ACL angry over gay dads on Play School

ACL angry over gay dads on Play School
Image: Photo: ABC Play School

THE Australian Christian Lobby (ACL) is outraged that two gay dads were featured on the long-running children’s program Play School.

The ABC show – which recently celebrated its 50th year on air and is the longest running children’s television show in Australian history – showed two children being raised by a same-sex couple on its Through the Windows segment yesterday as a part of its My Family, Your Family series.

The conservative group said parents should be able to trust their toddlers to the program “without worrying if they are being exposed to controversial political and social agendas”.

“Parents and grandparents should not be forced to explain to little children how it is that two men come to have a baby,” ACL spokesperson Wendy Francis said.

“As a grandmother I find it disappointing that the ABC is seeking to include rainbow politics for toddlers when millions of their parents do not agree with redefining marriage in law.”

“The ABC should also not assume that producing children through harvested eggs and a rented or donated woman’s womb to meet the desires of two men is a public good.

“As ACL warned in February this year, Play School is not the place for the ABC to run agendas… particularly as this is a taxpayer-funded program that should refrain from pushing confusing adult messaging to our children.

“Parent’s (sic) shouldn’t be forced to have adult conversations about sexuality and bioethics with their kids at such a young age and it certainly should not be the government broadcaster raising the subject with them.”

The most recent Australian census in 2011 revealed 78 per cent of children living with same-sex parents were under the age of 15.

Screen shot 2016-07-29 at 1.20.55 PM
The adorable family featured on Play School’s My Family, Your Family

Rainbow Families’ Scott Williams could not disagree more.

“Play School has been entertaining preschoolers for the past 50 years, encouraging them to wonder, to think, to feel and to imagine,” he said.
“Yesterday’s episode once again showcased the wonderful diversity of Australian society, teaching kids how to say hello in Tiwi language, showing a character named Sarah, who’s stepdad takes her to school, and in the Through the Windows segment, featuring a normal Australian family which just happens to have two dads.
“Rainbow Families fully supports Play School’s decision to to show that families come in all shapes and sizes. There is nothing “unethical” about having two dads.
“It’s disappointing, but altogether not surprising, that the Australian Christian Lobby would seek to portray this as pushing a political agenda.”

The ACL are one of the most influential conservative lobby groups and are strongly campaigning against marriage equality.

 

 

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10 responses to “ACL angry over gay dads on Play School”

  1. Face Facts. Rainbow families are a fact of life these days. Rainbow Families are more common than you think.

    Why are you so scared of Rainbow Families?

    Why are you using god as justification to cause harm and promote violence?

  2. I can’t believe that 12 years after the infamous two mums episode that this is still an issue.

  3. “The ABC should also not assume that producing children through harvested eggs and a rented or donated woman’s womb to meet the desires of two men is a public good”.

    Here’s a public good for you, Wendy:

    A loving same-sex couple having children they very much want and wish to care for, unlike the ~57 000 kids in out of home care at any time in Australia, produced by their so-called “parents”. Or a loving same-sex couple adopting a child at risk of harm and giving them a safe and secure home.

    Does Wendy know that on average, one child dies every 15 days in Australia due to parental abuse and neglect? Where’s the ACL on this one?

    Strangely quiet on the “public good” of these hetero parents, Wendy.

  4. If I had the power in government I would by Attorney-General Executive Order declare ACL as:

    1) declare ACL a terrorist or hate group organisation;
    2) completely search and confiscate of all ACL assets under proceeds of crime;
    3) completely strip the ACL as a charitable organisation; and
    4) put all supporters and members of the ACL in jail were they belong.

  5. I have an idea! Let’s sue the anti-gay and bigoted ACL for damages to LGBTI reforms – such as stopping safe schools programs, marriage equality and adoption equality reforms in NT, SA and QLD! Let’s raise money people to take the ACL to the cleaners! It is 2016 no more fucking “dilly dallying delays” people on full equality for the whole gay, lesbian, bi, trans* and Intersex community!

  6. Contrary to the ACL claims, the ABC is there to present programming that reflect all Australians, not just a particular narrow minded minority. two gay parents does not require any special explanations. It is never children who have a problem with this, but closed minded adults, but even they can be educated.

  7. Remembering my time as a toddler; I wouldn’t have seen anything like this as something that would have needed to have been explained. Needless to say, I had no idea of what sexuality was at that age, I just would have seen this a positive situation. It’s only intimidated homophobic adults who may feel that they *need* to be in a position to explain, who end up making such things an issue. Children are not born homophobic / racist / etc., young children usually accept things …until their homophobic elders *make* things an issue, while heteronormalising everything else.

  8. I am glaad that my tax money is going towards this kind of programming. I also would rather my tax dollars going towards safe schools instead of state funded chaplaincy programmes in state schools.whatever happened to separation of church and state? It is clear that it the separation is becoming less and less.

  9. ” Australian Christian Lobby (ACL) ” = HATE GROUP.

    How about you worry about your own family & stop busying yourself with others?

    No one asked you, no one cares what you think. You, are a HORRIBLE group of hateful, sociopathic people who believe your OPINION carries more weight than other AU citizens. Guess what? It doesn’t. I love & support my LGBTI friends & family. YOU are awful, just awful excuses for human beings.

    Step-off & pull your idiot head’s in. You do NOT speak for AU! Move to one of the third-world countries like Syria or such- you’ll feel right at home.

  10. Get used to it Grandma. This is real life. Real people. Real feelings. Not until you have a Gay child will you know or understand what it’s all about.