MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Brazil's STF rules against banning gender studies at schools

“Preserving childhood does not mean hiding reality,” argued De Moraes

Brazil's Federal Supreme Court (STF) declared unconstitutional on Wednesday local laws banning subjects regarding gender identity and sexual orientation in the municipalities of Tubarão in Santa Catarina, and the Pernambucan towns of Petrolina and Garanhuns from being taught at schools.

The decision was made based on the judgment of two lawsuits filed by the Attorney General's Office (PGR) and the PSOL party.

The municipal laws banned gender education in compulsory subjects, teaching materials, and school spaces. In addition, the Petrolina law also prohibited books on the subject from being kept in the libraries of the municipality's schools.

Justice Alexandre De Moraes defended the fight against hate speech against the LGBTIQIA+ population and said that education against discrimination should be encouraged. “No one argues that childhood should not be preserved, but preserving childhood does not mean hiding reality, omitting serious and correct information about gender identity,” he said.

Justice Flávio Dino said that society's culture has changed and that the “traditional family” model is no longer the only one that exists. He also argued that only a federal law can deal with issues related to education. “The act of teaching and learning is subject to a law, which is the LDB [Law of Guidelines and Bases for National Education],” he argued.

Nunes Marques agreed that the subject needed to be taught in accordance with the age of the students. “Preserving childhood is not conservatism. It is recognizing that all genuine freedom comes from maturity and that rushing this process means limiting the future freedom of the adult that this child will become,” he added.

The Arco-Íris Group, one of the main groups in the LGBTIQIA+ movement, participated in the trial and mentioned that the prohibition of gender education in schools has been recurrent in several states and municipalities.

Lawyer Carlos Nicodemos stated that the Constitution and international standards guaranteed that everyone has the right to be protected against any type of discrimination. “Today, October 15, Teacher's Day, it is necessary to debate the creation of municipal laws that attempt to affect academic freedom in the construction of a diverse, pluralistic, and inclusive view of education,” he commented. (Source: Agencia Brasil)