Almost daily we see news about parents and teachers fighting against radical political and sexual agendas promoted in both private and public schools. While many teachers, schools and staff do terrific work, troubling examples abound of what’s happening in education:
- The Newport-Mesa Unified School District posted on its Facebook page on August 28, “On Friday evening, one of our teachers created a personal social media post that caused alarm and concern related to saluting the American flag.” The post received hundreds of comments from outraged parents. The teacher, Kirstin Pitzin, said on TikTok videos that the U.S. flag “made me uncomfortable,” showed dozens of LGBT flags in her classroom, encouraged students to say the pledge to an LGBT flag, and said, “I pledge allegiance to the queers.” She is now under investigation by the district.
- Because of parental backlash, seven Virginia school districts are defying a state law that required school districts to implement “Model Policies for the Treatment of Transgender Students in Virginias’ Public Schools,” reported The Family Foundation, a Focus on the Family allied organization. The policy includes forced use of transgender pronouns; asks schools to hide a child’s sexual identity struggles from parents; and requires schools to allow students to use locker rooms, showers and restrooms based on a student’s declared “gender identity.”
- At Clarksville, Tennessee’s Minglewood Elementary School a September 1 video shows school staff members changing the Pledge of Allegiance to say, “one nation undivided” rather than “one nation under God,” reported Karen England, executive director of Capitol Resource Institute. Over the summer parents protested the school district’s lack of transparency and openness, as it has a policy where “members of the public are only allowed to comment on agenda items and only after the district approves their comments.”
Scenes like these are playing out across the country, as the COVID-19 pandemic, with students learning from home, exposed the extremist agenda indoctrinating children.
Parents and concerned citizens should be aware that sexual and political messages don’t just come in the classroom. As explained in our resource Back To School For Parents: A busy parent’s guide to what’s happening in your children’s classrooms and practical steps you can take to protect them, other avenues parents should be aware of include school libraries and databases; health clinics and counseling offices; and Wi-Fi, internet and electronic devices.
For example, while some schools only have nurses who care for minor injuries and dispense medications, other school districts have full-blown health clinics. In 2019, Planned Parenthood announced that over the next three years it would open “reproductive health centers” at 50 Los Angeles high schools. The clinics provide “testing and treatment for sexually transmitted infections (STIs), emergency contraception and birth control counseling and provision … and pregnancy options counseling,” Planned Parenthood said.
In California, children as young as 12 can receive treatment for pregnancy, mental health issues and STIs – without parental knowledge or consent.
One Seattle mother signed a consent form for the school’s clinic to treat her 15-year-old daughter while in school. The mother thought her consent just meant treatment for minor ailments or offering routine physicals. She was outraged when the school not only provided pregnancy testing for her daughter but excused her 15-year-old from class and even helped her get a taxi to an abortion clinic—all without informing the mother.
School libraries may offer inappropriate books to children. The group Parent and Child Loudoun began fighting in 2019 to remove offensive and sexual books from school libraries. They found that many books incorporated LGBTQ themes in grades as early as kindergarten. Middle and high school books had graphic sexual and offensive language, including descriptions of underage drinking, masturbation, sexual intercourse, sexual abuse, statutory rape, incest and rape.
Schools often offer internet access and electronic devices for student use. Even with filtering software, students can be exposed to violence, pornography, online bullying, profane sites, games, and other materials that are age inappropriate and harmful.
In Oklahoma, an 11-year-old boy saw pornographic pictures on a computer screen in class. His mom said, “A piece of his innocence was taken from him that day with no warning, no explanation and no malicious intent. My son was 11 years old when he was first exposed to pornography. It happened on a school device while he sat in a sixth-grade classroom.”
Back To School For Parents includes practical help on how to protect your child at school, as well as guidance for parents on how to talk with children about these difficult issues.
Each section covers different topics, such as how to protect your child from inappropriate or biased material in the classroom, what to do when you find offensive or explicit books in your school library, and how to guard your child’s safety in school restrooms and locker rooms.
This free, 124-page, downloadable PDF offers guidance on nine different areas, provides useful information about parental rights and children’s rights; gives suggestions about how to respectfully advocate on behalf of your child; and includes links to additional helpful articles and resources.
Photo from Facebook.