McDermott Report Update

Schools, Education, Sexuality and Children

News Release from Office of Rep Bob McDermott October 20, 2015

Sex education has been a particularly heated topic in Hawaii ever since the controversy over the so-called “culturally sensitive” Pono Choices program. This past June many may recall that the state Board of Education (BOE) voted to mandate sex education for Hawaii’s public schools.[1]   In addition to having the government mandate sex ed, the BOE also decided to throw out Hawaii’s abstinence based sex policy in favor of a comprehensive sexuality education (CSE) policy, the latter having been long promoted by such sex hustlers like Planned Parenthood.

With this huge shift in policy by the BOE at the start of the summer, we are not sure how many parents or teachers got the word.  We specifically want to remind parents and teachers of what they need to know when it comes to how this policy change affects them.  First, understand that because of the changes, no longer will individual schools be able to decide for themselves whether or not to teach sex ed----they are now required to teach it and it is going to start in middle school. “It will be up to each middle school’s principal to determine the grade in which sexual health will be taught.”[2]

Next, understand that those who pushed for government mandated sex ed in the public schools knew that an “opt in” policy would undermine their efforts to impose it on everybody.  Sex ed advocates lobbied the BOE to change the policy for the public schools in order to herd more students into these classes.  Ultimately, it was the BOE who, after relentless lobbying by planned parenthood, decided that Hawaii’s parents weren’t really smart enough to advocate for their children’s interests and teach them about sex on their own so they acquiesced to the demands of these sex ed proponents and changed the “opt in” policy to an “opt out” standard.

The new policy also requires that a description of the curriculum used by the school to be made available to parents before instruction starts. It was also “recommended” that “schools post this information on their website(s) and to send a letter, convene a parents' night or use other means of communicating to parents” so as to inform them ahead of time and prior to the start of any instruction.[3]

Parents and teachers need to know that the Office of Curriculum, Instruction and Student Support is supposed to be convening subject matter experts to review new editions of its sexual health education curriculum.[4]  Expect the new curricula to roll out for the 2016-2017 school year.  Until then, schools will continue to use one of the programs that are currently on the DOE approved list of curricula for sex ed.  Please note however, that of the six currently available options for teaching this subject, nearly all are medically inaccurate.  There is only one that is what we would rate as “acceptable.”  For a complete review of all programs you may visit  http://ohanapolicygroup.com where you will find a free download of our assessment.

Finally, parents and teachers should know that the DOE does not keep track of which schools use which curriculum when it comes to sex ed.  Thus, those who care about his issue are right to be concerned.  We strongly recommend therefore, that devoted parents be especially vigilant when it comes to any new sex ed program scheduled to go into their schools.  Hawaii’s public schools are also exempt from the state’s obscenity laws.  Be forewarned that there are a number of components that can be found in most “comprehensive sexuality education” programs that some parents and teachers might find highly objectionable, especially for students in middle school who in some cases may be as young as 11 or 12 years old.[5]  Here is a list of what is commonly found in these programs:

• Teach children to advocate for their “sexual rights.”
• Teach children various ways to obtain sexual pleasure.
• Promote condoms to children without informing them of their failure rates.
• Teach children to masturbate.
• Encourage children to experiment sexually with individuals of their own sex or the opposite sex.
• Promote anal or oral sex to children or teach them these behaviors are safe; literally omitting the breathtakingly high HIV risks of unprotected anal sex.
• Conflate anal, oral, and vaginal sex as if these acts are all equal with the same risk profiles.
• Promote Homosexual behavior as the healthy wholesome moral equivalent of male female reproduction.
• Promote the mental disorder of transgenderism or gender identify as normal.
• Promote promiscuity to children as a “right.” Denigrate the religious and cultural values of their parents or community.
• Provide sexual counseling, information or services to minors without parental consent.

Visit http://www.comprehensivesexualityeducation.org (CSEfacts.org) to learn more about the false claims made by advocates of CSE, how it harms children and violates parental rights.

Parents who are pro-life should also know that one of the largest purveyors of comprehensive sexuality education programs in the United State is the abortion giant, Planned Parenthood.  Well funded by the American taxpayer, this is the same organization currently under scrutiny for the callous harvesting and selling of aborted baby body parts.  Planned Parenthood has been pushing the envelope regarding sex education in the public schools since 1970.  Sex education for them has always served as a way to indoctrinate children with their philosophies---philosophies that include the acceptance of abortion and deviant sexual practices.

And it is these very philosophies that we believe run directly counter to the cultural values of most of the hardworking taxpaying families of our island population.  Parents and teachers therefore, should be very proactive when it comes to safeguarding their children.  Get involved with your schools.  Network with other like-minded parents and teachers in your area who are opposed to having erotica in the classroom.  Many teachers themselves may not be fully aware of this most recent major policy shift by the BOE and that it will require them to be “trained” to teach this type of sex ed.   Be on the lookout for any and all types of communication coming from the DOE with regard to what types of sex ed programs are coming into your school.  Be on the lookout for offers of any bribes that might be offered in order to either teach or take sex ed courses (e.g., gift cards).  Ask questions.  Find out who these sex education subject matter “experts” were who developed and approved the sex ed program for your school.  Where and how did they get the standards to develop such a curriculum?   Who will be teaching your child?  How were they credentialed, etc.  In the meantime, rest assured that my office intends to remain on top of this issue in order to ensure that teachers are protected and that parental rights are not further undermined.

[1] Terrell, Jessica.  “Hawaii Public Schools Must Offer Sex Education, Board Decides.”  Civil Beat, June 16, 2015.  Accessed October 12, 2015.

http://www.civilbeat.com/2015/06/hawaii-public-schools-must-offer-sex-education-board-decides/

[2] Soto, Averie.  DOE adopts new Sex ed policy.  The Garden Island, June 21,2015.  Accessed October 12, 2015.  http://thegardenisland.com/news/local/doe-adopts-new-sex-ed-policy/article_a5367454-aa50-5ad8-8bcb-0acc454cd2fb.html

[3] “Sexual Health Education.” Hawaii State Department of Education, accessed October 12, 2015, http://www.hawaiipublicschools.org/TeachingAndLearning/HealthAndNutrition/sexed/Pages/default.aspx

[4] Ibid.

[5] “Comprehensive Sexuality Education (CSE): Sexual Rights vs. Sexual Health.”  Family Watch International Policy Brief, accessed October 12, 2015, http://www.familywatchinternational.org/fwi/documents/fwipolicybriefCSE.pdf