What Is The Gender Unicorn And How Is It Being Used In Schools?
Though many parents believe that schools have no business teaching their children about anything other than basic reading and math, most schools are now very committed to teaching children about gender identity. What many may not realize is how early in a child's school career t is being taught. To teach young kids about gender, teachers have begun using a wide variety of creative tactics. One such education device is called the Gender Unicorn.
Though many parents believe that schools have no business teaching their children about anything other than basic reading and math, most schools are now very committed to teaching children about gender identity. What many may not realize is how early in a child’s school career t is being taught. To teach young kids about gender, teachers have begun using a wide variety of creative tactics. One such education device is called the Gender Unicorn.
The Gender Unicorn is inspired by the Genderbread Person created by Sam Killerman. The goal of the Gender Unicorn, which was created by Trans Student Educational Resources, is the same as the Genderbread Person’s – to teach that gender is different from sexuality. In that respect, the Gender Unicorn is a complete breakdown that shows the differences teachers see between gender identity, gender expression, one’s biological sex, and the differences between physical and emotional attraction.
As you can see with the above Gender Unicorn diagram, the purple Barney-looing unicorn has five areas on its body that begs definition. The first one is gender identity and it is represented by a rainbow thought. Here the Unicorn explains that everyone has a gender identity. It then says that for transgender people, whichever sex they were assigned at birth does not coincide with their own internal sense of gender.
Gender expression is noted by green dots surrounding the unicorn. This is the outward appearance of a person and how they identify through clothing, voice, body shape, hairstyle, and mannerisms. For the most part, most transgender people prefer to make their outward appearance match how they identify.
Sex assigned at birth is represented by a DNA strand and positioned over the unicorn’s genitalia. This, obviously, relates to what sex you were born with based on anatomy, hormones, and chromosomes. According to the Gender Unicorn, though, they don’t use the word “sex” alone because of how vague it feels the word is defined and how it is looked at in terms of transphobia.
Physically attracted to is represented on the Gender Unicorn by an orange heart. Here the unicorn explains that sexual orientation plays a big part in physical attraction. Sexual attraction can be influenced by gender identity, gender expression, and sex assigned at birth.
Emotionally attracted to is represented by a red heart on the Gender Unicorn. Here, like one’s physical attraction, there can be a number of factors that play into one’s emotional attraction. These can include gender identity, gender presentation, and the sex you were assigned at birth.
Taking the Gender Unicorn, on the whole, it is actually an effective teaching tool. It breaks down the teacher’s views on gender identity in terms that are easy to follow and well defined. The issue with the Gender Unicorn, and even the Genderbread Person, has never been in its effectiveness.
Opposition To The Gender Unicorn
So why do so many parents have a problem with the Gender Unicorn? Largely it’s because they don’t want these topics introduced, and also because they aren’t being told its happening.
According to Oregon’s Department of Education Sexual Health and School Health Specialist, Ely Sanders, “We have more and more kindergartners coming out and identifying.” Parents opposed to the plan say this is proof that the whole thing is ridiculous. They claim it’s ridiculous to have five-year old’s who can’t tie their shoes, can barely read, and can’t even remember their home address, making life-changing decisions about identifying as the opposite sex or as a non-gender.
The teaching of gender identity is being seen in more and more schools across the nation, and most parents are totally unaware it’s happening. Schools hide the curriculum materials in which teachers are instructed to teach it, and in some cases teachers have even been caught telling their students to lie to their parents about what they’re learning.
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ContinueFor example, the Gender Unicorn caused a ruckus in Olathe Public Schools when it was handed out to high school students in the Human Growth and Development class, asking them to explain how they identify and to whom they are attracted. It wasn’t received well by the students’ parents and the students were eventually asked not to fill out the worksheet.
In Modesto, California, a teacher decided to hand out the Gender Unicorn to his seventh- and eighth-grade students at Denair Middle School. The teacher’s reason for doing so was to explain his preference for using the nonbinary title of Mx. Instead of Mr. He was able to pass out the Gender Unicorn to his first-period class and was only stopped during second period because the school’s principal was in class for a routine visit.
Gender Identity Instruction Made Law
These gender identity have some parents labeling public schools as “sexual war zones.” The persistent use of tools like the Gender Unicorn has begun to raise ire not only with parents but also with legislators, as they seek to remove the gender identity teaching from schools altogether. For now, in states such as California, it is law that gender identity must have a place in the classroom, no matter what parents may think.
In 2016, California passed the California Healthy Youth Act, which gave teachers the right to teach gender identity and gender expression at ANY grade level (yes, even kindergarten) as long as the instruction was framed as “anti-bullying” of LGBT persons. Parents have no say so in the matter. The Gender Unicorn is here to stay.
