It’s school trustee election time. Trustees have a huge impact on the direction schools take, but not many people turn out to elect them. Here’s why you should pay attention and vote.
Candidates are debating lots of hot topics. But none are as hot right now as Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity (SOGI) programming. In fact, for some candidates, that’s their main issue.
Some say that SOGI material shouldn’t be taught because it’s “too graphic.”
What’s so graphic about saying gay people exist?
SOGI programs let kids know that some people feel different on the inside than they look on the outside. Is that graphic?
Schools teach topics that are way more graphic than where babies come from. They teach about war and school shootings. They teach about residential schools. Why? Because kids need to know.
The point of our education system is to prepare kids for the world as it is, not the way some parents wish it was.
No candidate is out here saying we shouldn’t teach about war in school. Which is awesome, because lots of kids are in class with Ukrainian refugees right now. Yes, the topic is a lot for young people to handle. And war needs to be talked about in ways that kids can understand.
But kids need to know because it’s happening now and some of their classmates have just experienced it.
School educates our kids about the world so they are prepared to handle whatever comes their way.
Some grownups are gay. Some kids are trans. For our kids, this is a reality whether you like it or not.
Kids can either learn about people’s differences in a safe, accepting environment like school. Or they can learn it from the internet. Or they can face real-world experiences that they’re completely unprepared for.
When you boil it down, there’s only one question you need to answer: do you think our kids should learn about the world in school?
If you say yes, then that includes SOGI.
