Finally Christians and Muslims have something to agree on: They don’t want public school teachers teaching their children on matters that go against the teachings of their respective religions -- topics ranging from homosexuality and birth control to evolution and global warming.
In Ontario, Canada, newly passed Bill 13 promotes diversity and acceptance in an attempt to curb bullying. Punishing bullies used to be sufficient, but apparently not anymore. Now our kids need to be taught about sex -- both homosexual and heterosexual -- to avoid hurting anyone’s feelings.
Here’s a concept: Why not teach kids to respect all people, regardless of their skin color, gender, religion, or parental status? Why all of a sudden do kids need to be taught about sexuality, environmentalism, and religion (but not Christianity! Never Christianity) in order to play nice?
Back to Ontario and this Bill 13. Many parents have complained about the new policy, and have asked that they be notified when the controversial subjects will be taught in class, so that they may exempt their children from those sessions.
One parent, Steve Tourloukis, says:
I’m not an extremist, but I must ensure that my children abstain from certain activities that may include lessons which promote views contrary to our faith.
Tourloukis is suing the Hamilton school board for their refusal to communicate with him before his elementary aged son and daughter were taught in the classroom about “family, marriage, and human sexuality.” He is supported by the Parental Rights in Education Defense Fund.
Parents absolutely should have a right to notification and an option to withdraw their children from controversial teaching. Teachers’ rights to teach do not supersede parents’ rights to parent, and their wishes should be respected. After all, we’re the ones that are raising them -- from diapers to graduation caps; it’s parents that do the heavy lifting. When they turn 18 and go out into the world, they can complain to their therapists that mom and dad wouldn’t let them stay in class to hear how fish are more important than people, or how lesbians do it.
The state does not know how to raise our children better than we do, and the implication that they do is insulting. Kids don’t have to be taught about homosexuality in order to be nice to the kid with two mommies or two daddies. Kids rarely care about that stuff anyway. Let parents decide how much they want to tell their kids about alternative lifestyle choices.
While they’re at it, they should teach their kids to be kind to everyone, no matter what their families look like.
Image via Glen's Pics/Flickr
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Comments 84
That's the Progressive mantra though isn't it? "Tolerance for ME, but not for THEE."
I have an idea. Let's all segregate ourselves into micro-communities filled with people that think exactly the way that we do. That way our precious, precious children will never have to face anything that contradicts with what they're taught. Sound like crap? That's because it's a crappy idea. For one thing, if your faith can't hold up to anything that contradicts it then it's not much of a faith. For another, a wise parent might use these contradictory beliefs to educate their children ("this is what they think, and this is what we think, now what do you think?). Finally, sticking your head in the sand and ignoring things you don't like, or in this case trying to prohibit them, is a ridiculous idea and always has been. Oh, and Christianity has never been under attack by the government, the school systems, or any other governmental body. If so, these bodies would be actively teaching Atheism, which they aren't. Ok, rant over.
We're the parents, its up to us when our children learn topics that can be viewed as controversial.
You want to know why nobody teaches Christianity in schools? Look around at churches, honey. Everyone, even different members of the SAME church, have different opinions of what it means to be a christian. For the most part, other religions don't have that issue.Honestly, as a christian, I am GLAD it's not taught in school.Oh, and to the topic at hand;if you don't teach your kids from the start that other people think differently and WHY they do and what those thoughts are they wont understand them when they get older without great effort. My son is 2 and he knows that sometimes boys kiss boys and sometimes girls kiss girls and sometimes boys kiss girls and HE doesnt have to kiss ANYONE he doesn't want to. Why does he understand that at 2? Because I actually PARENT him. Oh yea, and he STILL believes in God and talks about God too. Isn't it wonderful how the KNOWLEDGE about the different people didn't make him not know God?!
Children should be educated about EVERYTHING so they can choose what is right and what is wrong for themselves.
If anyone ever tried to teach my child about homosexual sex, I'd be pissed. Homosexual relationships I'd be okay with, IF it's done carefully and not to the detriment of the societal and physical norm of a heterosexual relationship. But if my child wants to know what two men or women do together, or how they make a baby, I want to be the one to talk to them about that.
Sp your Christianity is so innocuous that it should be taught, but not other religions or tolerance for other kid's family or beliefs- show your bias much?
Almost half of Americans DON"T believe in evolution....f**k what some uneducated parents think, we are WAY too behind and will continue to be so with this kind of attitude.