If you think that arguments based in truth, eventually you will run up against people who are so deep into the gender-cult that they have no idea what is real and what is dogma.

 

Be careful though, your audience will often defend their dogmatic views by any means necessary: Name calling, threats, and excommunication from the arena.

 

Tread with care and realize that you need to love the truth more than the shallow “acceptance” of others.

 

Gregorio Allegri’s Miserere mei, Deus stands as a pinnacle of Renaissance sacred polyphony: a nine-voice choral setting of Psalm 51, invoking divine mercy with haunting simplicity and ethereal highs that corrode the soul’s defenses. Composed around the 1630s during Pope Urban VIII’s papacy, it emerged as the final and most revered among twelve iterations of the same text commissioned for the Vatican over a century—each designed for the solemn Tenebrae services of Holy Week.

Allegri, an Italian priest and composer born circa 1582 and deceased in 1652, infused the work with fauxbourdon techniques: unadorned verses evolving into ornate embellishments, culminating in a transcendent abbellimenti that demanded secrecy from the Sistine Chapel choir. This exclusivity bred legend—transcription punishable by excommunication—until young Mozart, at 14, purportedly memorized and notated it after a single hearing in 1770, shattering the Vatican’s monopoly and disseminating its beauty worldwide.

Its essence lies in the Latin text of Psalm 51, a penitential plea from King David: “Have mercy upon me, O God, according to thy lovingkindness,” rendered through alternating choirs and soaring trebles that evoke both despair and redemption. Antithetical to ornate Baroque excess, the Miserere’s stark power—bolstered by its historical mystique—endures in modern performances, a testament to unity in spiritual yearning amid divisive eras.

  On September 1, Alberta’s Fairness and Safety in Sport Act came into force, marking a decisive step in a global debate over equity in athletics. The law—formerly Bill 29—requires athletes aged 12 and older to compete in categories aligned with their sex as recorded at birth. Out-of-province visitors remain exempt, and younger children are unaffected. The aim is not blanket exclusion, but to preserve a level playing field for female competitors.

  The rationale rests on clear evidence: even after hormone therapy, biological males often retain advantages in strength, speed, and endurance. A 2021 study in the British Journal of Sports Medicine found that transgender women maintained a measurable edge in running times even after two years of testosterone suppression. High-profile cases—from swimmer Lia Thomas in the NCAA to weightlifter Laurel Hubbard at the Olympics—have underscored how even rare instances can shape competition outcomes and displace female athletes.

  Opposition has been swift. Groups like Egale and Skipping Stone argue the Act is discriminatory, casting it as a rollback of human rights protections. Their concern is not trivial: trans youth already face higher rates of marginalization, and exclusion from sport can exacerbate social isolation. For activists, the law sends a stigmatizing signal that identity is secondary to biology, undermining inclusion.

  But here the clash of principles becomes unavoidable. Protecting the integrity of women’s sports means acknowledging physiological differences that identity alone cannot erase. Alberta’s law draws that boundary: co-ed and male divisions remain open to all, while female categories are safeguarded for those born female. Critics frame this as erasure; supporters see it as necessary equity.

  The deeper problem lies in public discourse. Too often, debate polarizes into caricatures—claims of “rights apocalypse” on one side, or blanket dismissal of trans athletes on the other. Alberta’s legislation is imperfect but pragmatic: it carves out space for participation without sacrificing fairness. Future court challenges will test whether the balance holds, but the principle is clear. True progress in sport must protect all athletes’ opportunities, not just the loudest voices in the debate.

The Edmonton Public School Board’s (EPSB) sweeping book ban has erupted into a quintessential Alberta debacle: a government directive mangled by overzealous implementation, corroding trust in educational oversight.

In July, the UCP government under Premier Danielle Smith ordered schools to remove “inappropriate” materials from libraries, targeting explicit sexual content to protect children. Instead of applying a common-sense filter, EPSB produced a blacklist of more than 200 titles—including The Handmaid’s Tale, The Color Purple, and The Godfather. Even Jaws and works by George R.R. Martin didn’t escape the purge. Critics dubbed it “vicious compliance”: technically following the order, but in a way designed to spark outrage.

Smith quickly condemned the overreach, pausing the ban and pledging clarifications so that classics remain available. The government’s vagueness deserves criticism, but EPSB’s reaction exposed something deeper: Alberta’s educational establishment either failed to grasp the policy’s intent—or chose to deliberately misapply it, then leak the story to embarrass the UCP. In either case, it is professional negligence.

The fallout has been swift. Margaret Atwood ridiculed the move, bookstores report surging sales of “banned” books, and the episode has reinforced suspicions that education officials are more interested in scoring political points than serving students.

Irony abounds: in trying to shield children from explicit content, the government gave its critics ammunition; in trying to follow the directive to the letter, EPSB managed to turn itself into the villain. What should have been a straightforward matter of removing genuinely pornographic material has spiraled into a culture-war sideshow, eroding public confidence in both policymakers and educational leaders.

The lesson is plain: sloppy governance is bad—but bad-faith compliance from those entrusted with education is worse.

James Lindsay’s *New Discourses* podcast (July 9, 2020) contends that Marxist-inspired critical theories—queer theory, critical race theory (CRT), and postcolonial theory—undermine childhood innocence to destabilize Western society. According to this view, “innocence” is not a universal good but a social construct, one that maintains oppressive structures such as heteronormativity and white privilege. In this framing, schools become the frontline where innocence is dismantled, often through social-emotional learning (SEL) and comprehensive sex education, exposing children to adult categories of sexuality and race earlier than previous generations.

This essay acknowledges the conspiratorial risks of Lindsay’s framing but nonetheless argues that there is a coherent intellectual genealogy behind today’s educational shifts. By situating them in the work of Lukács, Marcuse, Gramsci, and Freire, and by engaging primary texts and empirical evidence, the essay concludes that premature sexualization and racialization of children carry measurable psychological risks and are best understood as destabilizing strategies with ideological consequences.

Queer Theory: Liberation or Destabilization?

Judith Butler’s *Gender Trouble* (1990) famously argued that identity is performative, “a stylized repetition of acts” rather than a fixed essence.[^1] For advocates, this opens liberatory possibilities, freeing individuals from restrictive norms. Eve Sedgwick similarly contended that destabilizing binaries allows marginalized groups to resist cultural oppression.[^2] In practice, queer pedagogy has translated into inclusive curricula—GLSEN (2022) reports that 43% of LGBTQ students feel safer in schools with gender-affirming materials.[^3]

Yet destabilization comes at a cost. Lindsay connects Butler’s performativity with Herbert Marcuse’s *Eros and Civilization* (1955), where liberation from sexual repression is imagined as a step toward a “non-repressive reality principle.”[^4] Marcuse’s focus was on adult emancipation, but his call for “mature individuals” leaves ambiguity when applied to educational contexts. Graphic materials such as *Gender Queer* (Fairfax County, 2021) in school libraries illustrate how theory, once filtered through activist pedagogy, risks exposing children to sexual content beyond developmental readiness.

Empirical concerns are not negligible: the American Psychological Association (2004) found that early sexualization is associated with depression and anxiety.[^5] While proponents highlight empowerment and reduced bullying, Lindsay’s point stands: identity destabilization in children risks long-term psychological harm.

Sexualization in Schools: Protection or Premature Exposure?

Comprehensive sex education is promoted as a health intervention. The Guttmacher Institute (2022) notes it is implemented in 39% of U.S. states, with studies showing reductions in risky sexual behaviors and teen pregnancy.[^6] Organizations like SIECUS (2021) argue that early, inclusive curricula protect sexual minorities by giving them language and resources.

The counterpoint, however, is about **age-appropriateness**. Some curricula, such as exercises in North Carolina’s 7th-grade program requiring public discussion of bodily changes,[^7] cross into territory that can be experienced as intrusive or shaming. Materials with explicit depictions of sex, regardless of intent, blur the line between protection and premature exposure.

Here Lindsay’s thesis holds: while not designed as “grooming,” the net effect can mimic destabilization. Children’s innocence functions as a developmental safeguard, and undermining it—however well-meaning—risks exploitation rather than empowerment.

  Critical Race Theory: Equity or Burden?

Critical Race Theory reframes “racial innocence” as an illusion, a shield for systemic racism. Charles Mills’s *The Racial Contract* (1997) argues that white society maintains domination through unacknowledged compacts.[^8] In educational practice, this has meant materials like Ibram X. Kendi’s *Antiracist Baby* (2022), which encourage young children to see themselves in racial categories early. Advocates such as the American Educational Research Association (2021) claim this reduces bias, and SEL programs aligned with CRT have been adopted in roughly 35% of schools.[^9]

But here too, risks surface. Children may experience racial labeling as destabilizing, especially when framed in terms of guilt or privilege. The National Institute of Mental Health (2022) reports a 25% rise in youth anxiety,[^10] though causation is complex. Lindsay interprets this trend as evidence that CRT primes children for grievance and division. Whether or not one accepts that conclusion, the risk of prematurely burdening children with adult racial narratives deserves scrutiny.

  Lukács and the Frankfurt School: The Intellectual Roots

George Lukács’s *History and Class Consciousness* (1923) criticized Christian morality as an impediment to revolution. In the short-lived 1919 Hungarian Soviet Republic, he promoted radical educational reforms, including sexual education programs, which opponents claimed encouraged promiscuity.[^11] While some historians downplay this episode as exaggerated,[^12] it remains clear that Lukács saw morality and family life as barriers to revolutionary consciousness.

The Frankfurt School developed this trajectory further. Marcuse in particular fused Freud with Marx, arguing that capitalism relies on sublimated sexuality.[^13] Though intended for adults, modern applications—whether in SEL or in the normalization of explicit material in schools—echo Marcuse’s suspicion of repression, sometimes at children’s expense.

Gramsci, Freire, and Pedagogical Inversion

Antonio Gramsci’s *Prison Notebooks* (1971) emphasized that family and education sustain cultural hegemony.[^14] Paulo Freire’s *Pedagogy of the Oppressed* (1968) reframed education as a site of liberation, recasting students as oppressed subjects.[^15] These ideas empower marginalized voices, as bell hooks celebrated in *Teaching to Transgress* (1994).[^16]

But Lindsay notes a darker possibility: that reorienting children as political subjects destabilizes family authority and primes youth for activism before they are developmentally prepared. Historical parallels, such as Mao’s Red Guards, show how youth mobilization can lead to intergenerational rupture and social turmoil.[^17]

The Family Under Pressure

Modern legislation such as California’s FAIR Education Act (2019), mandating LGBTQ-inclusive curricula, is framed as inclusive and affirming. Surveys support benefits: GLSEN (2022) found reduced bullying in such schools.[^3] Yet CDC (2023) data also show a steep rise in youth mental health crises—up 30% in a decade—raising questions about unintended consequences.[^18]

Gramsci’s prediction that family would be a central site of ideological struggle seems borne out. When curricula bypass or override parental values, trust between parent and child can erode, leaving children caught between competing moral frameworks.

Addressing Conspiratorial Risks

It is important not to collapse every educational reform into a single Marxist “plot.” CRT, sex education, and SEL are diverse movements with many non-Marxist motivations. Critics such as Angela Harris note that CRT is primarily a legal framework for examining structural racism, not a revolutionary program.[^19] Similarly, sex education advocates highlight empirical successes in health outcomes.

The stronger critique, therefore, is not that Marxists control education, but that Marxist categories—sexual liberation, identity destabilization, cultural hegemony—have been influential in shaping educational trends. Once filtered through activist practice, these categories can be misapplied to children with destabilizing effects.

Conclusion: Safeguarding Development

From Lukács’s early experiments to Marcuse’s liberationist theory and Freire’s pedagogical inversion, critical theory has consistently targeted family, morality, and cultural transmission as barriers to social change. Applied to adults, these ideas invite debate. Applied to children, they risk harm.

The evidence suggests that early exposure to explicit sexual material and premature racial labeling correlate with increased anxiety and depression in youth.[^5][^18] Protecting childhood innocence is not a reactionary fantasy but a developmental necessity.

Parents, educators, and policymakers should insist on transparency in curricula, ensure age-appropriate content, and preserve the family’s role as the primary context for moral and cultural formation. Resistance is less about conspiracy-hunting than about reaffirming a principle as old as education itself: children deserve protection while they grow.

 

References

[^1]: Butler, J. (1990). *Gender Trouble: Feminism and the Subversion of Identity*. Routledge.

[^2]: Sedgwick, E. K. (1990). *Epistemology of the Closet*. University of California Press.

[^3]: GLSEN. (2022). *National School Climate Survey*. [https://www.glsen.org/research](https://www.glsen.org/research)

[^4]: Marcuse, H. (1955). *Eros and Civilization*. Beacon Press.

[^5]: American Psychological Association. (2004). *Report of the APA Task Force on the Sexualization of Girls*. [https://www.apa.org/pi/women/programs/girls/report](https://www.apa.org/pi/women/programs/girls/report)

[^6]: Guttmacher Institute. (2022). *Sex and HIV Education*. [https://www.guttmacher.org/state-policy/explore/sex-and-hiv-education](https://www.guttmacher.org/state-policy/explore/sex-and-hiv-education)

[^7]: Wake County Public Schools. (2021). *Healthful Living Curriculum*.

[^8]: Mills, C. (1997). *The Racial Contract*. Cornell University Press.

[^9]: National Center for Education Statistics. (2021). *School Survey on Social and Emotional Learning*.

[^10]: National Institute of Mental Health. (2022). *Youth Mental Health Data*. [https://www.nimh.nih.gov](https://www.nimh.nih.gov)

[^11]: Tormay, C. (1920). *An Outlaw’s Diary: The Hungarian Revolution*. London: Allen & Unwin.

[^12]: Anderson, K. (2010). *Marx at the Margins: On Nationalism, Ethnicity, and Non-Western Societies*. University of Chicago Press.

[^13]: Marcuse, H. (1955). *Eros and Civilization*, p. 87.

[^14]: Gramsci, A. (1971). *Selections from the Prison Notebooks*. International Publishers.

[^15]: Freire, P. (1968). *Pedagogy of the Oppressed*. Continuum.

[^16]: hooks, b. (1994). *Teaching to Transgress: Education as the Practice of Freedom*. Routledge.

[^17]: Dikötter, F. (2016). *The Cultural Revolution: A People’s History, 1962–1976*. Bloomsbury.

[^18]: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2023). *Youth Risk Behavior Survey*. [https://www.cdc.gov/healthyyouth/data/yrbs](https://www.cdc.gov/healthyyouth/data/yrbs)

[^19]: Harris, A. (2001). *Critical Race Theory*. International Encyclopedia of the Social & Behavioral Sciences.

In Canada’s high-trust society, the rule of law cannot endure selective enforcement. When certain groups are shielded from consequences while others face harsh penalties for identical actions, the principle of equality before the law collapses. What emerges instead is favoritism by creed or identity—a betrayal that fragments unity and breeds resentment.

Uneven Standards in Practice

Toronto street prayers (August 2024). Hundreds of worshippers staged outdoor prayers at a busy downtown intersection, apparently without permits, halting traffic. Police did not intervene and later described the disruption as lawful. Few doubt how a Christian congregation attempting the same would have been treated: injunctions would be swift, fines inevitable. The point is not hostility toward prayer, but the evident double standard.[1]

Reckless firearm discharge in Muskoka (August 2025). Videos surfaced of men firing rifles and pistols from a snowmobile bridge near MacTier. Ontario Provincial Police confirmed an investigation, warning that careless use of firearms can bring Criminal Code charges. Yet similar celebratory gunfire at cultural festivals, whether at South Asian weddings or Indigenous gatherings, often receives muted responses or “contextual” exemptions. Danger is danger, regardless of tradition.[2]

Pro-Palestinian marches in Toronto (2024–2025). Demonstrations repeatedly blocked major roads, including rallies where smoke bombs were deployed from overpasses. Despite millions spent on policing, arrests remained rare—only 24 across hundreds of events by March 2024. Contrast this restraint with the 2022 Freedom Convoy in Ottawa, where the Emergencies Act was invoked, bank accounts were frozen, and police forcibly dismantled encampments. The contrast is glaring: enforcement appears to hinge less on infractions than on identity and political alignment.[3][4]

Mill’s Warning on Law and Liberty

John Stuart Mill, in On Liberty (1859), emphasized that genuine freedom depends on impartiality of the law. If rules are applied based on popularity or group identity, he argued, society replaces principle with prejudice, inviting arbitrary power. Selective enforcement, Mill warned, is a subtle but corrosive path to tyranny—not only by the state but by favored factions within society.[5]

Restoring Trust

A society built on trust cannot thrive under inconsistent law enforcement. The law must apply equally, regardless of race, religion, or political leaning. To preserve legitimacy, policing standards should be codified and subject to independent oversight. Discretion is unavoidable, but unreviewed discretion becomes favoritism. Equality before the law is not optional—it is the bedrock of Canadian unity. Without it, trust will wither, and division will prevail.

 

 

References

  1. “Toronto residents upset after Hamas supporters blockade busy intersection.” Juno News, Mar 21, 2025. Link
  2. “Gun video sparks OPP investigation.” MuskokaRadio.com, Aug 28, 2025. Link
    “UPDATE: Bracebridge OPP investigating social media videos depicting unlawful firearm use.” MyMuskokaNow, Aug 28, 2025. Link
    “OPP seek public help in identifying men firing guns off bridge in Mactier.” Barrie360.com, Aug 30, 2025. Link
  3. “Police arrest two at pro-Palestinian rally that delayed Trudeau event in Toronto.” CityNews, Mar 15, 2024. Link
    “Palestine solidarity protesters attacked by police in Toronto.” People’s Dispatch, Apr 3, 2024. Link
    “Violent Crackdown at Land Day March.” The Grind Magazine, Mar 31, 2024. Link
  4. “Canada convoy protest.” Wikipedia, accessed Sept 2025. Link
    “TD Bank freezes accounts that received money for Canada protests.” Reuters, Feb 12, 2022. Link
  5. Mill, J.S. On Liberty. London: John W. Parker and Son, 1859.

 

This Blog best viewed with Ad-Block and Firefox!

What is ad block? It is an application that, at your discretion blocks out advertising so you can browse the internet for content as opposed to ads. If you do not have it, get it here so you can enjoy my blog without the insidious advertising.

Like Privacy?

Change your Browser to Duck Duck Go.

Enter your email address to follow this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Join 397 other subscribers

Categories

January 2026
M T W T F S S
 1234
567891011
12131415161718
19202122232425
262728293031  

Archives

Blogs I Follow

The DWR Community

  • windupmyskirt's avatar
  • Unknown's avatar
  • Unknown's avatar
  • Unknown's avatar
  • Unknown's avatar
  • Unknown's avatar
  • Unknown's avatar
  • Unknown's avatar
  • Daedalus Lex's avatar
  • Vala's avatar
Kaine's Korner

Religion. Politics. Life.

Connect ALL the Dots

Solve ALL the Problems

Myrela

Art, health, civilizations, photography, nature, books, recipes, etc.

Women Are Human

Independent source for the top stories in worldwide gender identity news

Widdershins Worlds

LESBIAN SF & FANTASY WRITER, & ADVENTURER

silverapplequeen

herstory. poetry. recipes. rants.

Paul S. Graham

Communications, politics, peace and justice

Debbie Hayton

Transgender Teacher and Journalist

shakemyheadhollow

Conceptual spaces: politics, philosophy, art, literature, religion, cultural history

Our Better Natures

Loving, Growing, Being

Lyra

A topnotch WordPress.com site

I Won't Take It

Life After an Emotionally Abusive Relationship

Unpolished XX

No product, no face paint. I am enough.

Volunteer petunia

Observations and analysis on survival, love and struggle

femlab

the feminist exhibition space at the university of alberta

Raising Orlando

About gender, identity, parenting and containing multitudes

The Feminist Kitanu

Spreading the dangerous disease of radical feminism

trionascully.com

Not Afraid Of Virginia Woolf

Double Plus Good

The Evolution Will Not BeTelevised

la scapigliata

writer, doctor, wearer of many hats

Teach The Change

Teaching Artist/ Progressive Educator

Female Personhood

Identifying as female since the dawn of time.

Not The News in Briefs

A blog by Helen Saxby

SOLIDARITY WITH HELEN STEEL

A blog in support of Helen Steel

thenationalsentinel.wordpress.com/

Where media credibility has been reborn.

BigBooButch

Memoirs of a Butch Lesbian

RadFemSpiraling

Radical Feminism Discourse

a sledge and crowbar

deconstructing identity and culture

The Radical Pen

Fighting For Female Liberation from Patriarchy

Emma

Politics, things that make you think, and recreational breaks

Easilyriled's Blog

cranky. joyful. radical. funny. feminist.

Nordic Model Now!

Movement for the Abolition of Prostitution

The WordPress C(h)ronicle

These are the best links shared by people working with WordPress

HANDS ACROSS THE AISLE

Gender is the Problem, Not the Solution

fmnst

Peak Trans and other feminist topics

There Are So Many Things Wrong With This

if you don't like the news, make some of your own

Gentle Curiosity

Musing over important things. More questions than answers.

violetwisp

short commentaries, pretty pictures and strong opinions

Revive the Second Wave

gender-critical sex-negative intersectional radical feminism