The Liberated Learner – Column by Suzanne Kearney
An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.”
Benjamin Franklin
Have you heard about the Seattle public schools? Straight from the Marxist playbook, teachers and staff have been undermining parental authority, dividing families, enacting “mental health” mitigations without parental consent, and indoctrinating minor children. In one recent case, a middle school counselor affirmed a young girl’s “transgender/furry” identity, while school administrators brushed off the mother’s concerns. Although “Anne” had previously flourished in home education and private school, after enrolling in the public system and being introduced to gender ideology, she attempted suicide multiple times and engaged in cutting and other grievous acts of self-harm.
Oh wait – did I say Seattle? My mistake – I meant Coeur d’Alene.
That’s right – it’s in your own backyard. Take a recent video of Coeur d’Alene resident Shelia Bucher, a well-meaning mother who enrolled her adopted daughter “Anne” at Lakes Middle School so she could “blossom,” make new friends, and get an education. “I wanted her to be able to experience life, and enjoy what a public school setting is … I just trusted the school district, my city, my town, the teachers, the staff, that they were going to take care of her and teach her and educate her.”
Did you read that? She trusted the system.
After some time, Shelia “noticed a behavior change” in Anne. She was shocked when the school asked her to sign a paper affirming her daughter’s new male name and pronouns. In spite of her firm refusal, staff continued with the social “transition” anyway. How did this affect Shelia’s relationship with her daughter? “I became the enemy, and they became her world … It was like my child had a new best friend, and what I said didn’t matter anymore.”
For Anne, like countless other American youth, the public school played a crucial role in planting the destructive seeds of gender confusion. The “trans” agenda has taken root in the educational establishment and is growing exponentially. According to independent journalist Abigail Schrier, there has been a “decade-to-decade increase of over 4,400 percent in the number of teenage girls seeking (gender dysphoria) treatment …” She further writes, “Add to that a school environment where you can achieve status and popularity by declaring a trans identity …” In other words, “trans” is a social contagion, and in many cases, school administrators and peers accelerate the spread.
In neighboring Washington, for example, some public-school health clinics “are offering students … hormone therapy and referrals for reconstructive surgery, as part of (their) school-based medical services.” In addition, Washington minors can get “gender reassignment surgery” without parental knowledge or consent (though Mom and Dad may still have to foot the bill). Finally, KOMO News reported that “minors seeking gender-affirming care in Washington will be protected from the intervention of estranged parents … the state … could … attempt to reunify the family if feasible. Youths will also be allowed to stay at host homes … without parental permission.”
Read that carefully: they could contact parents – if feasible. What if parents are deemed a threat to a child’s mental health because they refuse to “affirm” his or her “transition,” such as Abigail Martinez of California, who lost custody rights shortly before her daughter Yaeli committed suicide? What if a child has estranged herself? Will the state give authority to a “host home” “glitter parent” who (supposedly) knows much better how to care for the troubled teen? Do not assume that Idaho residency will protect you. As of June 2023, ten states declared themselves “sanctuary” safe harbors for out-of-state minors, saying that they “will not enforce penalties from another state relating to gender-affirming care.”
If at this point you feel alarmed, pause for a moment and ask yourself which is easier – prevention or treatment? Protection or mitigation? What relationship do you want with your child – one of trust and influence, or one mediated by a school administrator who opposes your family’s values?
If you think homeschooling is not an option because it is “too hard,” I suggest that dealing with the fallout of the public schools’ influence may be much, much harder. I agree that teen mental health issues are complex, and that it would be overly simplistic to place all the blame for Anne’s issues on the school. However, putting an at-risk child in a situation where her delusions are affirmed, her relationship with her mother is shattered, and her parents’ wishes are ignored is a recipe for disaster. Unfortunately for the Bucher family, they may spend a lifetime undoing the harm that might have been avoided if not for their daughter’s enrollment in the Coeur d’Alene school district.
Is your child in public school? Consider yourself warned. Perhaps your child will be fine. I hope so. But if your child is at-risk, by the time you find out, it may be too late.
