Queenstown Lakes District Council and Mount Aspiring College have condemned the actions of a group of locals who have taken an underground approach to dealing with their concerns about sex education and LGBTQ information in Wānaka.

The group has spread misleading information about sexual education in schools via leaflet drops, and tried to reduce access to library books covering LGBTQ themes by keeping them checked out themselves, in opposition to what one member is calling “a total push on the LGBT agenda”.

In an interview posted online in October, Hāwea woman Bev Reynolds said she believes the community is heading towards “the breakdown of the family unit”.

She spoke about the group checking out books to keep young people from reading them, and said a group she helped organise planned to use leaflets to educate locals about “what’s happening in the education curriculum in our schools”.

Family First leaflets

Yesterday (Thursday December 8) a leaflet was circulated around Wānaka and placed on cars parked outside Mount Aspiring College Te Kura o Tititea (MAC). 

The leaflet was a ‘Fact Sheet’ titled ‘Gender/Sexuality Education’ from conservative lobby group Family First, which said parents should be warned about a government offensive to “push radical sexuality and gender ideology at your children”.

MAC principal Nicola Jacobsen told the Wānaka App she was “really disappointed” to see the leaflet had been left on cars in the school car park.

“The leaflet has focused on one aspect of the curriculum, and has not represented what the curriculum covers,” Nicola said.

“The curriculum has a broad focus, about improving understanding on a number of topics related to overall well being.”

Yesterday’s leaflet drop follows an attempt by two people to circulate a leaflet at a local event last month.

That leaflet was also a Family First affiliated leaflet, titled ‘Inappropriate sex education in our schools?’

Read more: Concerns about sex education countered

Bev Reynolds was one of the women circulating the first leaflet. 

In the online interview, Bev said she was “really concerned about what is happening in our local library here in Wānaka. It seems to me there is a total push on the LBGT agenda.”

“Our young people are being subjected to all sorts of literature that is totally unsuitable for their age groups.”

Concerns about library books

Bev said she has organised a group of four people who “are putting together a list of titles of some of these books that we think are objectionable and we are putting them out of circulation by taking them out ourselves”.

Bev described it as “a temporary solution”, but added that “lots of people have been going into librarians and speaking about their concerns but they’re getting fobbed off and saying ‘this is totally fine, we’re accepting of everybody no matter what their position on gender identity’.” 

The Wānaka App asked the Queenstown Lakes District Council (QLDC), which operates our local libraries, whether concerns had been raised directly with the libraries.

“The only incident we’re aware of directly related to this was a recent phone call to Hāwea Library from someone asking to speak to the collections librarian regarding selection criteria for purchasing books about gender diversity,” QLDC media spokesperson Sam White said. 

“The librarian was not available at the time and the caller did not leave their contact details for us to call them back, nor have they called again.”

The council had received two written and one verbal complaint regarding the Erika and Coco Flash Rainbow Storytimes over the past two years, he said. 

“These were received at Queenstown, Frankton and Wānaka libraries. Overall the library team have received overwhelmingly positive feedback about our Rainbow Storytimes and gender diversity collection material across the district.” 

Sam said any coordinated effort to exclude books from circulation is “at best disappointing and at worst highly concerning”. 

“People have a choice about what items they borrow and this includes parents and children. It seems unfair that people are effectively removing this choice and items that may help parents and children discuss important issues about gender and sexual identity.”

“Ironically, due to the high demand possibly related to this group’s actions, we’re currently increasing the number of items on the subject of gender and sexual identity.”

Concerns about sex and gender education

Bev said in the interview that she and other members of her group had written a letter to educate people about “what’s happening and it’s really branched out into what’s happening in the education curriculum in our schools and MAC - Mount Aspiring College”.

She said her aim was to educate people about “what is happening in our local community, our country”.

“I believe people need to look in their own communities, their own backyards, and know what their children are being taught at school, understand where this is heading, this is a breakdown of the family unit. This is what the aim is, I believe.”

“We’ve got a wee way to go because we want to gather our facts together. In the next couple of weeks we’ll get something out there, maybe leaflets.”

Response from MAC and the Ministry of Education

Nicola Jacobsen told the Wānaka App the school keeps the community informed via its weekly newsletter about the topics covered in health.

“It is normal to have questions and/or concerns around the topic of sexuality and relationship education, and I would encourage those who do to fully participate in our health consultation process, which happens every two years.” 

Ministry of Education pathways and progress associate leader (hautū) Pauline Cleaver said the Ministry’s updated Relationships and Sexuality Education (2020) guidance was released in September 2020, and was followed this year by a range of resources to support the programme’s implementation in schools. 

She said the guidance incorporates “the latest research on relationships, gender, sexuality, and wellbeing” and it underwent “extensive consultations… to ensure that it reflected best practice, the most up to date evidence, and the Aotearoa New Zealand context”.

“Schools are encouraged to communicate with whānau about when RSE is planned to take place, and the broad nature of what will be included in the lessons. This provides an opportunity for parents to raise any concerns or ask questions about the focus of the RSE, as well as enabling parents to talk with their children about the content covered at the same time it is being taught at school. 

“Parents and caregivers should be encouraged to contact their local school principal and ask any questions they may have,” she said. 

“Parents and caregivers also have the option of raising their concerns with the Ministry of Education if they are unable to resolve the issue with their schools principal and board of trustees.”  

Under the Education and Training Act 2020 parents and caregivers also have the right to withdraw their child from Relationship and Sexuality Education (RSE) by written request to the school. 

The Wānaka App sought a comment from Bev last month regarding her online interview, but she declined to speak to us. By yesterday evening she had not responded to a second request for comment.

PHOTO: Supplied