Is Sex on Your Child's School Calendar?
Spoiler alert: It probably is. Here's what to look for, and how to find out.
It’s that time of year again, when parents of school-aged kids everywhere are inundated with stacks of back-to-school paperwork: school handbooks, device loan agreements, lunch menus, and of course, the school calendar.
But did you know that, in addition to your official school calendar (approved by your school committee), there’s another “school calendar” that might be impacting your child’s education?
GLSEN, the “Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education Network” is a national activist organization that works to insert LGBTQ ideology in the public school system through student activities like GSA clubs, professional development for staff, free resources and lessons, model policies that they recommend for school committees, and more. Since the mid 90’s, we’ve had GLSEN to thank for ideology-related calendar observances such as “LGBTQ History Month” (which used to be called “LGB History Month - see page 13 of this document from 1997 for proof) and “Day of Silence,” when LGBTQ-identifying students and their ‘allies’ would be silent for the duration of one school day, “symbolically represent the silencing of LGBTQ students.” The growing number of these observances eventually prompted GLSEN to create their own calendar. The “GLSEN School Year Calendar” is now provided annually to educators and students who are encouraged to “Use this calendar to schedule your GSA meetings, lesson plans, student events, and staff development workshops…”. This year’s version is below, and can be accessed on the GLSEN website here.
At MIP, our focus is equipping parents to protect their children from sexualization and indoctrination. While it is good for parents to see GLSEN’s calendar (further evidence that we’re not making this stuff up, folks!), it can be overwhelming to sift through everything listed and know which observances might crop up in your child’s school. Also, GLSEN includes some days that are nationally known and not objectionable, such as Election Day and Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. While we could write many paragraphs about the sleight-of-hand GLSEN seems to be attempting by putting worthwhile celebrations like “National Read Across America Day” and Juneteenth alongside “International Drag Day,” we thought it would be better to just create our own calendar.
Below, please find Massachusetts Informed Parents’ Sex on the School Calendar, 2024-2025 edition.
You can download it as a pdf here:
This calendar focuses on events and observances related to sexuality and gender identity that we believe are most likely to show up in MA schools. It also includes some not listed on the new GLSEN calendar, but that we want parents to have on their radar. Please share this graphic widely. There likely won’t be any districts that implement all of these observances, but every district will probably do one or two (and some may do many or most of them). These sorts of observances are almost always done at the building level, so a school committee might not be aware of them. This is all the more reason why parents must be.
Here are a few examples of where we’ve seen these events turn up:
Banned books week:
This yearly emphasis has taken hold in public libraries and now is present in most public-school systems. Kids may be shown or read to from “banned books” as defined by the American Library Association. The ALA misuses the term “ban” and uses selectively presented stats to give the impression that thousands of books are being banned every year by conservative and common-sense parents when really, all of those books (many of which contain graphic sex) are still available for purchase (and often included in collections at local libraries). This key detail is rarely shared at these “Banned Book Week” events, nor is the fact that it is quite socially acceptable to “ban” children from explicit material in other settings (such as rated R movies). Regardless, students are fed the false idea that “book banners” are trying to take away their “freedom to read,” and if they want to prove they are on the right side of history, they need to read “banned” books.
No Name-Calling Week:
We found this event in Arlington last year, which just goes to show that even though GLSEN has taken it off of their official calendar, many districts still participate. This weeklong event purports to be against bullying, but was used in Arlington as an excuse to talk to elementary school kids about LGBTQ issues. You can read more about it here, including pages from GLSEN’s No Name-Calling Week “Student Organizing Guide.” This guide has since disappeared from the GLSEN website but is likely still kicking around in many schools. Parts of it are quite shocking.
Day of Silence/Week of (No) Silence
This observance deserves special attention because GLSEN has changed it twice within the last two years. As we mentioned earlier, the Day of Silence was a day when students would show their support for the LGBTQ community by being silent. Last year, GLSEN changed their Day of Silence to the Day of (No) Silence where students were encouraged to engage in out-loud activism rather than silence. As if that change wasn’t enough, according to GLSEN’s new calendar the 2025 event is now a Week of (No) Silence. What started as students being quiet for one day has turned into students being loud activists for a whole week, all in the space of two years. This is something parents definitely need to watch for (and if you think the photo below from Norton Middle School’s Day of Silence 2022 is over-the-top, imagine what likeminded staffers across MA will do with a whole week!).
What can parents do about these overt celebrations of queer theory masquerading as kindness and positive social action? Opting out of sex ed is an important first step, but depending on how the observance takes place and whether or not it is required, it might not fall under the opt out law. In addition to opting out, we recommend parents do the following:
Send a respectfully worded email to your principal and ask if any of these events will be observed during the upcoming year in any part of the school day, whether led by school staff or members of a club or student activity group. You can attach our Sex on the School Calendar graphic or use it to create your own list. Request a response to the email. It’s very possible they don’t know the answer to this question offhand, especially if they are new to the district, but your email will inspire them to find out. If you don’t receive a response within a week, send a follow-up email and copy the Superintendent.
Conduct an informal survey of your district’s social media accounts, emails, and newsletters from the previous year. See if any of the events were mentioned as having been observed in the past. If they were held in the past, it’s likely they will happen again. Make sure you are signed up for all communications from the school for the new school year. Watch for them in your email inbox and read them diligently.
Talk to your child in an age-appropriate way about special events that might be celebrated at school. Ask them to communicate with you if they hear about something coming up. Since most special events at school are positive, this can be done in a positive way. If your child shares information with you that you don’t like or sounds suspect, keep a poker face (getting upset makes it less likely your child will share information with you in the future) and contact the school to confirm details.
If you find out that your child’s school will be observing one of these days, and the observance does not fall under the opt out provision, you will need to decide as a parent how best to handle the situation. Some parents decide not to send their child to school that day. Some parents decide to talk through the issue with their child in advance, giving them the tools to understand why the family disagrees with the observance. Some children, especially older children with strong personal convictions, decide to attend school on that day and use it as an opportunity to respectfully tell their teachers and classmates why they are not participating. If these events are being pushed by a GSA, some students use that as a catalyst to start their own student activity club (free speech club, Bible study) and host their own events.
If these events are a distraction to the educational process, or if they include elements that you think other parents would want to know about, spread the word. Tell other parents in your community who might share your concerns about the events. Show up together to school committee meetings and make public comment or email your concerns to the school committee (or better yet, do both!). It is very possible that they are not aware of these events, as they often do not rise to the level of school committee approval. Even if you do not see an immediate change, drawing public attention to the events can encourage more transparency and accountability.
Remember that your child has legal rights, including the right to free speech. If you feel your child’s rights have been violated at any time for speaking up about these events, or if your child has been punished for not participating, contact the Massachusetts Liberty Legal Center.
Keep us in the loop! What is happening in your school? Did your school come up with some other wacky day to celebrate that isn’t on our list? Drop us an email at massinformedparents@gmail.com, comment on this post, or visit us on Facebook.
Friends, knowledge is power. We know it can feel overwhelming to try and protect your kids from all of this indoctrination, but keep your heads up. Knowing that a problem exists is the first step, and you’ve already got that covered. The second step is knowing how to handle the problem, and now you’re well on your way with that, too. You got this, Mom and Dad.
And if you need support? Let us know. Supporting parents is always on our calendar.
#equippingparents
#protectingkids
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