South Central Reporter

Illinois Democrats and Republicans disagree over the best approach to medically accurate, age-appropriate personal health and sex education in public middle and high schools. 

A Senate bill seeking to provide standards for how schools discuss sexuality, sexual activities, gender identity and abortion cleared the House last week, to the dismay of many Republicans. 

"This legislation ensures that a large number of young children in Illinois will not receive sex education to protect them from things like predators, from sexual abuse," said state Sen. Jason Plummer (R-Vandalla) on the Senate floor on May 21, in the days before the bill passed. "This ensures it. You're voting to ensure that children in Illinois will not get the proper education to protect them from predators and sexual abuse."

Planned Parenthood lauded the bill, arguing that it will bring age-appropriate, comprehensive, medically backed information about sexual health, anatomy and safety to young teenagers. 

Plummer expressed frustration that the legislature has taken an "all or nothing" approach to sex education for Illinois public schools. 

"We don’t know why it’s all or nothing," the senator said of Senate Bill 818. "We don’t think it should be all or nothing. And on top of that, for those school districts that do implement this, for your cousins, nephews, daughters and sons, you have no idea who these groups are. You have no idea who’s funding these groups and based on some of the back and forth, I don’t think you’re entirely sure of what the curriculum actually contains."

Back in March Plummer also opposed Gov. Pritzker's criminal justice reform bill. He stated that the bill made police departments unaffordable for Illinois' small communities. 

"We're already seeing the consequences of this bill emerge, with one central Illinois village disbanding their police department entirely as the cost burdens of the reform bill weighed heavily over their small community," Plummer said, according to the South Central Reporter. "The fact is, the governor is making it unaffordable for police forces to operate and even harder for our officers to do their jobs."