Opposing educational reform
Parents against gender ideology
On June 5th, 2016, the Peruvian Ministry of Education (MINEDU in its Spanish acronym) approved its new school curricula, making three changes. The first change concerned the uniformity of education, stating that public and private school systems, and adult education centers should have the same core subjects. The second change states that education should be contextualized according to Peru’s geographical, social, and cultural regions — which is counter intuitive if everybody should adopt the same curricula. The final change regarded grading, where Peru would stop using a numeric scale (from 0 to 20) and replace it by a letter system.
So far, so good. Everybody applauded these changes. That is, until we reach page 16 of the 116-page school curricula. Point 4 of the7 point program regards the curricula’s focus on Gender Equality (http://www.minedu.gob.pe/curriculo/pdf/curriculo-nacional-2016-2.pdf).
If you are unfamiliar with Spanish, here is a translation of point 4:
“4. Focus on Gender Equality. Every person, regardless of their gender identity, has the same opportunity to learn and develop. Gender equality refers to the equal acceptance of different behaviors, aspirations, and necessities of women and men. In a state of real equality, the rights, duties, and opportunities offered to people should not depend on their gender identity, and therefore, every person should have the same conditions and opportunities for personal development, contribution to social well being, and personal benefits as a result.
Despite the fact that what we regard as “feminine” or “masculine” is based on a biologically-sexual difference, these are in fact notions that we learn on a daily basis by interacting with others. Historically, though gender issues have affected women mostly, there have been moments when they have also affected men. As a country, if we accept gender inequality, we will fail to develop as a society nor will we become an inclusive democracy.”
The curricula states that gender issues affect Peru as a country and the MINEDU, as a leader of education and reform, can not turn a blind eye towards the ignorance that causes social strain and violence. Therefore, they propose to ameliorate their views on sexual education from a conservative standpoint to a more liberal position.
Many Peruvians applauded this change, after a majority of Congress voted against a law which would have granted gay and lesbian couples the right to marry. If Congress would not recognize the rights of their citizens, then something had to give. What did was a change within the very education system; taking a stand against ignorance was a major step towards a more accepting and inclusive society. The road to full gender equality was being paved.
Unfortunately, much like in the U.S. during the previous elections, fake news reared it’s ugly head. Leaders of several religious congregations and members of PTA groups, shared these posts on Facebook and other social media platforms to voice their concern. Images of naked boys with female genitalia and vice versa (Warning — graphic content: http://elcomercio.pe/visor/1950698/1544275-guia-educacion-sexual-cuestionada-no-se-encuentra-vigente-noticia) were said to be included in the curricula. In addition, sample literature that was to be taught showed a boy dressed like Little Red Riding Hood, while another danced and a girl played with tools was also distributed and criticized. Lima’s Catholic Archbishop Juan Luis Cipriani and parents argued that part of LGBT groups secret agenda was to turn their kids gay. So sprang the slogan: ‘Con mis hijos no te metas’ (‘Don’t mess with my kids’).
Peru is losing a battle to become a better country by submitting to ignorance. Conservatism, rooted and defended through the misinterpretation of the Bible, is beating out social inclusion. Fake news and fear is once again causing people to, in the words of Neil Peart, become “quick to judge, quick to anger, slow to understand.” When interviewing some of the parents protesting the changes to the curricula, one stated that God made us man and woman and that’s the way it should be. Another, a teacher, stated that it’s OK to be gay but that [gay people] should not impose their agenda on us (http://utero.pe/2017/01/09/conversamos-con-algunas-personas-que-hoy-adornaron-lima-con-los-carteles-de-conmishijosnotemetas/).
Though the curricula was approved, peaceful protests are still seen on every major street corner. People are concerned that their children will be taught “how to be gay”, which is preposterous. No sane person would propose this. What is being proposed, instead, is that we should be open to other people’s differences and we should be accepting of these differences. As the ministry says in it’s curricula: until acceptance is not achieved, we can not grow as an inclusive, democratic society.
