Where do B.C.'s provincial political parties stand on SOGI in schools?

Where do B.C.'s provincial political parties stand on SOGI in schools?

Party leaders share their stance on sexual orientation and gender identity resources in schools

As another provincial election gears up in B.C., sexual orientation and gender identity (SOGI) in schools is back in the political spotlight.

While B.C. does not have a specific SOGI curriculum, SOGI 123 has been a resource teachers and educators can turn to make schools safer and more inclusive for students of all gender identities and orientations, according to its website.

The governing B.C. NDP has cited the importance of SOGI inclusivity and anti-bullying policies — though it has come with criticism, including from some parents who claim that SOGI encourages children to change genders and others who say it goes against religious values.

In July, the province confirmed funding has been discontinued for the ARC Foundation, the non-profit that created the SOGI resource model.

Is the province cutting SOGI funding in schools? The answer is complicated

So, as a controversial topic in education, where do the parties stand on SOGI ahead of this provincial election?

CentreBC Leader Elenore Sturko stressed how SOGI policies stem from a 2016 change to the B.C. Human Rights Code that explicitly added "gender identity or expression" as prohibited grounds of discrimination.

She said this led to policy changes to ensure the education system was free of discrimination, such as the resource of SOGI 123.

Sturko said the party believes in standing up against discrimination, any bullying, or any efforts to marginalize 2SLGBTQ+ students.

"We believe that every student deserves to feel safe and respected and included at school," said Sturko in a phone interview.

"And we're not in favour of repealing any kind of legislation that would impact people's rights to be free from discrimination, whether it be as an employee or whether it be as a student."

B.C. Conservative Party Leader Lorne Doerkson says SOGI needs to be removed entirely from schools.

"We talked about SOGI being an anti-bullying program. I think that it's become something more in some of our schools throughout this province," he told Stephen Quinn, host of The Early Edition.

"I think the province needs to get back to teaching arithmetic and reading and the things that I think most parents see to be very important now."

Doerkson said while he is supportive of the 2SLGBTQ+ community and acknowledges the worries of bullying, SOGI has been a "lightning rod for division" and has caused "frustrating" confusion.

Meanwhile, the B.C. Greens also support having SOGI 123 as a resource in schools.

"SOGI 123 is a resource which supports 2SLGBTQ+ children when they’re at their most vulnerable. Attacks on this resource threaten the safety and dignity of children, and display a fundamental misunderstanding of how to support youth," the party said in a statement.

"What matters most is the wellbeing of students. That’s why the [B.C.] Greens unequivocally support SOGI 123, and will always stand with the 2SLGBTQ+ community."

B.C. NDP Leader David Eby says that, while the party has ended its relationship with the foundation that runs the SOGI program, it is not abandoning the essential work to prevent bullying in schools and teachers are a key role in that.

"When we see rising racism, we see rising hate, when we see it infecting kids who have access to online materials, bring that to school with them, it's up to the teachers to work with those kids to ensure that they have the opportunity to understand how that hurts all of us, how that sets all of us back," Eby said at a news conference on Friday.

OneBC, led by interim party Leader Dallas Brodie, also supports entirely pulling any SOGI education away from schools.

"OneBC remains firm and consistent in our position: we will repeal SOGI 123 and remove all gender ideology content from British Columbia classrooms," the party said in a statement.

"We believe the focus of our education system should be on the fundamentals — literacy and numeracy — while keeping political ideologies outside of schools."

Focus should be on under-resourced schools, teachers federation says

B.C. Teachers' Federation president Carole Gordon says SOGI 123 is an optional resource and one tool in the toolkit that should not be an election issue.

"Teachers use lots of different resources. It's just one. It doesn't mean it's the only one that allows us to address the curriculum and the needs of kids," said Gordon, speaking to CBC’s Gloria Mackeranko.

"I think there's a lot of misinformation out there, and we shouldn't be amplifying that information, so it really shouldn't be an election issue," said Gordon.

She says more focus needs to be on issues including underfunding, understaffing, and under-resourced schools — challenges Gordon says she is hearing about.

Gordon acknowledges the confusion parents may face with SOGI in schools and urges that caregivers speak to teachers, admins or school trustees.

People have been protesting for and against it. So what exactly is SOGI?

Baneet Braich is a journalist with CBC News based in B.C.'s Fraser Valley. Connect with her at baneet.braich@cbc.ca or on Twitter at @Baneet_Braich.