CUPE 3550 represents 3,500 employees (including library workers) at the Edmonton Public School Board. Local president Mandy Lamoureaux issued the following statement regarding Alberta Education Minister Dimitrios Nicolaides’s policy on ‘age appropriate books’ in school libraries.
“The problems in Alberta education today stem from underfunded schools. Today’s announcement is a transparent attempt to distract from funding issues with dubious culture wars.
The government should talk to parents, who will tell them book censorship does nothing to solve the real issues students face.
The education minister is nearly silent about the fact schools are laying off staff as Jordan’s Principle funding dries up. The minister also avoids discussing overcrowding in classrooms, funding levels that don’t match inflation, support for special needs kids, and staff wages that don’t keep up with the cost of living.
Instead, Minister Nicolaides bans books with gay and queer themes.
Experts agree that in an age when teens can access pornography at almost anytime, young people need literature with healthy depictions of sexuality. Sex is something kids know about, and need to learn about in thoughtful and respectful ways.
The UCP plan to divert attention from the failures of their own education system will only hurt teens who need adults to actually be adults about sex.”