Cheers and chants could be heard around Guelph’s downtown core on Friday afternoon as hundreds of students from each of the city’s seven high schools protested against changes to the sex-ed curriculum.
As part of a student-organized protest involving hundreds of schools throughout the province, students across the city walked out of class at 1 p.m. and made their way to city hall for a rally.
One of the largest turnouts came from students at Guelph Collegiate Vocational Institute, which is about a 10-minute walk to city hall.
Guelph police were called in to control traffic as the students marched down Paisley and Norfolk streets.
“It’s way better than expected,” said one of the organizers, Elise Kephart. “It’s amazing to see so many students coming together for a common cause and seeing the power of students and the power of the youth.”
“I think this is the physical representation of how powerful we are as young people in this generation and in this world.”
The provincial government announced in July that it would scrap the modernized sex-ed curriculum brought in by the Liberal Party in 2015.
That lesson plan included warnings about online bullying and sexting, but opponents objected to parts addressing same-sex relationships, gender identity and masturbation.
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A revised curriculum was released late last month to temporarily replace the modernized version.
Observers have said it makes passing mention of current concepts such as the internet and cellphones but largely reverts to the vague language and broad topics used in the previous curriculum last updated in 1998.
READ MORE: Ontario government’s interim sex-ed curriculum vague and confusing, experts and board say
Guelph MPP and Ontario Green Party Leader Mike Schreiner spoke at the rally and said he wanted to be there for students who are standing up for their rights
“So many people talk about how do we get young people engaged in politics, this is right here,” he said. “This is democracy in action and I’m just so inspired to see so many young people from all across Guelph standing up for what they believe in.”
The province is launching public consultations on a new sex-ed curriculum next week, and a spokeswoman for the education minister said she encouraged people to participate.
— With files from The Canadian Press
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