Things sure have changed since I was at school; not least the phenomenon of pupils claiming gender identities and pronouns that don’t necessarily correlate with their sex. Some children even create their own pronouns or identify as non-binary. Whether this is a positive and progressive thing or a negative and nonsensical thing is up to you to decide, but should a child of 6 be punished for not being able to wrap their brains around it?
Sally and Nigel Rowe, whose sons attended a Church of England school in the Isle of Wight, say staff warned them that their six-year-old may be deemed transphobic if he were to question another pupil wearing a dress. Indeed, one of their sons came home confused that a boy in his class began wearing a dress and identifying as a girl.
The Rowes say they received a letter from the headteacher and chair of governors which stated pupils could be seen as transphobic if they showed ‘an inability to believe a transgender person is actually a ”real” female or male.’ They claim the letter also added that refusing to use a transgender pupil’s adopted name or gender appropriate pronouns would be considered ‘transphobic behaviour’.
The couple, who have since pulled their kids out of the school and now home-school them, have called for a judicial review of the Department for Education’s decision to provide guidelines on the issue to state schools. Their calls have been granted and a hearing will take place later this year.
The Rowes told The Times that the letter they received from the school was ‘cold’ and did not attempt to address their concerns:
One of the main issues we struggled with in relation to the letter was that it said that if our six-year-old son did not recognise the other boy as a little girl or a little boy, then he would be deemed transphobic. And our son had to use the correct pronouns.
I don’t think that a six-year-old has the cognisant ability to work that out, especially if the child is gender fluid. And the letter also said that we as parents would be deemed to be transphobic if we didn’t accept that position.
A DfE spokesman said:
We recognise that issues relating to gender identity can be complex and sensitive. Schools are best placed to work with parents, pupils and public services to decide what is best for individual children and what is best for all others in the school.
According to the Times, the couple said that when they raised the issue, the school gave them the choice of ‘either affirming transgenderism, which they believe is harmful, or being labelled as transphobic’. Mr Rowe said:
This is not just about boys wearing dresses. This case is about an ideology that is now embedded in schools, local authorities, and Church of England leadership, and is causing serious long-term harm to thousands of children.
We believe it is wrong to encourage very young children to embrace transgenderism. Boys are boys and girls are girls. Gender dysphoria is something we as Christians need to address with love and compassion, but not in the sphere of a primary school environment.
We took this action with heavy hearts, but having seen how this issue has escalated, we feel vindicated and believe the government must be challenged.
The Cornwall Guidelines must be scrapped and replaced with a policy that protects children from partisan materials that lead them down a road of irreversible harm.
It’s a tricky one really. The Rowes believe it is wrong that young children have to confront the complex issue of transgenderism, and feel so strongly about it that they’ve taken their kids out of school. Other people will call them narrow-minded and bigoted and accuse them of passing their transphobic ideas onto their children. At the end of the day parents are just trying to do what they believe is in the best interests of their children, and what makes sense to them. It is pretty mind-blowing that this is even an issue in schools nowadays. Don’t the times change quickly?
For a look at what happened to a young lady who revealed she was transgender to an unsuspecting date, click HERE.
