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"Let
us never turn our back on our children. Let's ensure the next generation of gay
and lesbian people have as much respect for each other's race, diversity, ethnicity,
and faith, as they do for their dignity of their person as gay, lesbian, transgender
and bisexual people. Let's make sure that no other generation has to grow up facing
the hate that we did."
Donations needed! The petitioner's fundraising efforts have taken an enormous amount of time and energy, yet we are still short in excess of $200,000 for which we are personally liable. We desperately need your financial assistance to pay for this litigation. Donations are not tax deductible due to the political nature of this case. We welcome any financial support individuals, unions, businesses, community groups, and corporations can give. We need and appreciate your financial support. Cheques may be made payable to "GALE-BC" and sent to: Stop
the Book Ban
The petitioners in the case include: Murray
Warren, Coquitlam teacher
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June 26, 2021 Surrey School District Approves Books Earlier this month, it looked like the Surrey School Board was going to continue to resist following the Supreme Court ruling against banning children's books with same-gender parents. The board rejected books that were referenced in the court case, arguing that the grammar, continuity and certain non-sexual messages did not meet the standards of the board. Today, James Chamberlain circulated the following note: Last night, the Surrey School District Standing Advisory Committee on CAPP ( Family Life) approved two books with same gender family content for the Kindergarten/Grade One level. The books are: 1)
Who's In A Family by Robert Skutch The committee included 14 voting members consisting of 8 parents, 2 trustees, 2 teachers and 2 principals. It was convened by the Surrey School Board specifically to review sensitive materials under the CAPP (Family Life) Currriculum and make recommendations to the Surrey Superintendent of Schools. The committee representatives were democratically elected or appointed and chosen from their respective partner groups described above. Our task was to review books using an extensive list of very specific local school board and Ministry of Education criteria. The final vote of this committee is not subject to a further vote by Surrey trustees. The titles considered were brought forward by Surrey School District curricular experts and vetted through their internal processes first and deemed appropriate for review via local and provincial criteria. SSD officials provided support to commitee members in carrying out a review consistent with those criteria. We voted 13 out of 13 to approve the first book. We voted 11 out of 13 to approve the second book with 2 trustees in opposition. One committee member was unable to attend and vote but submitted comments in writing on the merits of the books. Local school board policy requires a two thirds margin for approval of any resource in CAPP ( ie 9 or more of 14 votes). Our written analysis and decision will now be forwarded via district staff to Superintendent Fred Renihan who will make the final decision to approve or not approve of the books as District Recommended Learning Resources. Committee members have been assured he will not overturn our recommendations. The Surrey Teachers' Assocation and Surrey parents have submitted additional resources on same gender and heterosexual families for consideration by district staff and/or this committee in the fall. Committee members have been assured that this will be an ongoing process of review in the 2003/04 school year. Have a great Summer! James
Chamberlain December 20, 2002 Supreme
Court of Canada Heard "Parents
may be extremely racist, but we don't prevent the school from teaching that racism
is bad." "When
we depict heterosexual families in children's literature, we don't suggest that
it raises the question of whether we, collectively or individually, approve of
all the sexual practices between heterosexuals ..." On
June 12th the Supreme Court of C Case History It
all began back in 1997 when three children's books (Belinda's Bouquet, Asha's
Mums, and One Dad, Two Dads, Brown Dad, Blue Dads) were submitted to the Surrey
School Board by a gay Kindergarten teacher. James Chamberlain sought approval
of the books for use at the Kindergarten and Grade One levels as resources for
th The school board continues to argue that the books are not age appropriate, yet their only objection to the content of the books is that there are same-sex parents portrayed in them. The school board has spent more that $880,000 of taxpayer's money to date to keep these books out of classrooms. What's at Stake? A Supreme Court decision in favour of the petitioners has far-reaching implications for educators throughout the country. This case is about teachers' professional autonomy to decide how best to meet the learning needs of all students. It is about preventing school boards from making educational policy and decisions based on the religious persuasions of some members of the community, at the expense of others. Such a decision will send a clear message to school boards across Canada that they must adhere to the principles of a publicly-funded education system, whose purpose is to serve the needs of all within it. This case also goes to the heart of children's rights to have their realities, including their families, reflected in their schools and in the curriculum. As educators, we have a responsibility to welcome and celebrate every single student's reality in our classrooms. Comments on the Books "The main message of them is the acceptance of same-sex families," James Chamberlain told CBC Newsworld on Wednesday June 12th, 2002. "The same-sex parents are actually background characters in the books. The books are very innocuous and they're used in school districts all around the lower mainland, except Surrey, where they're banned." "As a public-school teacher, my job is to teach about all forms of families, including same-sex families," Mr. Chamberlain said. "Just as I can't cater to racist beliefs and not talk about people of colour in positive ways because there may be one or two families who are racist within a school community," he said, "I can't cater to homophobic attitudes and beliefs in my classroom either. My classroom needs to be an inclusive place." A synopsis of lower court rulings is summarized on the website of Gay and Lesbian Educators of British Columbia (GALE-BC) at www.galebc.org On this site you can also find pictures of the banned books by Kindergarten students in Vancouver and their personal thoughts on the book ban. The ban and subsequent media coverage of the court case have generated a lot of interest in these books. Chamberlain has read them to hundreds of students (at the request of their teachers) in elementary classrooms from Kindergarten to Grade 6 in Vancouver during June 2002. They have led to very rich and honest student discussions about the reality of same-sex families in schools. Related Links: Notes from the Supreme Court Hearing - June 12, 2021 | |
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anada
heard the case of James Chamberlain et al vs. the Surrey School District #36.
