Citipointe Christian College withdraws controversial gender contract
The Prime Minister has vowed to change the law Citipointe Christian College used in its controversial gender contract, which was today withdrawn.
Education
Don't miss out on the headlines from Education. Followed categories will be added to My News.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison has vowed to change laws used by a Brisbane private school to threaten to expel LGBTQI+ students.
Citipointe Christian College has today withdrawn an enrolment contract which asked families to agree their children would identify as their birth gender or face being excluded from the school.
The Carindale school initially gave parents little more than a week before school returns to consider its new contract, which also proclaimed beliefs that homosexuality and bisexuality are destructive to society.
Mr Morrison, speaking on Brisbane radio station B105.3 on Thursday morning, said he “did not support” moves by the school.
A section in the Commonwealth’s Sex Discrimination Act states it is not unlawful for ‘religious bodies’ and ‘educational institutions established for religious purposes’ to discriminate against people in certain circumstances on the basis of their sex, sexual orientation or gender identity.
Mr Morrison confirmed he would be putting forward an amendment as part of the government’s wider Religious Discrimination protections.
He did not specify what the amendment would be or provide further detail.
Prior to the Prime Minister’s comments, the government had insisted the needed amendment to the Sex Discrimination Act would only happen 12 months after the Religious Discrimination Bill passed.
Moderate Liberal MPs, particularly Queensland’s Angie Bell, had been pushing for the section of the Sex Discrimination Act to be repealed.
“My kids go to a Christian school here in Sydney, and I wouldn’t want my school doing that (making kids sign a contract like Citipointe’s) either,” Mr Morrison said on B. 105.3.
“And the Bill that we’re going to be taking through the Parliament, we will have an amendment which will deal with that to ensure that the kids cannot be discriminated against on that basis.
“I’ve been saying that for years. That’s always been my view. I mean, schools should be, you should be able to send your kids to a Christian school or Muslim school or a Jewish school, or whatever it is, they should be able to teach, you know, kids in that way. But that, I don’t support it.”
The school on Thursday confirmed families would no longer be asked to agree to the controversial contract which The Courier-Mail revealed on Sunday, with Education Minister Grace Grace welcoming the move, saying “I hope this never ever happens again”.
“We deeply regret that some students feel that they would be discriminated against because of their sexuality or gender identity, and I apologise to them and their families on behalf of the College,” principal pastor Brian Mulheran said.
“As stated previously, the College does not and will not discriminate against any student because of their sexuality or gender identity. It is central to our faith that being gay or transgender in no way diminishes a person’s humanity or dignity in God’s eyes.
“It is also deeply distressing that some of our students have been vilified in the community simply for their religious beliefs or because they attend the college.”
By Thursday, a change.org protest had recorded more than 155,000 signatures from people who opposed the move.
Mr Mulheran said he hoped that by withdrawing the contract it could return all of the focus to the Christian education of the school’s students as they began the new year.
“Every individual is created equal in the image of God and should be treated with compassion, love, kindness, respect and dignity,” he said.
“This will continue to be at the heart of our college and help us to come together again as a community.
“Our society gives freedom to people to be a part of groups with shared beliefs. Citipointe has the freedom to maintain its Christian ethos and this is an essential part of Christian education and choice for parents.”
Mr Mulheran said the college would continue to provide an education based on its shared beliefs.
“I would also like to thank our families, students and staff who have continued to support us,” he said.
Former Citipointe student Felicity Myers, who began an online conversation about the contract at the weekend, said she was overwhelmed with emotion when she heard the news.
The Brisbane woman who identifies as part of the LGBTI community embarked on a mission to have the school reconsider its contract, which she believed was harmful to vulnerable students.
“It was unexpected to happen this soon so it took me by surprise in a good way,” Ms Myers said.
“It is a great first step but it is just the start of what has become a broader political and social issue.”
Ms Myers is among dozens of former students and parents who took a stand against the contract, turning up to the college with rainbow flags and sharing their experiences in the media.
They have now created a movement called Educate Don’t Discriminate with a website where the LGBTI community can anonymously share their experiences of unfair treatment at Christian Schools.
“There is so much we need to get done to be as supportive as we can to transgender students and students at this school because what is happening is having a big impact on them,” Ms Myers said.
“The withdrawal is obviously good news but a lot of people have felt distressed and we want to resolve some of that.
“It was never our intention to shed negative light on the whole school in general, just the practises.”
Ms Myers said she would continue to push for inclusivity for the LGBTI community beyond Citipointe.
LGBTI Community Legal Service president Matilda Alexander on Monday said Queensland had some of the toughest anti-discrimination laws in the country and she questioned the legality of the contract.
She said it was great to see the contract pulled after offering urgent legal advice to impacted families.
“Five years ago this country said yes to equality and today we said no to bigotry,” she said.
“I hope Scott Morrison understands Australians will not tolerate discrimination on any basis, including in the name of religion.
“It’s time to scrap the Religious Discrimination Bill.”
A Citipointe Christian College spokeswoman said Mr Mulheran would not be making any further comment today on the decision to withdraw the contract.
More Coverage
Elite private school to open new Queensland campus
A well-known private school with three campuses in southeast Queensland will expand with a brand new college to be built west of Ipswich.
Experts reveal how to smash year 12 maths exams
The head of mathematics at one of Brisbane’s top academic performing schools has provided insight for year 12 students and parents on how to tackle and nail the QCE maths exam paper.