Primary school pupils are being taught about 300 different LGBT pride flags in a bid to “be more inclusive”.
Leaflets distributed by a local charity provide children across Swindon and Wiltshire with information on each of the 300 flags and the gender identities behind them.
The documents, provided by Swindon and Wiltshire Pride, claim there are more flags representing sexuality and gender identity than there are for countries.
“While some might think [300] is too many, it’s all part of a drive to be more inclusive of the expansive breadth of identity within the community,” the charity’s materials said.
Intersex-inclusive Pride Progress flag
GETTY
Different LGBT flags – the school children are being taught 300
GETTY
“Obviously the polyamory one, encouraging children to have multiple sex partners, they shouldn’t be sexualising children,” she said.
“In the guide itself, under education, it states it is ‘for schools, teachers, and students’.
“A couple of sentences down, for example, it says ‘raise awareness of the lesser known identities across the fetish spectrum’.”
Beyond the flag descriptions, the charity’s guide directs readers to websites that provide advice on controversial practices, including guidance on wearing “a binder to reduce apparent size of breasts” and information about the use of cross-sex hormones in under-18s.
Among the 29 flags specifically highlighted are designs representing polyamory relationships and a heterosexual flag that the charity notes can encompass transgender individuals.
Helen Joyce, director of advocacy at human rights charity Sex Matters, continued to tell the broadsheet that the flags “draw children in” and “suggest that children need to find themselves on the list”.
She added: “They recruit children into the world of sexual orientation and gender identity, which is inappropriate and unnecessary.
“Encouraging very young children to wonder about their gender or sexual orientation in this reckless way creates safeguarding risks.
“Some of these flags promote the false belief that a child can be born in the wrong body, which is deeply unsettling for young people.
“They should be protected from such misguided and harmful ideas, but instead, adult concepts are being pushed at them, disguised as harmless fun.”
The materials provided information on 300 flags and what they mean
Wikimedia commons
A spokesman for Swindon and Wiltshire Pride said: “We believe in ‘Pride 365’: a year-round commitment to celebrating identity, raising awareness, and supporting LGBTQIA+ people in our community.
“Throughout the year, we engage with a wide range of local events, organisations, and educational settings to build understanding and foster inclusion.
“During this Pride Month, we were invited into a small number of local schools to support their curriculum-led work around diversity and LGBTQIA+ relationships.
“Our support guide includes helpful information, links to support organisations, and content written for all audiences – it contains no sexual content whatsoever.
“It is disheartening, though sadly not surprising, to face unfounded attacks or misrepresentations of our work.
“As a visible LGBTQIA+ charity, we know that some individuals may seek to undermine the progress we are making in fostering a more compassionate, inclusive society.
“We remain proud of our mission and grateful to the many people, schools, and communities who continue to stand with us.”
