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Student walkout Friday will protest Ford's sex-ed policy

'We the students can't let this happen. We want our voices to be heard'
2018-07-20 Sex-Ed Rally 12 RB
Chippewa students are expected to protest Friday against the government's Sex-ed plans. File photo by Raymond Bowe/BarrieToday

Students at Chippewa Secondary School will be staging a mass walkout tomorrow morning to protest Premier Doug Ford's sex-ed policy.

The policy is meant to temporarily replace a now-repealed modernized version put in place by the former Liberal government in 2015.

It's been under fire from many groups including northern Ontario LGBTQ organizations.

See: Northern LGBTQ groups call out Doug Ford's 'asinine' plan to consult parents on sex-ed

Chippewa Student council President Livy Lyle told BayToday that she expects hundreds of local students will join a province-wide effort to bring attention to the issue.

"The reason we think this is a problem is because it excludes any mention of consent or any mention of the LGBTQ2S+ community which obviously is a large problem as it promotes a culture of sexual abuse and disregards an entire population of people. We the students can't let this happen. We want our voices to be heard."

Lyle says fellow students are "quite passionate" about the issue and says the school has a very large LGBTQ2S+ population.

"Honestly, we are quite outraged by this. Most of the student population is planning on protesting tomorrow."

Chippewa houses over 800 students.

She says teachers aren't allowed to comment but adds the whole school is very supportive of the protest.

Lyle says she only heard about the province-wide walkout yesterday and has scrambled to organize something locally.

"This is such a big issue we did not want to be the one school that is not participating in this and it is something we are quite unhappy about."

The plan is to rally on the football field and Lyle is trying to get some tarps to protect students from the predicted rain.

"We're going to be making some signs and have some people talk to us. This is very important."


Jeff Turl

About the Author: Jeff Turl

Jeff is a veteran of the news biz. He's spent a lengthy career in TV, radio, print and online, covering both news and sports. He enjoys free time riding motorcycles and spoiling grandchildren.
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