Mexico warns states against parental veto of sex ed classes

MEXICO CITY – The Mexican federal government has warned five states against proposals to allow a kind of parental veto over school curriculum that deals with gender issues and sex.

Legislators in five states have put forward proposals favoured by conservatives that would require schools to let parents pull their children from classes where gender identification, sex, birth control or other sensitive issues are discussed.

Legislators in the states of Chihuahua, Nuevo Leon, Aguascalientes, Queretaro and Mexico City have put forward the proposals, dubbed “Parental PIN” bills in reference to codes used to control what kids watch on TV.

The Interior Department and several other government departments said in a statement Sunday that the proposals would be unconstitutional and violate children’s right to an education, and strongly suggested they would be struck down by the Supreme Court if passed.

The Chihuahua bill proposes that parents must be given at least 30 days’ notice of classes “that would run against their ethical, moral or religious convictions,” and be allowed to pull their kids from those classes.

The federal government argued that children have a constitutional right to know and be educated about certain things, including sex education.