{"id":1664694,"date":"2022-09-29T13:40:08","date_gmt":"2022-09-29T17:40:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1664694"},"modified":"2022-09-29T13:40:26","modified_gmt":"2022-09-29T17:40:26","slug":"if-schools-teach-masturbation-poems-under-youngkin-crackdown-what-are-they-doing-in-other-states","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/if-schools-teach-masturbation-poems-under-youngkin-crackdown-what-are-they-doing-in-other-states\/","title":{"rendered":"If Schools Teach Masturbation Poems Under Youngkin Crackdown, What Are They Doing In Other States?"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">30<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fif-schools-teach-masturbation-poems-under-youngkin-crackdown-what-are-they-doing-in-other-states%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1664694&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><div><\/div>\n<p>A high school teacher in Fairfax County, Virginia, recently read aloud to her 10th-grade English class the poem \u201cFingers,\u201d an explicit account of a young girl masturbating. The poem was excerpted from\u00a0\u201cThe Poet X,\u201d a provocative coming-of-age novel by Elizabeth Acevedo assigned to sophomores at Madison High School in Vienna. Despite last spring\u2019s passage of a law requiring advance notification of explicit sexual content, parents were provided no notice of either the read-aloud or the sexual content of the book (other than a general Disclaimer of possible mature content at the end of a syllabus listing the titles only).<\/p>\n<p>This incident highlights the growing sexualization of kids in Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS), an effort long led by the school board and permeating both curriculum and recently passed transgender policies. The trend has been countered by Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin\u2019s\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/doe.virginia.gov\/instruction\/model-policies-concerning-instructional-materials-with-sexually-explicit-content.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">law<\/a>\u00a0on parental notification of explicit materials, and, most dramatically, by his new\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/doe.virginia.gov\/support\/gender-diversity\/2022-model-policies-on-the-privacy-dignity-and-respect-for-all-students-town-hall.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">transgender policy<\/a>\u00a0requiring parental consent for gender-bending in schools. But fierce opposition is mounting in Virginia\u2019s largest school system, and the battle lines are drawing national attention.<\/p>\n<p>Undergirding the <a href=\"https:\/\/christopherrufo.com\/sexual-disturbance\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">sexualization<\/a> of children across the country is the portrayal of parents as potentially <a href=\"https:\/\/abigailshrier.substack.com\/p\/should-public-schools-be-allowed\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">unsafe<\/a> while schools are <a href=\"https:\/\/abcnews.go.com\/US\/wireStory\/mother-teachers-manipulated-child-change-gender-identity-82405978\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">trusted<\/a> allies, as well as a willingness to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.city-journal.org\/michigan-education-department-radical-gender-teacher-training\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">keep parents in the dark<\/a> about curriculum and their child\u2019s decision to pretend to be the opposite sex at school.\u00a0The stakes couldn\u2019t be higher, as\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/abigailshrier.substack.com\/p\/the-chronicle-cries-for-activist\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">reports<\/a>\u00a0multiply of\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/arlingtonparentcoa.wixsite.com\/arlingtonparentcoa\/what-schools-are-doing\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">schools<\/a>\u00a0secretly helping children so-called\u00a0\u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.city-journal.org\/michigan-education-department-radical-gender-teacher-training\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">transition<\/a>,\u201d sometimes\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/abigailshrier.substack.com\/p\/not-a-kitchen-table-issue-jen-psaki\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">playing a part<\/a>\u00a0in parents losing their child.<\/p>\n<p>Youngkin\u2019s victorious \u201cParents Matter\u201d campaign galvanized weary family advocates, and his new policies are cause for hope. But forces are rallying against such initiatives, including school boards, teachers\u2019 unions, heavily funded ideological groups, and Democrat Party leaders. In Fairfax, the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.townhall.virginia.gov\/L\/GDocForum.cfm?GDocForumID=1953\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">public comment period<\/a>\u00a0for Youngkin\u2019s transgender policy opened Sept. 26, with comments exceeding in a day the comments received in a month about the previous guidance. A Fairfax-based student LGBT group staged a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.msn.com\/en-us\/news\/us\/va-students-walk-out-of-classes-in-protest-of-youngkin-transgender-policy\/ar-AA12i7v0\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">walkout<\/a> protesting the Youngkin policy on Sept. 27, joined by students in many Virginia schools. <\/p>\n<p>White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre signaled President Biden\u2019s support the same day as a \u201cpartner and \u2026 strong ally,\u201d adding that the president is \u201calways proud to speak out against mistreatment of that [transgender student] community.\u201d With Fairfax wielding disproportionate influence on national education policy, the battle will reach far beyond Virginia.<\/p>\n<h2>Parents as Oppressors, Schools as Saviors<\/h2>\n<p>The protagonist of\u00a0\u201cThe Poet X,\u201d\u00a0Xiomara, explores her sexuality and rebellion against God in secret from her oppressively religious and punitive parents, while both she and her brother secretly date boys. Finding her voice through poetry, Xiomara becomes her own god. Throughout, she lies to her parents while growing closer to the novel\u2019s priestly figure: her English teacher.<\/p>\n<p>The rationale offered for choosing this novel was \u201cdiversity\u201d of perspective \u2014 in this case, a Hispanic one. Fairfax\u2019s richly diverse communities are often deeply religious and culturally conservative. Why, then, choose an author whose portrayal of religion, parenthood, and sexuality could offend so many in this community \u2014 if they but knew?<\/p>\n<p>A deeper dive into the English curriculum reveals a year\u2019s worth of \u201cdiverse\u201d texts featuring sexual abuse, sexual minorities, and sexual development. Who anointed the high school English department as the instructor of teen sexual experience \u2014 all without notifying parents?<\/p>\n<p>The answer is simple.\u00a0\u201cThe Poet X\u201d\u00a0reflects many FCPS leaders\u2019 view of themselves as sexual progressives rescuing students from obscurantist parents and outdated religious beliefs, while ushering them into the real world where they can embrace their sexuality.<\/p>\n<h2>Practice of Shutting Out Parents Continues\u00a0<\/h2>\n<p>Former Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.newsweek.com\/mcauliffe-saying-parents-shouldnt-tell-schools-what-teach-big-factor-election-poll-1649488\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">lost<\/a>\u00a0his election after he defended vetoing a bill requiring parental notification of sexually explicit book assignments, with the tone-deaf statement that parents shouldn\u2019t \u201cbe telling schools what they should teach.\u201d And yet, the McAuliffe doctrine lives on, with parents provided only title lists, buried in cumbersome software platforms and featuring a general statement at the list\u2019s end that texts \u201cmay\u201d contain mature content, with alternatives available upon request. <\/p>\n<p>Some books, such as George Orwell\u2019s\u00a0\u201c1984<em>,<\/em>\u201d\u00a0may have value outweighing concerns over sexual passages. Parents, however, are best positioned to know which children can handle mature content and which have sensitivities, learning disabilities, or past experiences that could render texts problematic, or even traumatic.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Once elected, Gov. Youngkin signed the explicit content bill into\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/doe.virginia.gov\/instruction\/model-policies-concerning-instructional-materials-with-sexually-explicit-content.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">law<\/a>, placing the onus on schools to share content, not on parents to excavate it. It requires \u201c[d]irectly identifying the specific instructional material and sexually explicit subjects\u201d in advance, and offering parents alternatives if desired. While local policies must be in place by Jan. 1, 2023, the guidance is effective now.<\/p>\n<h2>Radical Gender Ideology and Sexualization<\/h2>\n<p>Nowhere is the early sexualization of children more evident than in FCPS\u2019s radical sex ed. And while parents can review general objectives and opt out, few see the actual lessons, which require in-person review. This coming year, the FCPS school board will consider the sex-ed curriculum committee\u2019s unanimous recommendation to move instruction on so-called gender identity down to elementary levels \u2014 a flagrant contradiction of <a href=\"https:\/\/doe.virginia.gov\/instruction\/family_life_education\/index.shtml\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">State Standards of Learning<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>I served several eye-opening years on the sex-ed committee. It voted to show students video reenactments of rape, claiming this was beneficial. A feature about inappropriate touch was so disturbing, the chair asked if we \u2014 <em>adults <\/em>\u2014 needed a moment to recover. The committee then promptly voted to show it to 8-year-olds.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>However, the committee\u2019s taste for explicit information did not extend to accepting my request to include in the lessons related to \u201cgender transition\u201d information that \u201caffirmation\u201d is not settled science and that hormonal and surgical alterations carry serious <a href=\"https:\/\/segm.org\/studies\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">risks<\/a>. The school board threw me off the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.boarddocs.com\/vsba\/fairfax\/Board.nsf\/files\/AYKU7H699ED9\/$file\/FLECAC%20Annual%20Recommendations%20Report%202017_18_051018g.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">committee<\/a>\u00a0instead.<\/p>\n<h2>Deceiving Parents and Dismissing Evidence\u00a0<\/h2>\n<p>In\u00a0\u201cThe Poet X,\u201d Xiomara finds refuge from the oppressive characters \u2014 mother, father, God \u2014 with her teacher, who tells her: \u201cYou don\u2019t have to do anything you don\u2019t want to do.\u201d That philosophy encapsulates the FCPS school board\u2019s\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/go.boarddocs.com\/vsba\/fairfax\/Board.nsf\/files\/CDPTV8792B2E\/$file\/R2603.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">transgender policy<\/a>, passed in 2021 over tremendous community opposition. Embracing former Gov.\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/townhall.virginia.gov\/l\/GetFile.cfm?File=C:%5CTownHall%5Cdocroot%5CGuidanceDocs_Proposed%5C201%5CGDoc_DOE_4683_20201208.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Northam\u2019s policy<\/a>\u00a0for Virginia schools, it affirms a student\u2019s so-called \u201cgender transition,\u201d provides school experts in support, and in practice authorizes access by males to all female spaces. Everything is secret from parents unless the student decides otherwise. The accompanying FCPS\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/go.boarddocs.com\/vsba\/fairfax\/Board.nsf\/files\/CHCMXY5D37D6\/$file\/R2602.37P.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">student code of conduct<\/a>\u00a0penalizes\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2022\/05\/16\/fairfax-virginia-schools-may-expel-elementary-students-for-misgendering-people\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">\u201cmalicious misgendering\u201d<\/a>\u00a0at the same level as assault.<\/p>\n<p>Gov. Youngkin revoked the Northam policy on Sept. 16. His new\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.townhall.virginia.gov\/L\/GetFile.cfm?File=C:%5CTownHall%5Cdocroot%5CGuidanceDocs_Proposed%5C201%5CGDoc_DOE_6284_20220915.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">guidance<\/a>\u00a0requires parental consent for \u201cgender transition\u201d and stipulates students use facilities and participate in sports based on sex. FCPS school board members\u2019 charges of\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/Keys_Gamarra\/status\/1571577392417878016\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">hate<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.dcnewsnow.com\/news\/local-news\/virginia\/northern-va-school-leaders-response-to-youngkins-model-transgender-policy\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">cruelty<\/a>\u00a0in response reveal their disregard for parents.<\/p>\n<p>The Northam\/FCPS approach claims to be \u201cevidence-based,\u201d yet suppresses critical information by offering \u201cgender affirmation only\u201d \u2014 a model\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/segm.org\/France-cautions-regarding-puberty-blockers-and-cross-sex-hormones-for-youth\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">European<\/a>\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/segm.org\/sites\/default\/files\/Finnish_Guidelines_2020_Minors_Unofficial%20Translation.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">countries<\/a>\u00a0are revising as evidence of harm accrues. Resources cited are from ideological groups and activist medical\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.wsj.com\/articles\/the-american-academy-of-pediatrics-dubious-transgender-science-jack-turban-research-social-contagion-gender-dysphoria-puberty-blockers-uk-11660732791?mod=itp_wsj&amp;mod=djemITP_h\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">committees<\/a>. They omit\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.tandfonline.com\/doi\/full\/10.1080\/0092623X.2022.2046221\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">research<\/a>\u00a0showing \u201cgender affirmation\u201d does not resolve\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/jessesingal.substack.com\/p\/the-university-of-washington-is-putting\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">suicidality<\/a>, that affirmation\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/bigthink.com\/health\/detransitioners-study-evaluations\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">masks<\/a>\u00a0underlying mental health issues, and that mutilative surgery and sterilizing hormone treatments do\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/segm.org\/studies\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">irreversible harm<\/a>. There are no heartbreaking stories from\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/ChoooCole\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">young<\/a>\u00a0\u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/lacroicsz\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">detransitioners<\/a>\u201d\u00a0hoping to save others from\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/TullipR\/status\/1505137030430441478\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">lifelong pain<\/a>. No mention that the protocol-setting World Professional Association for Transgender Health <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/SwipeWright\/status\/1572375023008055296\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">(WPATH)<\/a> reportedly dropped all\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/sex-matters.org\/posts\/updates\/wpath\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">age restrictions<\/a>\u00a0for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailywire.com\/news\/wpath-explains-why-they-removed-minimum-age-guidelines-for-children-to-access-transgender-medical-treatments-so-doctors-wont-get-sued\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">child surgery<\/a>, nor that WPATH\u2019s registered members include a\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/thepostmillennial.com\/revealed-leading-trans-health-group-recommends-lowering-ages-for-medical-gender-transition\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">therapist<\/a>\u00a0fighting to \u201cdemarginalize\u201d <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/AnOpenSecret\/status\/1556490025151434754\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">pedophilia<\/a>, and <a href=\"https:\/\/pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov\/35556189\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">other<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/reduxx.info\/top-trans-medical-association-collaborated-with-castration-child-abuse-fetishists\/\">alarming<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/sci-hub.mksa.top\/10.1111\/j.1743-6109.2007.00636.x\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">associates<\/a>.<\/p>\n<h2>A Critical Juncture<\/h2>\n<p>Underlying all these issues \u2014 from curriculum to transgender policies \u2014 is the belief that authority and expertise ultimately rest with schools, not parents. While Youngkin\u2019s policies offer hope as countermeasures, parents would be foolish to think a tide rising for decades, not only in Virginia but around the nation, will be easily turned.<\/p>\n<p>Parents need to step up now more than ever. Plenty of ideologues are waiting to \u201csave\u201d our children from us if we don\u2019t.<\/p>\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator\" \/>\n<p>\n  Laura Bryant Hanford is a mother of five and is actively involved in school policy and religious freedom issues in Virginia, where she lives with her family. She served from 2015 to 2018 on Fairfax County Public Schools&#8217; Family Life Education Curriculum Advisory Committee. She was the lead congressional staff drafter of the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998. She also served at the U.S. Embassy in Romania as the officer in charge of human rights, focusing on ethnic minorities, women, and refugees. She is a graduate of Princeton University.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A high school teacher in Fairfax County, Virginia, recently read aloud to her 10th-grade English class the poem \u201cFingers,\u201d an explicit account of a young girl masturbating. The poem was<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":786,"featured_media":1897948,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1664694","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","fifu_finder_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2022\/09\/29\/if-schools-teach-masturbation-poems-under-youngkin-crackdown-what-are-they-doing-in-other-states\/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=if-schools-teach-masturbation-poems-under-youngkin-crackdown-what-are-they-doing-in-other-states","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1664694","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/786"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1664694"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1664694\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1897948"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1664694"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1664694"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1664694"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}