Stop the hate
The 1MillionMarch4Children held across Canada on September 20th was designed to protest against teaching gender ideology to children in schools, officially called Sexual Orientation Gender Identity - SOGI) There was a great deal of media attention, much of which described the action as discriminatory and hostile towards the LGBTQ community. Sadly this same attitude was echoed by top politicians, educators, union leaders and many others. Two days before the march the Director of the Peel District School Board warned that school communities in the area near where the march was scheduled to happen “could be affected by ... the display of discriminatory and hateful language.” (bold font added for emphasis)
Two days earlier at a joint meeting of the Ontario Federation of Labour (OFL) and Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) the President of the OFL began by urging the 'comrades' to “come together to fight against the rise of hate and we’re seeing it in province across province.” (This quote and the one immediately above are both cited in PDSB Director Misrepresents Protests against Gender Ideology, by Igor Stravinsky)
This accusation of hate echoes the words of Prime Minister Trudeau who, at an LGBTQ fundraiser event in June, labeled parents as 'hateful' for voicing their concerns about gender ideology being taught in schools. (Rex Murphy) On another occasion Brian Lilley, a SUN columnist, noted, “Trudeau was caught on video explaining to a Muslim parent in Calgary that these concerns … were being driven by the 'American far right', who were using Muslim parents. It couldn’t possibly be that parents are actually concerned about what is being taught in the classroom.”
Lilley continues, “Over the weekend, a photo of Conservative MP and finance critic Jasraj Singh Hallan standing with three other men, two wearing T-shirts saying, 'Leave our kids alone,' These shirts were described as a 'hate T-shirt' in the headline of a Canadian Press story on Global News. Nothing in the CP story explains why the T-shirt qualifies as a hate shirt, you simply have to take their word for it.
The problem is too many journalists have been taking the word of the activists [and politicians] on one side without bothering to speak to parents and learn about their concerns. ... Parents being concerned about what their kids are taught in the classroom isn’t far right, it isn’t American and it isn’t hate filled. It’s normal.” (bold added)
As thousands of protesters were marching across Canada prominent politicians revealed their true colours by once again painting protesters as hateful. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau “strongly condemn(ed) this hate.” His key ally Jagmeet Singh also lamented the “rise of hate towards the 2SLGBTQI+ community.” (both quotes cited in, It was a great day for Canadian parents, by James Pew)
But is this label really true? Teacher Igor Stravinsky responded to this inflammatory accusation of hate as cited earlier by Mr. Swarup, the Director of the Peel Board of Education. Stravinsky calls it
a bald-faced lie, that the protests are 'against the teaching of Two Spirit and LGBTQIA+ identities'. Director Swarup also anticipates 'discriminatory and hateful language'. [bold added] Yes, there will likely be a few homo or transphobic people among the many thousands of protesters, but that could be said for protests of any kind. Overall, though, Canada is a tolerant ... country. The vast majority of people support gay and trans rights, which are written into our constitution and human rights codes. That is not what people are concerned about, and Swarup surely knows it.
No, people are not protesting the 'right' [inverted commas mine] of others to live as gay or trans, but rather the indoctrination of kids into gender ideology (rejected by most Canadians ...). To be clear, gender ideology is a belief system which consists of (among others) the following tenets.
People are born with a kind of sexed (gendered) soul which may or may not align with their body’s sex
Children can say with certainty, at a very young age, what their “true sex (gender)” is
Physical, biological sex is non-binary and exists on a spectrum
Most Canadians do not hold these beliefs and there is certainly no scientific proof of any of them. On the contrary, any reputable evolutionary biologist will tell you that sex is a strict binary with a tiny number (less than 0.1% of people) falling into the category “intersex” (meaning they present both male and female sex characteristics). The existence of this tiny number of sex-indistinct people is often a red herring used by trans activists to suggest that there are more than two sexes, but there is no third sex in any physical or biological sense because your sex is your body’s intended reproductive strategy (eggs or sperm). There is no third scenario.
People opposed to indoctrination into gender ideology are generally not at all opposed to students being taught about it, at an appropriate age, in the same way most people would not object to students being taught about world religions. But people would not want their child indoctrinated into one of those religions.
So what harm is there in presenting gender ideology to young people as if it were an objective fact? Potentially plenty ...” (Woke Watch Canada Substack, PDSB Director Misrepresents Protests against Gender Ideology, by Igor Stravinsky)
A significant number of protesters at the 1 Million March 4 Children were devout Christians and Muslims who firmly believe that homosexual marriage is wrong.1 Does this mean they are homophobic and hateful just because they disagree with the LGBTQ worldview? The Old and New Testament teach that true believers should show love and kindness to all people, even our enemies, since human beings are made in God's image. (Romans 12:20; Proverbs 25:21-22) Scripture also teaches very clearly: love your neighbor as yourself. Even if we fundamentally disagree with someone, a word of correction, spoken in love, is appropriate. As the proverb goes, “An open rebuke is better than hidden love! Wounds from a sincere friend are better than many kisses from an enemy.” (Proverbs 27:5-6, NLT)
In conclusion, god-fearing people can (and should) show respect toward gay/lebian/trans people, but we have the right and responsibility of protecting our children from being misled and confused by gender ideology.
“How can parents raise a child and instill fundamental, moral and ethical values when teachers and board administrators are pushing their ideological agenda undermining parents’ efforts at every turn?” (Teddy Thompson, letter to Toronto Sun)
If you wish to respond or discuss these concerns please write me here.
Footnote
1 Sadly many so-called Christian churches now accept homosexual marriages. Recently, even prominent evangelical preachers such as Andy Stanley are being seduced by the corrupting, if subtle, influence of LGBTQ thinking. See Dr. Albert Mohler's article, The train is leaving the station.
See also Dr. Michael Brown's critique of Andy Stanley's view of LGBTQ here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W-UjzHVzt3c
Endnote: Hate breeds violence
Since most officials (including police) believe protesters are hateful, naturally they expect tensions could escalate and become violent. Not surprisingly, this is exactly what happened two days after the 'millionmarch' when a similar protest/rally was held at a Toronto high school organized by Josh Alexander and Chris Elston. Joe Warmington reported on this clash in an article titled, Gender education protest in North York turns violent. He noted, in brief,
Elston made the point that there should be no gender studies in schools … But Fred Hahn (President of CUPE, Canadian Union of Public Employees) told reporters 'there is no such thing as gender ideology in schools, why are you lying?' At the end there was a clash … (including four people arrested)
Seeking to bridge the chasm between protesters and counter protesters, Warmington concludes by calling on top politicians to “show a spine and get everybody on the same page (as) both sides have valid points.”
This may seem overly optimistic, but on the other hand, can you fault him for voicing this urgent appeal?
“Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Premier Doug Ford [must] acknowledge there are issues with sex and gender education programs as currently prescribed and instead of cowering, bring all sides to the table to find a solution everyone can live with.”
Endnote: Academic Critiques of Gender Ideology in Schools
Shortly after the nation-wide swell of protest against gender activism in schools National Post columnist, Barbara Kay published a profound commentary on a just-released paper from Canadian Gender Report. This report which is titled, 'Canadian Schools Guidance: Towards an Evidence-based Mental Health Focused Policy' is “in all but name a white paper for responsible legislation on a plethora of gender related issues.”
Kay cites a crucial observation in this report regarding gender transitioning, “It is critically important for school staff to know that social transition has not been shown to reduce suicidality.”
Another academic critique of gender activism by Dr. Mariam Grossman (child and adolescent psychiatrist) boldly rejects such claims as untrue, “In fact, it's the exact opposite. Detransitioners are at high risk of suicide because not only is it a struggle to get back to their real identity, but many now have severe medical problems brought on by hormones and surgery. Those who have undergone sexual reassignment surgery, in particular, face the very real possibility of lifelong medical troubles and associated depression.” (p.7, 'How to Protect Your Child from Transgender Lies,' analysis/interview of Dr. Grossman by Dr. Joseph Mercola)
Three other helpful online articles, that delve into the teaching of gender ideology are titled, Yes, schools are teaching gender ideology, Zooming and Grooming at the PDSB, Yah, more alphabet fun.
Here are three more articles that explore foundational questions relevant to the LGBTQ worldview:
Endnote on Litigation
It is no secret that LGBTQ advocates have sometimes pushed their agenda using bizarre, if sinister, tactics. Christian baker, Jack Phillips, is a case in point. After already facing persecution from LGBTQ activists for nearly 10 years, Phillips is now having to face yet another court battle. “At issue now is a lawsuit an extremist in the transgender community filed against Phillips for declining to violate his faith and use his cake artistry to promote transgenderism. … The origination of this fight came on the same day the US Supreme Court announced it would hear the first dispute involving Phillips. He prevailed in 2018 at the high court when state officials demanded he create a custom cake celebrating a homosexual wedding. [On that day] an activist attorney called Masterpiece Cakeshop, requesting that Phillips create a custom cake that would symbolize and celebrate a gender transition. The attorney then called again to request another custom cake, one depicting Satan smoking marijuana, to 'correct the errors of [Phillips'] thinking.' Phillips politely declined both requests because the cakes expressed messages that violated his core beliefs. The attorney then filed the current lawsuit, threatening to continue harrassing Phillips until he is punished,” the ADF reported. (Alliance Defending Freedom)
It is all too easy to read Jack Phillips' ordeal while underestimating the deep torment he's had to endure over the last ten years at the hands of his persecutors. You may wonder, whether it is really appropriate to entitle this article, Stop the hatred, considering that Jesus told his disciples to expect they would be hated by the world just as he himself was hated and persecuted. (John 15:17-21) Furthermore, Jesus taught us to love our enemies and pray for those who persecute us. (Matthew 5:43-48)