The Department of Education and Youth has dismissed controversial claims that schools must pander to gender ideology.
A new pro-trans guide from the Irish Council for Civil Liberties (ICCL) told gender-confused students that schools were required to use their “correct name and pronoun in day-to-day interactions”.
But the Department of Education refuted the claim, stating that no such obligation existed in law or Departmental guidance.
Trans student guide
ICCL’s publication, ‘Know Your Rights: A Guide for Trans and Non-Binary People’, informs students that “your school must make every effort to update your name and pronoun in relevant systems and documents”.
It also states that “as a trans student you should be able to access toilets and changing facilities that correspond with your gender identity.
“If you are told you are not allowed to use a bathroom matching your gender identity, this may constitute discrimination on the basis of gender”.
The publication also assures students that schools should allow them to take part in sports “in accordance with your gender identity”, and that teachers do not need to inform parents if they ‘transition’ while at school.
‘Activist wishlist’
Psychotherapist Stella O’Malley said the ICCL “has no hold over school policies in Ireland” and warned that its advice “will harm kids”.
Laoise de Brún, co-founder of women’s rights group The Countess, responded: “The new guidance from ICCL is simply an activist wishlist with no legal standing.”
Speaking to the Irish Times she said: “There is no right in law for anyone to force someone else to use their ‘preferred pronouns’. Enforced speech is not a right and freedom of expression is.”
The guide was produced in conjunction with the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission and researched and written by trans activist lobby groups the Transgender Equality Network Ireland and ShoutOut.
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