15/08/2025
Victorian Labor Premier Jacinta Allan has doubled down on a controversial school program introducing transgender concepts to children as young as five.
And in the process, she has lashed out at both concerned parents and the journalists reporting on it.
The Victorian Education Department quietly updated its Respectful Relationships program last year, adding lessons that tell Prep students their biological s*x might not match their gender identity.
Parents of Adolescents with Gender Distress have warned this amounts to a “school-to-clinic pipeline”, claiming it could push vulnerable kids toward social transitioning and even irreversible medical interventions – sometimes without parental consent.
Child psychiatrists have also echoed concerns, pointing to potential confusion, anxiety, and long-term harm.
Rather than address these points, Allan dismissed the criticism as “disgraceful nonsense” and accused reporters of harming vulnerable children.
She repeated a disputed claim that transgender children are “15 times more likely to kill themselves” – a figure experts say is based on survey data about suicidal thoughts, not confirmed su***de rates.
The Premier’s aggressive defence has sparked questions about media freedom, government transparency, and whether ideology is now trumping parental rights in Victorian schools.
Supporters call it inclusion. Critics call it grooming, political indoctrination, and a reckless social experiment on children who should be learning to read and count, not wrestle with gender ideology.
And while Allan insists it’s “the right thing to do”, parents across the state are talking about pulling their kids from public schools altogether – some already have.
For many Victorians, this isn’t just another policy debate. It’s a fight over who gets to shape the minds of the youngest generation – parents or politicians.
And judging by the reaction, a growing number believe the Allan Government has crossed a line.
