Elementary School Kids Shouldn’t Be Taught About LGBT People Says Candidate for Top Education Office

“I Do Not Want 4th Grade Students to Feel Additional Pressure to ‘Choose an Orientation'”

Former Washington assistant state superintendent Erin Jones, an award-winning educator, is under fire for her responses to a conservative blog’s questions on the teaching of sexuality and “transgenderism” in elementary schools.

“We have raised our children to embrace each individual, regardless of race, nationality, gender, or sexual orientation,” says Jones, who also told SWWEducation.org she has “always been an advocate for the LGBTQ community,” 

But Jones also told the blog, which posed the same questions to all candidates running to be the next Washington State Superintendent of Public Instruction, “I do not think it is developmentally appropriate to talk about gender or sexual orientation with 5 year olds,” although she did not specify why. She also did not speak to 5-year olds who are growing up in households headed by same-sex parents.

“I do not think it is appropriate to talk with 4th graders about sexual orientation,” Jones’ reply continues. “I do not want 4th grade students to feel additional pressure to ‘choose an orientation.’ I am in favor of conversations with middle school students about gender and sexual orientation, as long as the focus is on providing students with information and promoting acceptance,” she added. Jones did not speak to the fact that some children at a very early age already know they are LGBT, or think they may be, and could benefit by having additional information presented in a positive and supportive manner.

Sydney Brownstone at Dan Savage’s Seattle-based blog The Stranger observes, “Jones’s comments accepted the flawed premise of the right-wing blog’s talking points and language (‘transgenderism’ is a term used mainly by anti-trans activists, and likewise for the idea that a person is able to choose their sexual orientation). Her comments also run contrary to state curriculum guidelines and fly in the face of scientific research about how kids learn and process ideas about gender and sexuality.”

The Stranger points to its own August 25 interview with Jones, saying she “declined to answer directly when asked whether she thinks being gay is a sin. And in a late August endorsement interview with Equal Rights Washington (ERW), the largest group advocating for LGBTQ rights in this state, Jones reportedly talked about LGBTQ identity as a ‘lifestyle.'”

Equal Rights Washington “has announced that it cannot support Jones and will be endorsing her unambiguously pro-LGBTQ opponent, Chris Reykdal, a former educator and Tumwater school board member,” The Stranger adds.

David Ferguson at Raw Story reports that Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction spokesman Nathan Olson said:

“For kindergarteners, self-identity is an awareness of gender expression and identity. It could be as simple as asking, ‘Is it okay for boys to wear pink? Is it okay for girls to play sports?’ I wouldn’t say it’s even tackling gender norms, but opening up [students’] understanding of what they think of as gender—and that’s it.”

Ferguson adds, “When the Stranger asked Jones whether children choose to be LGBTQ, she replied that she doesn’t know.”

“I think they’re born that way,” she said. “I’m not a scientist. I don’t know exactly. I think for most children it’s not a choice.”

 

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