In 1988 a law was passed making it illegal for schools to teach about gay relationships. This was lifted in 2003. It’s now 2019.
The teaching of lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans and queer (LGBTQ) awareness in primary schools is something that’s got a lot of people talking. It’s also got a lot of people protesting.
Inclusivity in day to day life is everything. Without it, people are alienated and the effect that can have on a person’s personal development is detrimental. Children in schools are being taught about the LGBTQ community to ultimately tell them one thing: different is normal.
Yet, in Birmingham, crowds of parents gather outside school gates, believing they should have a say in what their children are taught. Is it that? Or are they just repulsed by the thought their children are being taught about same-sex relationships?
Either way, teaching young children to grow up respecting the choice and lifestyle of their fellow peers is something that cannot change. We are taught to respect people of different ethnicity, so why not sexual orientation?
And we need it now, as much as we’ve ever needed it.
Two women were on a night bus in London and were harassed by four men because they saw the couple kissing. They verbally abused them before physically assaulting them, punching them, and making off with some of their belongings. One of the girls posted a graphic picture of them both after the attack took place. The attackers were all teenagers, aged between 15 and 18. Would they have committed such a crime if they were taught about homosexual relationships during school? Appropriate education is the only way to combat hate crime.
Elected MEP Ann Widdecombe must also be mentioned in light of her comments, suggesting science might one day provide an answer for homosexuality. Despite slight distortion of her comments, with people implying she was suggesting science could become a ‘cure,’ they were extremely insensitive to make, and frankly quite stupid given the current climate around gay rights. Plus, Labour MP Roger Godsiff, said that he supported the protests and expressed that the teaching of LGBTQ awareness to children in primary schools is “age inappropriate.”
To hear of such things today is mind-blowing, and it’s certainly not something you expect to hear from Members of Parliament. If we don’t address the correct way to behave early on, such atrocities are only going to continue, and if not worsen.
The noughties saw a huge shift in favour of homosexual laws. Sometimes I think we forget just how recently things have changed. In 2000 a law was established that allowed gay and bisexual people to serve in the armed forces; in 2002 came a law that allowed gay people to adopt children, and 2003 saw the 1988 Section 28 act, which prevented teachers talking about gay relationships in school, lifted.
Civil partnerships were made available for gay couples in 2004; homophobic hatred became illegal in 2008, and it wasn’t until 2013 that England and Wales made homosexual marriage legal. It’s not until we see figures like this that we remind ourselves, prejudice against the LGBTQ is still so raw.
What amazes me is that the 1988 law was abolished in 2003, yet it was only confirmed schools would teach about gay rights in 2018, 15 years after. And just as schools begin to make progress to tackle hate crime, parents begin to protest.
The parents say it is a breach of their parental rights to not have a choice in what their children are taught. It’s a nice cover story. When will the protests be deemed as homophobic? When will they be told that they are discriminating the LGBTQ community, attempting to suppress awareness and the education of their rights?
We need to teach our children that being gay, bisexual or trans is a choice, and it’s one that needs to be respected. As children grow they’ll begin to learn everyone is so different from one another, and they should be taught to celebrate these differences, not use them as an excuse to ridicule others.
Originally published at https://www.kortext.com by Matthew Maynard
