Quote:
Originally posted by Happy Monkey
A minor note - those two books don't "advocate" any form of sexuality. Most obviously, there is no sexuality in the books of any kind. Also, you can't advocate having two parents of the same sex - there's nothing the kid can do about it either way. You might as well "advocate" having interracial parents or immigrant parents.
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I disagree on that. I have no problem, personally, with homosexuality, or with gays adopting or having children. I think that what should concern folks is the quality of life the child has with the parents, straight or gay, not the sexuality of the parents.
However, those two books were REQUIRED reading for fifth-graders in New York about five years ago. I don't know if they still are, because of the big to-do that resulted.
Some parents don't want their young children taught about sexuality at school, and that's valid. Sexuality, like religion, is something that is the parent's responsibility to teach, not the school's. Those books shouldn't be required reading any more than the bible should be required reading, and for the same reason: it serves to promote a non-educational viewpoint. If you want to assign it as extra credit, fine. If you put it on a book list for the parents to review and approve or disapprove, that's fine. But to make it a requirement is wrong. The purpose of school is to teach skills and facts, not promote particular social viewpoints.
That was the point I was trying to make.
Sidhe