How to Handle Controversial Issues in CUSD
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Since the beginning of the 2024-25 school year, the Cupertino Union School District (CUSD) has faced several controversial issues, attracting significant media attention. You can find some media reports here and here.
Long Jiao mentioned adoption of BP 6144 at the Board Meeting on September 26, 2024, a request also made by a group of CUSD parents at CurriculumIntegrity.org. Board members Jerry Liu, Phyllis Vogal, Sylvia Leong, and Satheeth Madhathil requested to add BP 6144 to future agenda items during the September 24, 2024, board meeting.
BP 6144 appeared in the Board Advance on October 17, 2024, and will be revisited in the future.
BP 6144 is a board policy regarding instructions related to controversial issues.
Some of the guidelines for instructions related to controversial issues are:
- The topic shall be age-appropriate.
- Instruction shall be presented in a balanced manner without bias and without promoting any particular point of view.
- In the classroom, teachers act on behalf of the District and are expected to follow the adopted curriculum, meaning they have limited freedom of speech in the classroom.
- Students have the freedom of speech without jeopardizing their grades or being subject to discrimination, retaliation, or discipline.
Below are the full list of guidelines.
A group of CUSD parents supported BP 6144. And some members of the Cupertino Educators Association (CEA), or the Teachers' Union, opposed it.
BP 6144 has been adopted by numerous California school districts, including the Fremont Union High School District, which encompasses the entire CUSD area.
CUSD adopted BP 6144 at the board meeting on 11/21. See here and here for details.
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Response from resident James:
In general, trans issues probably shouldn't be taught to children, unless proper context is provided. Although there are people who are actually born trans, they tend to be less than 1% of the population.
The massive increase in "trans people" (mental, not genetic or physical) over the last decade or two, is in part due to a "social contagion" aspect, which appears to be bolstered by such widespread media surrounding it.
There are plenty of reasons why people might feel like they "don't fit in," especially, again, in the last decade or two, where the amount of "ways to live" is higher than ever. This doesn't mean that they should be incentivized to pursue life-changing hormones/surgeries with a relatively high incidence of life-long pain/discomfort, both physical and mental.
Also, with regards to the safety of "biological women," "trans women" probably shouldn't be allowed in women's prisons, sports, etc., and perhaps even restrooms, as the increased amount of rapes and injuries is clearly correlated.
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Another resident replied at https://pastebin.com/KD1ZUXVz. Below is the content.
The response from resident James not only lacks proper nuance, but is evidence of the lack of education relating to this subject.
Yes, trans people do represent a small portion of the population. But in the real world, chances are, more likely than not, that your child will interact with a person who identifies as such. Exposing this topic to them so they have a better understanding of the world around them is crucial for their success as they grow up.
Characterizing the increased visibility of transgender people as a 'social contagion' fundamentally misunderstands what we're observing. Consider the following analogy: Imagine if left-handedness was stigmatized and forcibly suppressed. In this situation, left-handed people didn't cease to exist—they simply hid their natural inclination. As society's acceptance grew, the recorded number of left-handed people rose dramatically, not because being left-handed was 'contagious,' but because people finally felt safe being themselves. By the time acceptance was widespread, the percentage of left-handed people stabilized at its natural rate of about 10%.
What may look like a 'sudden increase' to some is actually the unveiling of what was always present, just hidden from view. We aren't seeing more transgender people being created—we're seeing more transgender people who feel safe enough to live authentically.The last claim is just straight up moronic. Bathroom signs are not stopping rapists and perverts. Please cite sources when making claims as bold as “rapes are clearly correlated with trans women using the women’s bathroom”.
