Homophobic parents face prosecution
March 10th, 2009
Parents who refused to let their children attend school for a week during LGBT History month are to face prosecution.
More than 30 pupils missed a week of school at their primary school in East London because their parents did not approve of the school using materials which contained non-heterosexual partnerships.
Stories covered in the lessons at George Tomlinson School included a fairytale about a prince who turns down three princesses before falling in love with another prince, and the tale of Roy and Silo, two male penguins who fall in love.
Some students also watched a special adaptation of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, retitled Romeo and Julian.
Waltham Forest council has declared that children who missed the lessons will be viewed as truants. Possible sanctions could include spot fines, parenting contracts or court action.
“I didn’t want my children to be learning about this,” said parent Pervez Latif, who took his ten-year-old and nine-year-old out of the school.
“If I am faced with court action, then I will just explain that these are my views. It was also very difficult explaining to my nine- and ten-year-old boys why they were being removed from school.
“I found it difficult to explain topics such as homosexual relationships at such a young age.”
A spokesman for Waltham Forest Council said: “As part of the borough’s policy of promoting tolerance in our schools, children are taught that everyone in our society is of equal value.
“At George Tomlinson, parents were invited to meet with teachers and governors several weeks ago to discuss what work would be taking place throughout the national LGBT History Month and how this work would be delivered.
“Regrettably, some parents chose to remove their children from school. The council does not condone any unauthorised absence from school and action has been taken.”
And some people think we have achieved equality!
meagain ∼ March 13th, 2009 5:38 pmWhilst I understand the problems about this, I do think sending parents to court for not wanting to discuss homosexuality is not the right course to take. The parents’ opinions are clearly misinformed, but I do not think they are being deliberately homophobic. If you see the father’s quote, he does not blame the teachers, nor vocalise aggression at homosexuals, merely state that his children are too young to be thinking about homosexuality. As a bisexual woman, I do think we should be encouraging positive attitudes towards homosexuality, but I think obligatory state directed sex education is a step too far. I remember when I was nine I didn’t really think about sex that much; I remember i learnt what lesbianism was at Brownies (that sounds a bit funny!) and when I asked my parents, they just said ‘oh just a woman who falls in love with another girl’ and left it at that. Sometimes, the less you make of an issue the better it is.
Mimi ∼ March 28th, 2009 10:22 pm