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Originally Posted by curves2000
I don't have children so this policy doesn't really affect me personally but one thing I can't understand is why there is SUCH pushback from parental consent and notification in specific areas? The state doesn't own or control the children, it's the parents who are responsible to raise children.
I fully understand that parental consent and notification may result in outing trans kids, causing undue hardship and trouble for teens who may be gay and such. It's an awful situation that shouldn't happen but it's just a reality of the situation.
On the reverse, if I have a child who may better identify with a particular gender, want a specific pronoun, is considering gender changing surgery, is trouble coping with being gay etc and the province does not inform the parents, is that right? Do we really want the government to make decisions on what's in the best interest of the child? Would the government take responsibility if my child committed suicide and I wasn't notified, thus not allowing me the opportunity to spare no expense, time and trouble to ensure that MY CHILD get's the best care available. Parents will go to extreme lengths to assist and help their child, leaving no stone unturned. Does the government?
I get that we live in different times than before but do we sometimes forget what happens when we give the government control over certain things, like parental control.
The same governments that allowed the absolute horrible scenarios that happened with residential schools are suppose to be looking after the best interest of the child? Was the state not looking after the best interest of the child then, as recently as the late 90's?
Do we not have an insane amount of issues with children services for abusers, sexual assault convicts, lawful and unlawful hospital apprehensions within specific communities. We have a bail and prison system that allows the sickest of individuals to be let out to commit the same offenses over and over again to children and we wonder why it happens? We have foster home and care issues where children are treated like flat out garbage and only kept around long enough for the money train to run out of fuel, then tossed onto the street at 18.
The same government's are then suppose to fully be looking after the child's best interest by NOT informing me if my child may or may not be having serious issues at school which COULD put them in a position to harm themselves?
It seems like with this issue some people have WAY TOO MUCH faith, hope and confidence in random government administration instead of their own parental and gut instincts. The vast majority of parents would be able to handle the described issues at school much better than the government would in my personal opinion.
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That bolded part is what's important, and you're looking at it exactly wrong.
In a situation where the province has imposed a requirement to inform parents, they Province is EXPLICITLY deciding what is in the best interest of the child, and they are doing it, not based on the individual child's needs, but on a blanket basis on what they think is right, and not taking any individual circumstances into consideration.
Specifically that despite the risk of sever negative consequences at home, the Province should be outing every child.
The province has taken away any agency the child has in their own life, and that person's right to privacy.
When there is no requirement to report these children (that's what this really is, it's not informing parents, its reporting children), the provinces is making no determination on what is best for the child. The Province is leaving it up to the individual to determine what is in their own best interest.
Parents do not own their children. They do not have absolute authority on what happens to their children. Children are people with rights as well, and that includes, to some extent, a right to privacy.
Certainly we grant parents certain authority over their children, but it's not absolute authority, we don't grant parents carte blanche to decide what is best for their children in all circumstances. If we did, there would be no laws against child abuse.
Allowing children to determine for themselves who they want to tell about their own identity is exactly what you're asking for, keeping the Province out of the decision about what is right/best for a child.
Requiring teachers to report children, is the antithesis of what you say you want.