CRC Attack Fails: Less Than Five Percent Opt Out

In testing the new sex-education curricula, the default position is to opt out. Parents have to sign a form asking the school to allow their students to take the class. If they do nothing, the kid misses the class.

The CRC did everything they could to try to get people to not ask for their children to be allowed to attend the classes. They sent letters to the families at the test schools and used an automated dialing system to call their homes and play a recorded message (all in violation of PTA rules about the use of directories); they held a big media event with yellow signs and Powerpoint slides and TV interviews, and videos that made gay people look bad. They sent out emails by the thousands, asking people to forward them to ten other people. They got the American Family Association's Donald Wildmon to write people in our county, encouraging them to refuse to allow their children to participate in the testing.

People had to ask the schools to include their children in the classes, and the CRC tried to get them to do nothing.

Did it work?

No.

Here is the article in this morning's Washington Times.

Roughly 10 percent of Montgomery County students did not attend the school system's new sex-education classes that include lessons on homosexuality and condom use.

Three lessons were taught last week for 10th-graders at Watkins Mill and Bethesda-Chevy Chase high schools. And two lessons were held for eighth-graders at Argyle and Julius West middle schools.

Of the 488 students enrolled in the classes, 24 presented a parental-permission slip excusing them, and 17 failed to bring a permission slip allowing them to take the classes, said county schools spokesman Brian Edwards. Most students present for sex-ed class

Let me re-do that math for you, from The Times' numbers: 488 total, 17 forgot to return the slip, 24 opted out.

"Roughly 10 percent" is really more like "8.4 percent" (41/488) of students who did not attend the classes (because 17+24=41). About 3.5 percent (17/488)of the little darlings forgot to show the form to their parents and return it to school.

4.9 percent (24/488) of parents opted out of the classes.

In other words, less than five percent of parents, with all this commotion, chose not to ask the school to teach this new material to their children.

Skipping down...

Michelle Turner, spokeswoman for Citizens for Responsible Curriculum, which opposes the lessons, said some students were left to sit in the library during the class.

The group sent letters and automated-phone calls to parents urging them not to allow their children to attend the classes.

A Watkins Mill student decided not to take the classes because of what they taught was contrary to her beliefs, said her father, John Fichter.

The lessons she would have heard include definitions of the terms homosexual, bisexual, transgender and homophobia," he said.

Whatever, man, if that would be so upsetting, it's easy enough to keep your kids out of the class.

There's more, you will find it interesting. They quote me near the end.

The CRC wants to pretend there's a controversy, but as you can see, even with the most intense pressure they can apply, less than one family in twenty decided against asking permission for their kid to learn this important information.