“Homosexuality at school”: Unions prepare response against UNESCO

Accusing UNESCO of organizing a seminar to introduce issues related to homosexuality in schools, teachers’ unions are organizing to respond.

This reform was supposed to be carried out with the utmost discretion. But the teachers’ unions spilled the beans as soon as the work was completed. Last week, from December 21st to 23rd, UNESCO brought together education stakeholders in Saly to validate a module on sex education and reproductive health in Senegalese schools.

According to Inspector Sylla, who represented SELS/Authentique, led by Abdou Faty, the meeting included natural science and French teachers, inspectors, and those in charge of the Curriculum Reform Support Program (Parc) at the Ministry of National Education. And it was precisely this park that was supposed to serve as a Trojan horse for introducing lessons related to homosexuality through sex education. This is how, according to union representatives, we find expressions like “hot social issues,” “a catch-all” supposedly a module.

According to Inspector Sylla, who spoke via audio recordings shared on WhatsApp, items drawn from international principles were presented to school staff. And the teachers and inspectors of each subject were asked to state whether the landlords’ concerns had been taken into account in the curricula. If not, they should explain how it is possible to introduce them into core skills. “Some French teachers even said that this subject could be a welcome discipline, since, they say, Mariama Ba addressed these issues in her writings,” reports Sylla.

But that was without taking into account the determination of the union representatives, members of the G7, who simply sent UNESCO back to its desks. “All the union organizations have vigorously rejected these proposals, which do not align with our values ​​and beliefs,” declared Abdou Faty, Secretary General of Sels/Authentique, contacted by Seneweb.

The same position was taken by CUSEMS. Deputy Secretary General Ndongo Sarr specified that the union’s Secretary General, Abdoulaye Ndoye, who took part in this meeting, categorically rejected this initiative. “We consider it a continuing farce. Two years ago (in a hotel on the Vdn), a workshop was organized during which the same issue was raised. We rejected it because if it passed, it would destroy our values,” Sarr recalled.

Faced with the unions’ stance, they were offered a conditional signature. They refused. Today, in addition to the rejection, the teachers are announcing a series of measures to address it. A press conference is planned in a few days. Faty and Sarr are announcing visits to religious authorities to encourage their support. They are also calling on the people to stand up to such an agenda.

According to our sources, this new attempt is proof that Westerners will never back down in their desire to impose their worldview on other peoples, particularly homosexuality. It remains to be seen whether the current Minister of National Education, Mamadou Tall, will follow in his predecessor’s footsteps. Indeed, two years ago, Serigne Mbaye Thiam, then the minister responsible, openly opposed this issue.

To force him to take a stand, Abdou Faty reveals that the unions will call on the minister to speak out “unambiguously” on the subject. And such proposals should no longer be made to them “in a sugar-coated manner.”

For these two unionists, the root of the problem remains the same: education funding. “If they dare to make these proposals to us, it’s because we don’t have endogenous funding,” says Abdou Faty, who calls on the government and the Senegalese people to agree to provide the necessary resources to avoid resorting to these groups called technical and financial partners. “Every time you request funding, if the gender dimension isn’t taken into account, they are reluctant,” adds Ndongo Sarr.

Therefore, the best way to preserve your values is not to reach out to them, because even if the project is withdrawn in the face of an outcry, it will sooner or later come back to the table, in one form or another… perhaps even more subtle.