That’s wild. What on earth was the head teacher’s daughter doing in the meeting? (Let alone the t-shirt and the massive shit-bomb of implying that a black woman might be racist and sexist and should be quiet! Mind boggling.)

Advertising the families personality disorders?

Why was he so keen to have 4 year old celebrate adult sexualities? Is all so fucking creepy.

Honestly, I’m not sure anyone comes out of this terribly well.

No? Seems to me that the mother has covered all her bases. She’s clearly a holy rolled but that is her right.

The religion is irrelevant. The school should not be having a gay pride celebration. It could have an event celebrating kindness and tolerance - that would be worthwhile and hopefully non-contentious.

*holy roller

First listing:

www.gov.uk/government/publications/royal-courts-of-justice-cause-list/royal-courts-of-justice-daily-cause-list#county-court-at-central-london-hearing-list-for-cases-listed-at-the-royal-courts-of-justice

(This list will be superseded in time.)

I really hope she wins. Well done to her.

A 4 year old....the school are acting as 'groomers'. I'm not religious but I support the mother's right to have a massive say in what a 4 year old is exposed to. Fairly sure my own children didn't experience such indoctrination 20 years ago.

The fact that the head's daughter is employed at the school and then wears a t-shirt with a political slogan "During that meeting, Ms Papas’s daughter, who also works for the school, was present and wore a T-shirt with the slogan: “Why be racist, sexist, homophobic, or transphobic when you could just be quiet?”." suggests that the daughter is a young 20s of the type that has bullied her parents with her 'progresive' views and the head is too soft or frightened to stand up to her at work.

I have found out more about the daughter who is admin not teaching staff and it won't surprise anyone to learn is the writer of such papers as: "Images of the Phallus? A Feminist Psychoanalytic Approach to the Roles of the Penis, the Phallus and Hegemonic Gender Norms in "Feminist Porn"."

Whatever the reason for the head allowing this and whatever the out-come of the case the school govenors need to be asking questions about the daughter's behaviour and the head's seemingly nepotistic response to overtly-poltical behaviour at Heavers Farm Primary School.

Speaking of Christianity and primary schools, should we address the fact some primary schools are still assuming all children are Christian by default and requiring them to pray and sing religious songs?

"Fairly sure my own children didn't experience such indoctrination 20 years ago."

You're right. (Approx) 20 years ago we had section 28 and schools literally weren't even allowed to mention the words gay/bi/lesbian/trans at all.

I’m part of lbt and even I think the mother is in the right.

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

As long as they aren’t out and loudly saying gay people should burn in hell, then I have no problems.

You wanna be homophobic in your own home, go for it. But in public, I expect you to be decent

LGB* sorry. I refuse to use the T

In state-funded schools in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, parents do have the right to opt their children out of collective worship – and in England and Wales, this right transfers from parent to pupil once the pupil reaches the sixth form. Note that pupils can also be partly opted out, so it should in theory be possible to remove a pupil from worship, while ensuring they do not miss any assemblies that are conducted in an inclusive way, or indeed the parts of an assembly that are not spent worshipping. Pupils who are not yet in sixth form cannot opt themselves out of worship as this right rests with their parents.