California School Board Members Refuse Policy Changes Redefining Gender
by Jim Brown
March 25, 2004
(AgapePress) - Despite the threat of losing millions of dollars in state and federal funding, a California school board is refusing to adopt a new anti-discrimination policy that would offer special protective status to transsexuals and others confused about their gender.
The California Department of Education has told the Westminster School District in Orange County that it must update its anti-discrimination policy to include the word "sex." But three of the district's five school board members are standing firm and say they will not support language that allows students or staff to immorally redefine their gender.
Trustee Judy Ahrens, a Christian, says making these changes to the policy could lead to all kinds of problems.
"If you put the word 'sex' in, then people who want to act cute at school, or have a sex-identity crisis that day, will be protected under the new policy -- if we adopted it. Then we'd have lawsuits by parents when their kids are traumatized, and boys want to come in and peek into girls' bathrooms. We're just headed down a slippery slope if we include this word," Ahrens says.
Besides, the board member insists, the change is simply not necessary. She believes the state wants to redefine the word "gender" to further the homosexual agenda, but she says she does not intend to let that happen.
"Gender means female or male, boy or girl," Ahrens notes, "and we don't have to change the connotation. Now, the state is very subtle in sneaking in -- saying 'Well, it can mean biological or perceived sex.' Well, we don't want little boys sneaking in [to girl's bathrooms or locker rooms], being peeping Toms, because they want to dress up as a girl that day."
The school board is having to deal with some consequences as a result of its refusal to offer special protections for transsexuals. A meeting scheduled for next Thursday had to be relocated because of the publicity the policy debate has generated. And there has already been significant monetary fallout as well. Westminster School District officials say that Bank of America has refused to extend a $16 million loan to the district.
Ahrens says she has been praying for her fellow board members, that they will not cave in to outside pressure from the California Department of Education and pro-homosexual activists.
