From the Rose Law Group Reporter Growlery
By Phil Riske | Managing Editor
(Editor’s note: Opinion pieces are posted for discussion purposes only.)
Jack and Jill went up the hill
To fetch a pail of water.
They both came down still virginees
Because the legislature mandated the birds and bees.
Leave it to certain Arizona lawmakers who want government to stay out of our bedrooms to come up with a proposed law that would only result in unintended serious consequences by inserting government and sex into the classroom.
Even the kindergarten classroom.
Rep. Juan Mendez, D-Tempe, sponsor of HB 2410, says too many youngsters grow up with misinformation or no information at all about how babies are made, and sex education should begin in kindergarten, unless parents don’t want their kids exposed to such information.
Can you imagine little Billy and Sally on their afternoon kindergarten nap rugs curious about what mom and dad did to make them.
This is not in defense of the legislation, but at age 12, I remember a buddy of mine telling me how babies are made, and I told him he was crazy. I don’t know if his parents had a talk with him, but many parents undoubtedly don’t properly educate their children about such things.
When I was in grade school, my mom brought home a book about the birds and the bees for me and my brothers to read.
That was our introduction to sex education, followed later in junior high with sex films in health class.
Unintended consequences
In many cases, government for years has felt it must raise kids — teach them morality — where parents have failed. When kindergarteners are in school, they are in many ways under the custody of the state, hence, Medendez’s bill is sexual in loco parentis.
The bill also leaves some unanswered questions: Are kindergarten teachers qualified to teach sex education? How detailed does that education go in kindergarten? Are we creating an unhealthy curiosity among very young children?
The bottom line danger in the bill is it would divide kindergarten age children into those who know about sex and those who don’t. Think about the consequences of that.
At what age and how to deal with sex education in schools is now and probably should remain according to policies agreed upon by parents and school districts.
Separately, Sen. Martin Quezada, D-Phoenix, is pushing to repeal a law that requires Arizona schools to portray homosexuality as anything but positive in their sex education courses.
That’s a bill that makes sense. Kindergarten sex does not.
