It’s not grooming. Really, it’s not. It’s just making sure that when kids are talking dirty with adults online, their parents won’t find out. And it’s sponsored by the Arizona Department of Education (ADE). What could be more innocent?
According to AZFree News, parent Peggy McClain doesn’t see it that way, and she’s filed a lawsuit against ADE Superintendent Kathy Hoffman.
McClain wants the “chat rooms where minors discuss sex and gender with adults present” removed from the ADE website. AZFree News:
The chat room website advertised by the ADE, Q Chat Space, targets LGBTQ+ youth 13 years and older. It offers a “quick escape” feature that masks a child’s visit to the site by redirecting from the Q Chat Space site to Google’s homepage. The adults facilitating discussions, “Q Chatters,” don’t have to be licensed professionals.
Some of the upcoming chat rooms are: “Sex and Relationships Q&A,” “FOR TRANS/NON-BINARY YOUTH: Activism and Allyship,” and “FOR TRANS/NONBINARY YOUTH: Sex Ed.”
Hoffman launched the chat room program last June as part of (Wait for it!) Pride Month.
Our collective ability to offer protection, love, and security for our LGBTQIA community is just one reason to celebrate PRIDE this year. Thank you @PrideArizona, @FlagstaffPride, and #BisbeePride for inviting me to the celebration! pic.twitter.com/VQAKJJQriQ
— Kathy Hoffman (@Supt_Hoffman) June 15, 2020
“Q Chat Space,” says AZFree News, is a collaborative effort of Planned Parenthood, the LGBTQ+ support network organization PFLAG, and LGBTQ+ community center organization CenterLink.” Who could object to anything with the Planned Parenthood stamp of approval?
McCain “claimed that Hoffman violated the Parents’ Bill of Rights provision prohibiting any attempts to encourage or coerce minors to withhold information from their parents.”
And it violated common sense, propriety and decency. McClain summed it up nicely when she said, “Katherine Hoffman is encouraging the grooming of young children.”
