A clip has resurfaced from an Irish teachers’ union conference, in which a keynote speaker tells schools “don’t send a letter home…[or] hold a parents meeting” regarding LGBT+ education.
The clip is being shared by parents groups on social media amid growing concern that a revised curriculum may require that young children be taught that gender is fluid, biology doesn’t determine sex, and even about pornography.
“So we’ve had to have parent consultations, and the only advice I can give you around that is, don’t send a letter home to say you’re about to embark on this work,” said the speaker in the rediscovered clip.
“That’s the worst thing you can do.”
Sent to me by a parent earlier: pic.twitter.com/D1ILAWr6F0
— Ben Scallan 🇮🇪 (@Ben_Scallan) July 27, 2022
The remarks were made on February 8th 2020 by Dr. Elly Barnes, CEO of Educate and Celebrate, which is a UK based LGBT+ education charity. Barnes was speaking at an “Equality Conference” of INTO, Ireland’s largest teachers’ union, which took place at the Clayton Hotel in Co. Wexford.
According to INTO’s website, the theme of the conference was “The LGBT+ Inclusive School.”
“Don’t hold a parents meeting,” continued Barnes.
“You don’t want 30 parents shouting at you – who wants that in your life? That’s an awful thing to do.”
Barnes said that instead of asking parents if you can teach this material to their children, teachers should instead simply offer help to parents in discussing the matters at home.
“You’re not asking them if they like it or not,” she said.
“That’s not the issue – it’s in policy, we have to do this work.
“But you can say, on which of these equality strands do you need help? You know – do you need help talking to your child about racism? Do you need help talking to your child about disabilities? Do you need help talking about sexual orientation, gender ideology? And just see what comes back. So you’re doing it in a more supportive manner.”
The 2020 clip has emerged again on social media amid controversy regarding Ireland’s newly updated SPHE and sex education curriclum, which will include, among other things, gender identity and pornography.
Children will be taught about porn at Junior Cert as sex ed curriculum is modernised for first time in 20 yearshttps://t.co/C7mTrZ5Iab
— Irish Daily Mirror (@IrishMirror) July 19, 2022
A recent article by Independent.ie journalist Eilis O’Hanlon has gone viral, urging parents to “not consent to propaganda disguised as sex education,” prompting scrutiny from parents regarding Irish school materials.
"Contentious theories are being presented to young people as if they were irrefutable expressions of reality. And it’s being done to deliberately encourage experiments in “gender fluidity" by people who do not understand or care about the dangers." https://t.co/9RzvbCaCYL
— Eilis O'Hanlon (@EilisOHanIon) July 24, 2022
Gript has recently done a series of articles investigating some of the controversial content recommended by Ireland’s national curriculum body, which can be found below.
Irish primary teachers discouraged from saying “boys & girls”
Irish curriculum advises teaching babies they can be transgender
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