Central Okanagan School District 23 – School Library Concerns

Dear Trustees,

I know that you are passionate about helping the students succeed at the Central Okanagan School District and I recognize you have a challenging and demanding job, so I will try to make it short, but this is an important matter.

I have reason to believe that children or youth have been or could be likely abused or neglected based on what I have seen and information I have found on your library site; I am concerned about the safety and well-being of those under your authority about a serious matter that is happening within your school. As a Canadian citizen and under B.C. law, I have a duty to report the following concerns.

Children ages from 5 years old up to 17 years old at the schools mentioned below have been or are at risk of being exposed to books containing sexual references, sexual activity, sexual material, and books showing a person who is engaged in or is depicted as engaged in explicit sexual activity. The main characteristics of those books relate to sexual activity and expose children to individuals engaging in sexually explicit acts, including exposure to adult pornography, and encouraging children to masturbate or watch others masturbate.

It is important to know that we do not have to prove that a child has been abused in order to report abuse. If we observe or hear about concerning behavior or an inappropriate situation between an adult and a child within an organization, such as a school, daycare, or sports program, and as mentioned above due to mandatory laws in most provinces in Canada we must report our concern to the organization.

According to the Canadian Center for Child Protection a non-contact sexual abuse is as follow:

Encouraging a child to masturbate or watch others masturbate
Secretly recording or observing a child in a private situation for a sexual purpose (voyeurism)
Exposing a child to individuals engaging in sexually explicit acts (including exposure to adult pornography)
Exposing a child to child sexual abuse material
“Flashing” or exposing genitals to a child
Communicating over technology to make it easier to commit a specific sexual offense against a child (luring a child)
Taking a picture or recording a video of a child’s sexual organs for a sexual purpose

I understand that resources are to be inclusive and suitable based on diverse social considerations. Nevertheless, resources are to be ages appropriate, and within the boundary of the rules of law. At this stage, I would advise the School Board to remove those books from the library, contact the librarian, review those books, and make sure that all book selection policy has been followed. Please advise on how the board will proceed.

Hope the following will help you better understand the concern mentioned above. If you need more information regarding those books, please do not hesitate to ask.

Here are some text and screenshots of the book It’s Perfectly Normal by Robie h. Harris and Michael Emberly are available at the following schools:

Helen Gorman Elementary https://insignia.sd23.bc.ca/Library/ItemDetail?l=All&i=576739&ti=0
Rose Valley Elementary https://insignia.sd23.bc.ca/Library/ItemDetail?l=All&i=644874&ti=0

Page 9:

“Another kind of sexual intercourse happens when the sexual pails of two people who have female bodies touch or when the sexual parts of two people who have male bodies touch. This kind of touching can make the whole body feel good — feel sexy.”

Page 60:

“When a person with a female body and a person with a male body are having vaginal intercourse, the erect penis goes into and inside the vagina, which stretches in a way that fits around the penis. The wetness from the vagina makes it easier for the penis to go into the vagina.”

“Vaginal intercourse is also called vaginal sex. As the two people move back and forth in rhythm, the movement of the penis inside the vagina soon feels very good.”

Page 61:

When these feelings come to a climax, semen is ejaculated from the penis and spurts into the vagina, and the muscles in the vagina and uterus tighten and finally relax. This is called having an orgasm. Often, right after an orgasm, a small amount of fluid may come out of the vagina and out of the penis.

Here are some screenshots of the book Sex is a Funny Word by Cory Silverberg available at the following school:

Mar Jok Elementary School https://insignia.sd23.bc.ca/Library/ItemDetail?l=All&i=786623&ti=0

Here are some screenshots of the book Gender Queer by Kobabe Mais available at the following schools:

Kelowna Secondary https://insignia.sd23.bc.ca/Library/ItemDetail?l=All&i=892510&ti=0
Rutland Senior Secondary School https://insignia.sd23.bc.ca/Library/ItemDetail?l=All&i=961617&ti=0

Here are some screenshots of the book Fun Home by Alison Bechdel available at the following school:

KLO Middle https://insignia.sd23.bc.ca/Library/ItemDetail?l=All&i=915900&ti=0

Here are some screenshots of the book All Boys aren’t Blue a memoir-manifesto by George M Johnson available at the following schools:

Mount Boucherie Secondary https://insignia.sd23.bc.ca/Library/ItemDetail?l=All&i=939273&ti=0
Kelowna Secondary https://insignia.sd23.bc.ca/Library/ItemDetail?l=All&i=959309&ti=0

Here are some screenshots of the book a Quick and Easy Guide to They-Them Pronouns by Bongiovanni Archie available at the following schools:

Kelowna Secondary https://insignia.sd23.bc.ca/Library/ItemDetail?l=All&i=864083&ti=0
Okanagan Mission Secondary https://insignia.sd23.bc.ca/Library/ItemDetail?l=All&i=883986&ti=0

Here are some screenshots of the book a Quick and Easy Guide to Queer and Trans Identities by Mady G & R and JR Zucherberg available at the following school: