Sexuality education | Parents block content in three schools

In recent years, parents of North African origin involved in the governing boards of three schools in the Côte-des-Neiges district have maneuvered to block certain content in sexuality education, which is nevertheless compulsory in the Quebec school curriculum, according to an investigation of The Press.

These parents sit or have served on the governing boards of Bedford and Saint-Pascal-Baylon primary schools, as well as La Voie secondary school. The first has already been the subject of a devastating report from the Ministry of Education. The other two are in the ministry’s crosshairs.

According to three sources familiar with the matter but not authorized to speak publicly, the case of La Voie school has very little to do with that of Bedford school. The climate is good there, there is no staff turnover. The teachers – a good number of whom are themselves of North African origin – are not to blame.

The problem is the governing board.

On June 4, 2024, the functions and powers of this governance structure essential to the proper functioning of the school were completely suspended, as tensions were high between the parents and teachers who sat there. In the middle of the session, the president of the council, Said Soali, as well as the three other parent members stood up en bloc and left the premises, furious at being disrespected, according to them, by the members of the educational staff, after our three sources.

At the source of the conflict: the invitation to the La Voie school from the Social Intervention Research Group (GRIS-Montreal), an organization working to demystify sexual and gender diversity. Its volunteer speakers share their experiences in class, then answer students’ questions, such as: When did you know you were homosexual? How did your parents react?

For months, the four parent members of the governing board of La Voie school had opposed this visit. As of November 7, 2023, they had refused to approve the sexuality education planning proposed by the director, due to the visit to GRIS-Montreal among the planned activities, according to the minutes of the session.

The director returned to the charge at the following meeting, held on February 6, 2024, according to the minutes. The parents of the council once again opposed the visit of GRIS-Montréal in 4th grade classes^e secondary. They voted to remove the organization from the activities planned on the schedule.

Despite this resolution, a GRIS-Montreal worker went to La Voie school a few days later, since teachers, enjoying professional autonomy, do not have to be dictated to the educational tools to use. – or to be avoided – by parents of students, even if they are members of the school board.

GRIS-Montréal was even invited a second time to La Voie school, at the end of May, after a crisis in a class of 2^e secondary. A homosexual intern, Francis Richer, had just received a barrage of homophobic insults on a chat platform made available to students. Among the anonymous comments: “Francis the gay is going to die”; “Long live genocides against LGBTQ people”; “Francis is not a good teacher, he attacked me in bed.”

Strongly shaken, Francis Richer lodged a complaint with the police and school authorities. In the middle of a storm, the management of La Voie school invited a speaker from GRIS-Montreal to raise awareness among the students in this 2nd grade class.^e secondary to the ravages of homophobia. This decision deeply shocked the parent members of the governing board.

On June 2, President Said Soali complained about the situation in writing to the general director of the Center des services scolaire de Montréal (CSSDM), Isabelle Gélinas.

“During the meeting of February 6, 2024, the governing board adopted a resolution according to which the organization GRIS-Montréal [n’était] not authorized to intervene with our students. This resolution was adopted in the best interests of our students in accordance with article 64 of the Public Education Act,” Mr. Soali wrote.

However, this resolution was ignored, he regretted. “The parents believe that the intervention of the organization in question affected the well-being of their young people and violated their rights, in particular the right to information and freedom of religion or belief. »

The parents “feel angry and betrayed”, continued Mr. Soali, demanding from Isabelle Gélinas “rapid and effective action” to resolve this problem which risked “compromising our school democracy”.

Two days later, during the June 4 session, Said Soali attempted to modify the agenda to return to the GRIS-Montreal visit to the classroom, without success. Things got out of hand. The session ended abruptly, when the four parent members, all of North African origin, got up to slam the door.

On June 10, the CSSDM responded to Mr. Soali that the governing board did not have to get involved in the content taught to students. “The means chosen to promote learning of the content fall within the professional autonomy of the school team,” wrote Stéphane Chaput, deputy director general and head of secondary schools at the CSSDM. The governing board did not have the power, through its resolution of February 6, to decide how and by whom the content would be offered to students.

Said Soali has resigned. He did not respond to our request for an interview.

A community influence

According to the business register, Said Soali is president of the board of directors of the Darlington Community Center, a religious organization which notably teaches the principles of the Koran to Muslim children in the Côte-des-Neiges district.

The Darlington Community Center is located a stone’s throw from Bedford Primary School. The Department of Education report revealed that members of the Center had set up a Facebook page to denigrate teaching at Bedford. One of them even burst into the school yelling at a teacher. Management had to call 911.

According to the ministry’s report, the governing board of the Bedford school – of which Said Soali was also a parent member, in 2023-2024 – has repeatedly sought to block content in sexuality education, such as La Voie school. In the case of Bedford, these maneuvers were often successful.

“Testimonial evidence revealed that sexuality education content is not taught at Bedford School for several years,” the report reads. There seem to be issues regarding the adoption of planning by the governing board. »

After a redacted passage, the investigators write: “Several speakers indicated that this involvement was motivated by a desire to ensure conformity of the academic model in these schools with a cultural model defended in these community organizations. However, these claims could not be substantiated due to mandate limits. However, this would have had the impact of delaying or preventing the adoption of certain mandatory policies, relating, among other things, to the teaching of sexuality education courses.”

Saint-Pascal-Baylon school

The first meeting of the governing board of La Voie school since the June crisis was held on October 24. That evening, another parent member, Abdel Hakim Touhmou, was named president. However, according to our three sources, this appointment is not likely to calm the climate since Mr. Touhmou would be largely at the origin of the tensions of the last year within the council – much more, in fact, than Said Soali.

Moreover, Abdel Hakim Touhmou, who declined our interview request, would not only have contributed to poisoning the atmosphere at La Voie secondary school.

Until last month, this father of five children was president of the governing board of Saint-Pascal-Baylon primary school, located a stone’s throw away, on Chemin Côte-des-Neiges.

In an investigation by Duty, published today, the CSSDM deplores that the governing board of this school has for years established a “hostile climate” by “systematically questioning the decisions and directions of management”.

On May 13, 2019, Abdel Hakim Touhmou and other parent members objected to the planning of the school’s sexuality education classes. Three years later, during the session of March 21, 2022, the same scenario occurred again. According to the minutes, Mr. Touhmou then stressed “that sexuality education [devait] take into consideration the realities of students and their parents, particularly on socio-cultural and religious levels.

Mr. Touhmou considered that the timetable proposed by management did not leave “parents time to find out about the content or to request exemption for serious reasons (psychological harm or infringement of rights and freedoms)”.

He questioned “the relevance of teaching sexuality education content to preschool students.” Faced with numerous objections from Mr. Touhmou, the lesson planning was not adopted during this session.

The CSSDM confirmed to Duty that, for years, sexuality education has been put aside at the Saint-Pascal-Baylon school, with the exception of “certain content” presented to students by the CLSC in the sector.

The daily quotes a letter signed by the school team in May 2021, reporting an “acrimonious and quarrelsome climate” within the governing board. The teaching members were treated “with a lack of respect and recognition of their competence”. Speaking rights were “frequently interrupted” by the president, Mr. Touhmou.

According to our three sources, the same acrimonious climate has been established on the governing board of La Voie secondary school since Abdel Hakim Touhmou – who was a lecturer at the Faculty of Education Sciences – became involved. from the University of Quebec in Montreal.

Minister Drainville promises to act

On October 22, the office of the Minister of Education, Bernard Drainville, indicated in a press release that a mandate had been given to the Ministry’s teams to quickly carry out “audits” at the La Voie and Saint schools. -Pascal-Baylon, as well as at Bienville primary school, in the Saint-Michel district. “These audits mainly target the climate within these schools as well as possible interference in governance bodies. »

At the microphone of Patrick Lagacé, on the airwaves of 98.5 FM, Bernard Drainville clarified “that there are, on the governing boards, people who are not there for the interests of the children as provided for in the law “. The minister asked the CSSDM to “take all means, including legal means, to ensure that the governing boards do their job.”

“The CSSDM is fully committed to collaborating with the ministry in all these initiatives,” assures its spokesperson, Alain Perron. Students and staff of schools affected by these verification mandates will be entitled to sustained and caring support. It should also be noted that the majority of staff members who work there are committed to meeting the needs of students and providing a harmonious environment. »