Queen's Park, July 23, 2018 - "My question is to the Premier.
Speaker, this morning, violence-against-women advocates were at Queen’s Park to release an open letter to the Minister of Education about the rollback of the 2015 sexual health curriculum. The letter was signed by 87 organizations and experts from across Ontario and across the country. It highlights the serious consequences to women’s safety when consent is no longer taught in our schools.
Almost half of female high school students have experienced sexual harassment. One third have felt pressure into having unwanted sex. This year alone, 41 women and girls in Ontario were killed as a result of dating violence or intimate partner violence.
Why is the Premier putting the health and safety of women and girls at risk by returning to a 1998 curriculum that provides no information about consent and healthy relationships?
Speaker, people on the front lines of ending violence against women know that education on consent and healthy relationships is critical to prevent gender-based violence and advance gender equality. If this government was truly concerned about ending violence against women, they would ensure that students receive comprehensive, accurate information about consent, healthy relationships and the right of girls and young women to say no.
Why does this government care more about catering to a small group of social conservative insiders than about ending violence against women?"