In a demonstration of solidarity, both Christian and Muslim communities, along with concerned parents in Ottawa, united to voice their opposition against the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board’s (OCDSB) initiative to mandate the use of non-binary pronouns for all students. The memo circulated to all staff members, instructed them to use ‘they/them’ pronouns for students until their preferred pronouns were disclosed. The directive also called for gender identities to be incorporated into all classroom resources and curricula across all grade levels.
The Ministry of Education had previously offered Ontario parents the option to opt out of sex education classes, but the new directive effectively bypasses this opt-out option. The memo, sent on May 31, read:
2SLGBTQ+ learnings should be offered to the school community without the option to opt-out. It is essential to understand that human rights are not open to debate or selective participation.
All staff at the @OCDSB received this email on May 31st, informing them that “2SLGBTQ+” representation in the curriculum and classroom is “a fundamental human right”, that opting out of “2SLGBTQ+ learnings” is not an option, and that teachers who want to “foster inclusivity” can… pic.twitter.com/3TjP97F2tk
— Chanel Pfahl 🇨🇦 (@ChanLPfa) June 5, 2023
Many parents objected to the board’s approach, particularly the imposition of non-binary pronouns on students without individual consent or consideration for cultural and religious beliefs. In a show of dissent, OCDSB saw high rates of absenteeism on June 1, the first day of Pride Month. Absences above 60 percent were seen in two schools and over 40 percent in nine others.
On Friday, a large protest was organized that escalated between the groups leading to physical altercations and some arrests. An activist against gender ideology and the medical transition of minors, known as Billboard Chris, attended the protest. In an interview, Chris said:
These schools will even change the name and pronouns of their child at school and not tell the parents, that’s a matter of policy. So, the Muslim community is not okay with this and I hope that I can work with them going forward to hold a lot of bigger protests than this.
What a great day this was. Biggest protest against gender ideology in Canadian history.
There were about 1000 people, with the numbers fairly evenly split between Canadians who want to protect kids, and extremists who want to harm them.
Canadians aren’t afraid to speak up… pic.twitter.com/HLG8lKzEGt
— Billboard Chris 🇨🇦🇺🇸 (@BillboardChris) June 9, 2023
One Ottawa mother, formerly associated with the OCDSB, spoke anonymously saying that the emails from the board sounded more like “LGBTQ propaganda.” It was not a stand against being inclusive, she clarified, but against the erosion of open discussion and the imposition of a radical stance that silences any expression of doubt or differing opinion. The mother has moved her son to the Catholic board, saying:
I was shocked with OCDSB—so many newsletters sounded like LGBTQ propaganda as if regular subjects were not important at all but this ideology was.
BREAKING: A showdown is ramping up right now in Ottawa after the school board told all teachers to call all kids by "they/them" pronouns, permanently. Everyone student is now non-binary, and protesters are getting furious. Situation escalating. pic.twitter.com/ZEL24gE2ry
— Keean Bexte (@TheRealKeean) June 9, 2023
Meanwhile, in the Canadian Province of New Brunswick, a policy change announced on Thursday moves to require parental consent for name and pronoun changes at school. The previous policy, in effect since 2020, mandated teachers to use students’ chosen names and pronouns without parental involvement. The new policy announced by Education Minister Bill Hogan states that children under 16 will now require parental consent to change their names and pronouns at school. Additionally, the policy no longer allows students to participate in activities based on their gender identity, and there is a new requirement for gender-neutral washrooms to be private.
Similar clashes with parents, especially members of the Armenian-American community, and left-wing progressives including members of Antifa broke out last week at a school in Los Angeles County.
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The aforementioned interview can be viewed here:
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