The head of Catholic education in Tasmania has spoken out against mandatory sexual consent education being rolled out in school curriculums across Australia.
The new curriculum includes an update to the health and physical education learning area, and is being implemented by states and territories according to their own timelines.
In a recently published article on the Archdiocese of Hobart’s website, the Head of Catholic Education Tasmania, Gerard Gaskin, took issue with this update and said the new curriculum includes “highly sensitive, amoral and potentially harmful information.”
In response, the founder of Teach Us Consent, Chanel Contos, said consent education should not be made a political or religious issue.
“Sexual relationships can and do occur outside of marriage. Abstinence is a choice, sexual assault is not,” Ms Contos said.
“Marital rape is also illegal in Australia. Teaching consent education to the whole of Australia would only increase an individual’s ability to only have sex within marriage if that is their desire.
“Whilst I do not personally agree with teaching abstinence, consent education can always be taught in conjunction with religious values.”
Source: ABC News.
