News (USA)

The right wing is on a tear about sex ed for all the obvious reasons

sex ed
Photo: The People Speak! via Flickr (CC license 2.0)

Nothing flips out conservative Christians more than sex–gay sex, lesbian sex, extramarital sex. Worst of all is the sexual lives of their own children, who are supposed to remain abstinent until marriage So it’s no surprise that the right is on a tear again about sex ed in multiple locations around the country.

Elizabeth Johnston (aka “Activist Mommy”) has been leading a battle against sex ed in schools on the grounds that it’s teaching kids how to have anal sex. Johnston relies upon the old “they need to recruit” line by insisting that “They are coming for your children.”

Last month, Johnston led a nationwide effort to have parents take their kids out of schools for “Sex Ed Sit Out,” a kind of right-wing response to gun violence protests. Johnston justified the sit out on the grounds that “LGBT activists are brainwashing children through graphic sex ed, medicating our children against our will, stealing our children through the courts, and sabotaging our children’s sporting events.”

Supporting the effort, Mary McAlister, an attorney for the Liberty Counsel, called sex ed in public schools “satanic” during a radio interview. Liberty Counsel has a long history of repeating the most vicious lies about LGBTQ people that it can cook up.

Some school districts have pushed back on the efforts to have parents absent their kids from sex ed classes. The school district for Orange County, California, told parents that there was no opt-out option for the state’s new sex ed curriculum. Conservative Christians are in a furor over the classes, which they insist promote homosexuality and are linked to liberal bogeyman George Soros to boot. 

Not to be outdone, the homophobic Benham brothers have weighed in on the issue as well. They are complaining about a sexual education initiative in North Carolina on the grounds that it will be used to “promote LGBTQ guides” to help youths dealing with their sexuality. The Benhams argue that the initiative will teach “the mechanics of anal and oral sex,” as if the classes were being held in an auto repair shop.

Of course, it’s an ill wind that doesn’t blow someone some cash. Tony Perkins, head of the Family Research Council (FRC), knows a good thing when he sees it. Perkins, who has been happy to grant President Trump cover for his reported sexual shenanigans, is circulating a fundraising letter using the threat of sex ed.

In the letter, Perkins says that FRC “is dedicated to ensuring our nation becomes a place where public school children are not exposed to pro-LGBT curriculum that encourages kids to ignore biology, use gender inclusive language, and even attend events with same-sex dates.”

What will it take to combat this horror? “Our goal is to raise $5.0 million before June 30, which funds our ongoing vision of a culture where all human life is valued, families flourish, and religious liberty thrives.”

In other words, the money goes to operating expenses.

As a reminder, Perkins has been giving President Trump cover for his reported sexual shenanigans, saying that the president “gets “a mulligan” for his alleged sexual relationship with porn star Stormy Daniels. What kind of message that sends kids about healthy sexual behavior, Perkins doesn’t say.

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