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rfmcdonaldNews of the controversy in Ontario over the new provincial sex education curriculum have made it to other side of the planet. See, for example, the Russian Demographics Blog's coverage.
It's worth noting that the controversy appears to be rooted in misunderstandings and the occasional lie. Fears of "indoctrination" are overblown, at best, while there are any number of outright lies regarding some of the more ridiculous claims. Rob Ford has been quoted in the National Post as opposing it, even though he's actually quite wrong about what the new curriculum actually involves.
One thing noted by, among others, the National Post's Chris Selley is the extent to which opposition has transcended the conservative Christian community. Selley looked particularly at Muslims.
Others, like Selena Ross and Sahar Fatima in their article in The Globe and Mail, http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/toronto/coalition-of-the-pure-how-ontarios-sex-ed-protests-hit-critical-mass/article24350160/">"Coalition of the pure: How Ontario’s sex ed protests hit critical mass", looked at how it transcended any one immigrant community. Chinese and Polish parents are also mentioned.
Part of me thinks that this inclusion of immigrant communities in the public discourse is a good thing, even if some people in these communities are disagreeing with what I'd prefer. Better that they participate than not, no? Part of me also wonders if, as Ross and Fatima suggest, this is also a consequence of disengagement on the part of these communities from the rest of the greater Toronto area, a product of failed communications between immigrant families and the educational authorities and of broader anomie. Three Torontos, perhaps, or two?
It's worth noting that the controversy appears to be rooted in misunderstandings and the occasional lie. Fears of "indoctrination" are overblown, at best, while there are any number of outright lies regarding some of the more ridiculous claims. Rob Ford has been quoted in the National Post as opposing it, even though he's actually quite wrong about what the new curriculum actually involves.
Ford says he’s against the provincial Liberals’ revised sex-ed plan because he has two kids in Grade 2 and Grade 4 who “should not be talking about what anal sex is” or what oral sex entails.
According to the new curriculum, however, kids will be in Grade 7 and 8 before they discuss anal and oral sex, as well as contraception, preventing pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections.
Students in Grade 2 will be learning about the stages of development and related body changes, and the concept that “no means no.”
By Grade 3, students will learn about same-sex relationships and children in Grade 4 will learn more about the dangers of online bullying.
Ford — who once made reference to oral sex on live television — says he told his children to walk out of class if they start being taught about anal or oral sex.
One thing noted by, among others, the National Post's Chris Selley is the extent to which opposition has transcended the conservative Christian community. Selley looked particularly at Muslims.
Thorncliffe Park elementary school, in a predominantly Muslim area of Toronto, reported attendance on Monday of 130, according to the Toronto District School Board — 130 out of 1,350 students. That’s just nine per cent who showed up, though on Tuesday it had rebounded … all the way to 16 per cent.
At nearby Valley Park Middle School — best known for controversially hosting congregational Muslim prayers in its cafeteria on Fridays — Monday attendance was just 38 per cent.
Their parents are mad as hell about Ontario’s new sexual education curriculum, and they’re boycotting the entire curriculum, for up to a week, as a result.
Five years ago, when then-premier Dalton McGuinty abandoned much the same curriculum, conservative Christians were generally considered the culprits or heroes, depending on one’s standpoint. And they’re still on the warpath against the curriculum, which with a few tweaks is finally set to go into effect for the next school year.
But the school boycott is a multicultural affair, and the most stunning absenteeism numbers reportedly come from the Muslim community, which was not nearly so prominent in the 2010 debate.
Reports from a Monday protest in Thorncliffe Park suggest concerns range from the specific (introducing the notion of “gender fluidity,” too early or at all) to the conspiratorial (accusing the government of “indoctrinating children with a minority lifestyle”) to downright apocalyptic: freelance journalist Javed Zaheer warns of the “total destruction” of his grandchildren’s generation.
Others, like Selena Ross and Sahar Fatima in their article in The Globe and Mail, http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/toronto/coalition-of-the-pure-how-ontarios-sex-ed-protests-hit-critical-mass/article24350160/">"Coalition of the pure: How Ontario’s sex ed protests hit critical mass", looked at how it transcended any one immigrant community. Chinese and Polish parents are also mentioned.
Part of me thinks that this inclusion of immigrant communities in the public discourse is a good thing, even if some people in these communities are disagreeing with what I'd prefer. Better that they participate than not, no? Part of me also wonders if, as Ross and Fatima suggest, this is also a consequence of disengagement on the part of these communities from the rest of the greater Toronto area, a product of failed communications between immigrant families and the educational authorities and of broader anomie. Three Torontos, perhaps, or two?
