No one at tonight’s sex-ed rally wants to go back in time.
Around 100 people gathered at Meridian Place in downtown Barrie, Friday night, for the Rally for Sex Ed in response to the provincial government’s move, under Premier Doug Ford, to rework the sexual-education curriculum.
The repealed curriculum was introduced by the Liberals in 2015, but the PCs will be reverting back to the document that was created in 1998 and taught until 2014.
“Our kids deserve better,” said Barrie resident Erica Smith, a mother of two young girls, adding the old curriculum should never be reinstated. “It didn’t work for me when I was in school as an eight-year-old and it’s not going to work for my eight-year-old.”
Smith, who is bisexual, said topics such as gender identity, same-sex marriage and consent are crucial lessons for kids to learn about.
“We weren’t taught these things and we were left to flounder,” said Smith, fighting back tears as she recalled her days in school and what she had to endure. “There’s so much misinformation out there and it’s a huge disservice to a large amount of our population.”
The PC government says it plans to begin public consultations on a new curriculum beginning in the fall.
“Let’s face it, these people want to go back to 1998, a time that was comfortable for them,” said Barrie resident Michael Speers, who was one of several speakers during the 90-minute rally. “Together we’ll stand up for what is right, because I don’t think this government is going to.”
The provincial government wants to hold “robust” consultations with parents.
Smith said too many parents aren’t doing enough self-education on the 1998 and 2015 curriculums.
“They’re not looking at what was actually being said (in the 2015 document). They just hear one thing and latch onto it,” she said. “If they looked closely, they’d see it reflects society today as Canadians.”
Barrie resident Deb VanBolderen, a phys-ed teacher at Nouvelle-Alliance for the last 11 years, says the government needs to leave the 2015 curriculum in place, primarily because it’s in line with the times.
“There is no reason to replace the current curriculum,” she told BarrieToday. “It was put there in a thoughtful manner. You don’t change the curriculum every three or four years. There’s no need to go back to 1998.”
VanBolderen says she hears similar concerns from her fellow teachers.
“There’s a great deal of frustration,” she said. “We feel it’s ridiculous to go backwards when (the 2015 curriculum) is a step in the right direction.
“It’s open enough that you can talk about things depending on what naturally comes up in your class,” VanBolderen added. “There are lots of important questions that come out, especially with the younger students. It allows students to get their information from a reliable source, and not from their friends or the internet.”
Barrie resident Kelly Letourneau, who works at the Women and Children’s Shelter and has sons aged nine and 11 years old, was one of several speakers to take the mic on Friday night.
“The rollback of sex ed is a real blowback,” Letourneau told BarrieToday. “They need to leave it there so we can continue to educate our children.”
She points out the 1998 curriculum doesn’t touch on topics such as gender identity, social media and body image.
“It’s insanity to even consider going back to ‘98,” Letourneau said. “The world has exploded and diversified with technology, so going back is not the way to move forward.
“I’m just disappointed, and I’m scared,” she said, adding kids need to receive the correct and age-appropriate information. “They have teachers they can trust to ask embarrassing questions.”
Rally organizer Brandon Rheal Amyot said people who attended the gathering must now follow up with action, including writing to their local MPP and visiting their constituency offices to raise their concerns, as well as contacting their school boards and staying engaged.
“Talk to your children; we need to have more conversations,” Amyot said.
