“Any content that normalizes sexual activity by our 13- and 14-year-old children ought to be removed.” Brian Fitzgibbons, Parent

Jess and Brian Fitzgibbons, parents of two young daughters in the 6^th and 8^th grades, received an email last October from the Plymouth, MA, Public Middle Schools, informing them the middle school was launching a new Comprehensive Sexuality Education (CSE) curriculum in just two weeks.

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As is every parent’s right, Jess and Brian requested that the curriculum be sent to them via email for their review. The school refused to email the material. Instead, the school made Jess and Brian jump through hoops by requiring them to make an appointment during school hours to review the materials in person, under supervision, at the school.

Red Flags

This lack of transparency raised red flags for Jess and Brian. “They were starting these classes in just two weeks yet refusing to send the curriculum to parents for review,” said Jess. “We scheduled the review immediately.”

When they went to see the materials, they were ushered into a room, given a binder of the curriculum slides that would be shown to the students, and told they couldn’t take pictures.

They were shocked at what they saw. With explicit slides and videos discussing masturbation, anal and oral sex, it was clear that the materials were not age-appropriate for 13-and 14-year-olds.

In Massachusetts, the age of consent is 16. Yet, they were planning to teach children sexual acts they could not consent to. Sadly, there is a move in the state’s legislature to lower the age of consent to 13.

Scribbling frantically, Brian and Jess tried to capture the content of the most sexually explicit slides. The slides referenced eleven cartoon internet videos, seven of which were from a resource called Amaze.org, whose videos make sex look fun and normal for teenagers. Many of the Amaze videos came with no links.

So Jess and Brian found the videos on their own and were stunned by the content that would be shown to their 13-year-old daughter.

Questionable Resources Used in Sex Classes

In addition to normalizing sex for teens, Amaze.org also has videos normalizing watching pornography for children and the pleasure of sex, either with someone or by yourself. While these last two videos were not listed on the school’s curriculum, they are an example of what children can find on their website.

Their mission statement reads like a groomer’s how-to: “At AMAZE, we envision a world where a child and young person’s sex education and sexual development is embraced as natural and healthy.” In addition to describing how much fun sex is, they also promote transgender and non-binary choices – also fun and normal. They describe their animated videos as humorous and age-appropriate. I think most parents of faith would disagree.

Every Amaze.org video ends with an invitation for the student to visit Amaze.org to learn more. With its explicit content, Amaze.org does not belong in any classroom. If you find this resource listed in your child’s sex education curriculum, you may want to opt your child out.

Standing Up for Truth

After reviewing the materials, the Fitzgibbons went to the School Board Committee Meeting on October 20^th. Brian spoke, requesting a postponement of the CSE launch because the school had not properly made the curriculum available to parents for review.

Brian also asked that all materials be made public digitally for any parent to easily review. Brian noted the lack of transparency of the school district in providing accurate information regarding the CSE, “leaving parents uninformed as to what is being hidden.”

The school’s own policy required that parents have six weeks to review and make an appeal to the school committee. Yet the district was rushing through in two weeks from informing parents of the new curriculum to when classes would start, and the curriculum was not available digitally.

Plus, Brian argued, the school had not shown that the curriculum was age-appropriate for 13-year-olds or informed students that they are not legally capable of consent. The curriculum only referred to sex as being okay as long as you consent. “Any content that normalizes sexual activity by our 13- and 14-year-old children ought to be removed,” Brian declared.

Launch Date Postponed

The Fitzgibbons then sent a six-page letter to Plymouth’s Superintendent of Schools, Dr. Christopher Campbell, highlighting the reasons why the CSE was not age-appropriate for 13-year-olds. The principal of the middle school then sent out an email to parents notifying them that the CSE was being postponed in order to “deliver a comprehensive, developmentally appropriate” curriculum.

According to the Fitzgibbons, a school administrator denied that the postponement had anything to do with their advocacy.

The principal’s email also referenced “outside consultants” who had been hired to train the teachers on how to teach the curriculum. Another red flag?

Progressive Orgs Behind CSE

The pro-family organization, The Massachusetts Family Institute (MFI), stepped in to help the Fitzgibbons uncover what was going on with these consultants.

Come to find out the consultants were Lighthouse Wellness and Health Education, who use the 3Rs Curriculum of Rights, Respect, and Responsibility. This curriculum is a project of Advocates for Youth, which actively promotes abortion access, free contraceptives in schools, transgenderism, and more. They’re also a managing partner in Amaze.org. Coincidence?

Advocates for Youth’s mission, as stated on their website, is to “champion youth rights to bodily autonomy and… transform policies, programs and systems to secure sexual health.” The front page of their website proclaims, “Young people understand that reproductive and sexual health rights are inextricably tied to social justice and the fight for liberation.”

Plymouth had received a $25,000 grant from the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education to implement this training through Lighthouse using Advocates for Youth’s 3Rs curriculum. Other sex-ed curricula used included materials developed by Planned Parenthood called Sex-Ed to Go.

These are the activist, progressive groups that have infiltrated our schools and are behind the normalization of recreational sex to our children. “Amaze, 3Rs, Advocates for Youth, and Planned Parenthood have no place in a neutral health and sex ed program where the school district claims to teach ‘facts’ and not values,” said Jess.

Find out if they’re in your school as well, and if they are, opt your child out of any curriculum these groups are promoting.

Protect Plymouth Youth

Meanwhile, Brian and Jess developed an in-depth presentation that was given at a local church on November 18^th, sharing what they had seen in the original CSE curriculum documents. Nearly 250 people attended and were appalled at what they heard. Brian and Jess also developed an informative website called Protect Plymouth Youth, informing parents what was going on in Plymouth’s sex ed classes.

Jess and Brian sent a video to all the churches and pastors in Plymouth, sharing what they had discovered about the new CSE curriculum. They heard back from only 5 churches out of 24.

“I think we were naïve in sending out that video,” Brian said. “It was not a welcoming audience. I was thinking that every church would respond. We are in this position in the culture because of failed leadership in the Body of Christ. We have been disconnected from politics in what’s happening in the culture for too long.”

Another School Board meeting was held on December 1^st to present the CSE curriculum. Public comments were both in support and opposition to the CSE curriculum. My husband and I were there that night, as well as the Fitzgibbons and other Christians, expressing our concerns about CSE being taught to 13-year-olds. It became quickly apparent by the heckling and eye-rolling that a Christian perspective was not welcome at the discussion.

One supporter said, “You can go to church on Sunday, but you can’t tell my kid what to do on Tuesday.” Many said, “Just opt out.” Others said, they “trust the public schools to teach their children about sex.”

“Obviously, those parents had not reviewed the curriculum,” Brain responded.

All five members of the School Committee praised the curriculum and quickly voted to approve it for 13-year-olds this semester and then launch it to 6^th and 7^th graders in the fall. One school committee member did suggest that the school start now to promote the CSE to 11- and 12-year-olds, as it could be a “problem” with parents of younger children.

Small Victories

A week after the school board meeting, the CSE curriculum was finally uploaded to the town’s website – a win for transparency thanks to the action of the Fitzgibbons, and a stark contrast to the process of supervised viewing at the school of printed out slide shows with no links to Amaze videos.

But there is no information in the uploaded materials on how the teachers have been instructed to present the lessons by the very progressive Lighthouse Wellness and Health Education. What will the teachers say?

In reviewing the uploaded curriculum, Jess said, “They have removed six of the more questionable videos and a lot of the highly explicit content, such as the ‘cut open condom.’” (Trust me, you don’t want to know.)

They also added a slide explaining that the age of consent in Massachusetts is 16. The middle school principal did send out an email before the Christmas break informing parents about the CSE curriculum and including a direct link to view the curriculum and opt out if they desired.

Jess concluded, “Obviously, we still disagree with comprehensive sex ed in general, and the curriculum is still flawed, but these are some immediate fruits of our effort, and there’s more to do.”

Next Steps

Superintendent Campbell is measuring this program by the number of opt-outs. If the number of opt-outs is small, the program moves ahead. “That’s all that matters to them. They were proclaiming proudly that only 14 students had opted out so far,” said Brian.

“To many of the parents I have spoken to, they think it’s the old anatomy and reproduction health classes we had in school,” explains Jess. “They have no idea the CSE curriculum was introduced in 2023 and is far more explicit.”

“I don’t understand why they don’t make the program opt-in,” Jess continues. I had to sign a permission slip for my daughter to participate in a scavenger hunt in downtown Plymouth. Yet for her to be taught about anal sex, oral sex, and to be introduced to Amaze.org, it’s, ‘oh well, you missed the email and didn’t opt out.’”

“There’s a reason why the opt-out is the ‘best practice,’” Brian explains. “Because no parent wants their child in middle school to be singled out. No child wants to be singled out. So the opt-out sets up the conditions that your child will be singled out. It’s why they’re proudly announcing the low opt-out numbers. It’s a dissuasive tactic.”

“They’re counting on how busy parents are today, so we’re working to make parents aware of the opt-out option and encourage them to do so,” said Brian. “The Massachusetts Family Institute (MFI) has been side by side with us from the beginning, and they’ve been very successful in alerting parents to opt their children out of the CSE.”

MFI has successfully launched an opt-out campaign in Worcester, MA, when the school board voted in an explicit sex curriculum. As a result of their parent-led activism, nearly 4,000 public school students in Worcester opted out of sex ed in their K-12 grades.

The Plymouth School District has plans to roll CSE to 6^th and 7^th graders, and the Fitzgibbons, who have a daughter in 6th grade, plan to take up the fight again. They won’t be alone as more parents, grandparents, and concerned citizens are aware of the insidious sexualization of teens, and now tweens, thanks to these two dedicated Christian parents.

What YOU Can Do

If this article has raised concerns about what your child may be learning at your school, here are three things you can do.

1. Review and Inspect: Never assume that your school’s values match yours. You have the right to review the sex ed curriculum taught to your children at school.
2. Opt–Out: You have the right to opt your child out of sex education. Send a letter to your school requesting that your child be exempt. Here is a sample opt-out letter from the Massachusetts Family Institute you can adapt for your child’s school.
3. Voice Your Concerns: Contact school administrators and elected officials about the explicitness of Comprehensive Sex Education being taught in the public schools and the progressive organizations behind the move to sexualize children and normalize teen sexual activity.

And of course, the most important activity you can do is pray.

Let Us Pray

Father, we thank you for parents like the Fitzgibbons and others who have stood up for Your truth in declaring godly views of sexuality in their local school. We ask you to bless them and their efforts to be a strong advocate for all children.

Give Your people a voice in their local schools as they take their place as the leaders You called them to be. Let those who stand for righteousness not back down, but grant them larger platforms to declare Your truth on sexuality. Guide and direct each one of us to be Your voice for the children.

Give courage to parents to opt out of Comprehensive Sex Education in their schools, which teaches our children that sex is healthy, fun, and okay for children to engage in, and robbing them of their innocence.

Empower parents, grandparents, and Christian teachers and administrators to stand for TRUTH and what is right.

Inspire Christian parents to rise up to challenge and unseat those school board members who will not protect children from early sexualization and the normalization of teen sex.

Protect the minds and hearts of all children from the woke brainwashing and indoctrination happening in our schools.

Encourage parents in all school districts to stand up for Your truth and make a difference for their children.

In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it (Proverbs 22:6).

Share your prayers for our schools and our children below.

Belinda Brewster analyzes cultural, political, and world events from a biblical worldview. Belinda’s passion is to equip, support, and encourage parents and grandparents who are courageously battling against the spiritual and cultural forces impacting children and grandchildren. Photo Credit: Taylor Wilcox on Unsplash.