Today Citizens for a Responsible Curriculum and Parents and Friends of Ex-Gays and Gays (PFOX) filed suit against the Montgomery County Public Schools seeking to block implementation of a homosexual sex-ed curriculum scheduled to begin on May 5, 2005, in six pilot schools in grades 8-10.
Some of the instruction states: “Fact: Most experts in the field have concluded that sexual orientation is not a choice;” “Fact: Sex play with friends of the same gender is not uncommon during early adolescence and does not prove long-term sexual orientation;” “It is no more abnormal or sick to be homosexual than to be left-handed;” “Many religious denominations do not believe [that “loving people of the same sex is immoral (sinful)”];” “Heterosexual parents are consistently not found to be more loving or caring than gay parents;” “Jesus said absolutely nothing at all about homosexuality;” “Religion has often been misused to justify hatred and oppression;” “One’s sexual and emotional orientations are fixed at an early age — certainly by age five;” “Human sexuality is a continuum;” “Many homophobic responses are born out of a fear that one’s own sexual orientation may not be entirely heterosexual;” “[A]bstinence until marriage” is detrimental to “GLBT youth;” “It is perfectly natural to be gay, lesbian, bisexual, and/or transgender.”
The curriculum states, “We may question our definition of ‘promiscuous.'” It refers to “fundamentalists” and “evangelicals,” stating these people may think they can overcome same-sex attraction, and thus the program encourages referral of these students to “sensitive clergy” [i.e. non-evangelicals] to “reconcile their religious beliefs.” The curriculum never refers to husband and wife. Family is defined as “two or more people who are joined together by emotional feelings or who are related to one another.” One video features a high school girl illustrating condom usage with a cucumber, stating that condoms should be used for “any oral, anal or vaginal sex.” Every proposed teacher resource submitted by PFOX and Citizens to present the ex-gay perspective was rejected. Board chairman David Fishback and chair of the curriculum committee stated that reorientation therapy is “dangerous” and results in “extremely bad outcomes,” and that any discussion that homosexual preferences may change would “be destructive.” Despite the state law and school policies that mandate discussion of the medical risks of sexual activity, the curriculum promotes dangerous sexual activity without any discussion of its health risks. The Board refused to include information regarding STDs arising from same-sex behavior issued by the CDC and the U.S. Surgeon General.
Critics of the curriculum charge that the school board has been captured by radical homosexual advocacy groups whose only agenda is to promote their political goals without respect to the consequences. The homosexual sex-education curriculum is inaccurate and unashamedly hostile to certain Christian views. When sexually transmitted diseases are epidemic in some portions of the country, especially among same-sex behavior, it is inconceivable that a school board would promote such activity without presenting any associated medical risk.
Mathew Staver is the president and general counsel of the Liberty Council.
