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Government MP Likens LGBT ‘Safe Schools’ Program To ‘Paedophile Grooming’
Government MP George Christensen Likens LGBT ‘Safe Schools’ Program To ‘Paedophile Grooming’
Article by Josh Butler
In Huffington Post
http://www.huffingtonpost.com.au/2016/02/25/christensen-grooming_n_9322362.htmlQuote:Malcolm Turnbull is under pressure to rein in George Christensen after the controversial MP likened a school program that supports LGBT students to paedophile grooming.Turnbull this week asked Education Minister Simon Birmingham to review the ‘Safe Schools’ program, which aims to address homophobia in schools, after a concerted campaign by conservative lobby groups and parliamentarians.
…… Christensen made repeated references to LGBT organisations Minus18 and Twenty10, which Safe Schools Coalition resources link to, and claimed they promote and give information about sex toys, sadomasochism and pornography to young people.
“If parents knew their children were being exposed to this type of material, they would probably not let them go to school. If someone proposed exposing a child to this material, the parents would probably call the police because it sounds a lot like the grooming work that a sexual predator might undertake,” Christensen said.
He made reference to websites with only the most tenuous links to Safe Schools as further evidence for his claims.
“Safe Schools recommends the transgender organisation Seahorse Club Victoria, which in turn recommends the Abode fetish club. Abode is located at the same address as The Parlour Lounge sex club, which provides sadomasochistic entertainment and rooms for sex,” he said.
Christensen’s comments have been met with furious backlash. -
6 Replies
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I feel sad, very sad. Why, why would anyone in their right mind openly reject the Safe Schools programme. Yes I know, there are those who insist that the program will do all sorts of harm by exposing children to the likes of us to the Transgender community; it’s terrible. I would literally fight to keep such a good and wholesome program afloat. I do not want anyone to experience the shuttered life I have endured because there was no support. There is support out there, that support needs enhancing not crushing to satisfy the false beliefs of a few.
I’m venting my anger at politicians who cannot see further than the end of their noses. It’s time for our Prime Minister to show some backbone and do his job, not being pressured by a few in the loony right and some from the loony left. Politics have nothing to do with supporting vulnerable kids. -
I really don’t know what the safe schools programme entails but hope it clarifies the meaning and acceptability of the various gender and sexual types in the community.
In our political system it is essential that members of parliament be free to express opinions. MPs are not all rocket scientists and they have the same prejudices and ideals as others in society generally. Hence I have no difficulty with this fellow expressing this view however erroneous it is. It is a ridiculous to suggest that this will encourage paedophilia and one wonders if he also feels the earth is flat and was created a thousand years ago by a supreme being.
Be that as it may, if the electorate do not agree with idiots like this then they have the opportunity to unelect them at the next election. While their position is a minority position, unfortunately it possibly reflects the views of a reasonable part of the populace.
What can the leader of the party do, and this applies to the opposition leader as well with Senator Bullock, a good catholic and further to the right than Tony Abbott? Must members follow a party line or should they express what they feel is in the mind of their electorate? Obviously one would hope that these troglodytes could be educated but it is unlikely. Senator Homophobe in SA is certainly unlikely to toe a party line or change his view.
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Those on the ratbag right seem to gain strength as soon as they have a small victory and then their hidden agenda is once again excited and strengthened. Make no mistake, the likes of Christianson, Bernardi and Nile would take the opportunity to impose their rigid and corrosive style of religion , one that is just as proscriptive as any Sharia law, if they had the power. The Testicle on Legs himself ( aka Tony Abbott) , sent Bernadi to the nether world and now Turnbull, member for gayville, has toadied to this crap and Bernadi is at it again.
Up here in Woop-Woop heights, our local Anglican Bishop has just published a piece in the local rag calling for the same cancellation of the Safe schools thingy on the advice of ex Festival of Light bods.The article is full of dog whistles and he even claims to fear for the safety of kids who ” defend Normal marriage” against being bullied ( by the cranky gay and trans kiddies I suspect)!!I am waging a local campaign against the paper for not allowing a right of reply to this joke. He says he hopes that the ” immoral” do not get too angry! He finishes by saying that Gob has forgiven those who have experienced sexually inappropriate lessons( at the hands of Catholic priests I expect)!! The stupid audacity of the man.
We need to resist these bastardsif we want to ever be able to throw off the closet menatlity we have carried around for so many years.
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I just feel disappointed and angry about this. If only this type of thing existed when I was in school it could have saved me almost 35 years of pain, misery, self loathing, shame, and low self esteem.
Everyone is entitled to their views, but as was a concern before the plebiscite was announced the hateful vitriol is damaging and hurtful. And this is without the government suspending the anti discrimination laws so that the likes of the Australian Christian Lobby and the neanderthals on the far right can push their toxic message.
Yes, in case you missed that the ACL and many religious organisations have requested that the government suspend anti discrimination laws so that “There can be a proper debate without fear of reprisals”.
What gets under my skin the most is how these right wing bigots get called a bigot and they then claim that they are the victims.
IMHO the toxic views of the far right have infiltrated the liberal party and brought it to a point that it cannot function in a rational or secular way. I can only hope that the majority of the voting public can see this at election time. Unfortunately the other major party is slightly better they also have many issues if they were to form a government.
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Let’s look at the silver lining in all this. The hard right have regularly engaged in over-reach (remember “Work Choices”)?. At the moment the right wing of the of the Liberal party are busy exposing themselves as the puppet masters with the PM appearing to have less and less authority. The electorate doesn’t like it as demonstrated in the polls. Perhaps the other Liberals will wake up to what is happening before they go down the same track as the Republicans in the USA, slaves to the Tea Party.
Meanwhile in the USA the Catholic Archbishop of St Louis has taken on the Girl Scouts accusing them of supporting sex education, reproductive rights and of welcoming TG children.
We should apply the principles of judo – use the enemy’s strength to expose his weakness.
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Agree Liz June Christina and Victoria – the religious right does not know when to pull its head in. They are more dangerous than sharia because they have the appearance of respectability.
I hope that the over reach thing is correct. We aussies can be a blase bunch at times when it comes to our freedom. We must not lose the momentum we have now with LGBT. If it saves one kid from being bullied or worse then it is worth it.
