Political Matters of the Nation |
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has issued a directive to 40 states, the District of Columbia, and five territories, instructing them to remove parts of LGBTQ+ focused lessons from federally funded sexual education materials, or risk losing financial support.
Acting Assistant Health and Human Service Secretary Andrew Gradison stated that federal funds will not be used to "poison the minds of the next generation" or advance "dangerous ideological agendas."
The grants, totaling over $81 million, are aimed at education for homeless youth, those in foster care, rural areas, high teen birth rate areas, and minority groups, including LGBTQ+ populations. They are used to teach adolescents about abstinence and contraception.
The HHS directive points to specific examples in textbooks and curricula that they find objectionable. An example is an Alabama curriculum that encourages the instructor to ask participants to share their pronouns and acknowledges the existence of various sexual orientations and gender identities.
Connecticut Attorney General William Tong has described the threat of defunding schools over this issue as "completely unhinged," stating that they will not let the Trump administration steal money from their children's education. Tong also suggested there could be legal challenges to the administration's efforts.
In contrast, South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster applauded the warnings regarding objectionable content in sex education materials. McMaster stated that the objectionable content has no place in sex education lessons.
California was previously warned and lost its $12 million grant on August 21. Officials in these areas have been given 60 days to change the lessons or risk losing their grants. Other states now have until late October to decide whether to comply or forfeit the funding.
The American Medical Association and other mainstream medical groups believe that extensive scientific research suggests that sex and gender are better understood as a spectrum, not an either-or definition. Some states have laws requiring education about lesbian, gay, and transgender people.
The Associated Press contributed to this article with reports from Jeffrey Collins in Columbia, South Carolina, and Susan Haigh in Hartford, Connecticut. The news agency will continue to monitor developments in this ongoing story.
