South Cook News

Orland Park Mayor Keith Pekau, a GOP candidate for Congress in 2022, is opposing legislation in Springfield creating comprehensive mandatory sexual education. 

“In May of 2021, the Illinois General Assembly passed a bill requiring ‘comprehensive sex-education’ to be taught in public schools in KINDERGARTEN through the 12th Grade” Pekau said on Facebook. “Most of us would find some of these requirements appalling. At least that bill allowed local school districts to opt-out – 70 percent of school districts decided to do just that. However, as we have witnessed from the Pritzker administration, ‘resistance is futile.’ So, the IL House of Representatives passed HB 5188 which MANDATES these requirements and ELIMINATES local control of school boards. As I have said many times, the best government is that which is closest to its citizens. It is UNACCEPTABLE to eliminate the decision-making authority of local school boards and communities. Please call your State Senator and inform of them of your opposition to this bill and that they need to protect the LOCAL control of your schools.” 

The Illinois Association of School Boards (IASB) issued a “call to action” against HB 5188, which has also used bill number SB 2226. The IASB included an appeal to members to contact legislators to express opposition. The association underscored it needs "help to stop the passage of HB 5188, as amended, which will MANDATE Illinois public schools to teach 'age appropriate' sex education beginning in kindergarten.” It has strongly suggested to “ACT NOW" and contact State Senators "to encourage them to VOTE NO on House Bill 5188, as amended." 

Directing the community to learn more about the full language of the amendment that can be found on the General Assembly Website, the IASB said, “State Senator Ram Villivalam (D-Chicago) posted an amendment to HB 5188 that would require sex ed to be taught in kindergarten through grade 12 in Illinois schools. IASB has worked in good faith with stakeholders on sex ed standards and curriculum for several years. Previous sex ed bills focused on content of curriculum while still preserving local control around the decision to offer sex ed to all students. HB 5188 removes that local option and MANDATES the national sex ed curriculum standards for all schools.” 

Awake Illinois, an advocacy group previously shared a press release describing the bill and its effects. According to the resource "public schools must provide age and developmentally appropriate consent education from kindergarten through 12th grades,” no later than July 1. The courses must incorporate and align with the "National Sex Education Standards" published by the Future of Sex Education. 

The group also explained that "These standards call for: 2nd graders to be able to define consent, define gender identity and stereotypes, define reproduction, and identify different types of families, including cohabitating and same gender; 5th graders to be able to describe the potential role of hormone blockers on young people who identify as transgender, distinguish between 'sex assigned at birth and gender identity,' define and explain differences between cisgender, transgender, gender nonbinary, gender expansive, and gender identity, explain that gender expression and identity exist along a spectrum; 8th graders to be able to define sexual identity and explain a range of identities related to sexual orientation (e.g., heterosexual, bisexual, lesbian, gay, queer, two-spirit, asexual, pansexual); they should also be able to define vaginal, oral, and anal sex; describe pregnancy options, including abortion; All pregnant young people to have decision-making power in their reproductive health decisions; The use of a student's self-selected pronouns; They also specify that no one, other than the individual, is 'qualified to label or judge another person's sexual identity, including their sexual orientation or gender identity.'" 

The bill is perceived as a means to mandate the sexual education standards included in SB 818 signed into law last year by Gov. J.B. Pritzker. That law, unlike this one, allowed school districts to opt out. SB 818 law requires children as young as 8 to be taught sex ed. The law was billed as a form to standardize state and federal sexual education standards. 

State Rep. Dan Caulkins (R-Decatur) has recommended conservatives run for local school boards in order to take back control of the reigns of education, according to Macon Reporter.