Stop Trying To 'Control Minds, Silence Parents'

New Jersey State Senator Joe Pennacchio today responded to a statement issued by Governor Murphy about New Jersey’s new curriculum standards.

Sen. Joe Pennacchio defended the accuracy of parents and officials who have criticized the State’s new curriculum standards. (SenateNJ.com)

“With all due respect, Governor Murphy is flat out wrong when he accuses Republicans and concerned parents of misrepresenting the new standards,” said Pennacchio (R-26). “Governor, we appreciate you revisiting the issue, but the law says what the law says, and the standards are what the standards are. Blame the Democrats. We’re merely citing the absurdity and impudence of rules that reject the term ‘age appropriate’ and disenfranchise parents in the sexual education of their children.”

On the floor of the Senate in December 2020, Pennacchio argued against legislation (A-4454) responsible for much of the changes, and proposed amendments that would have prevented school districts from providing instruction on sex education for any student age 5 or under.

“We knew the intention when the bill was passed 16 months ago. We knew the pitfalls of the bill,” said Pennacchio. “We expressed our concerns to the Legislature and worked to exclude our youngest school children from the impact, but the Democrat majority refused to listen, blocked my amendments, and pushed the measure through in a totally partisan manner.

“The Governor claims elected officials who reject these brazen changes have misconstrued the standards. Wrong! Those who are defending this governmental intrusion are the ones denying the facts.

“The Governor should spend some time learning what the standards really mean for parents and students before lashing out at the growing number of New Jerseyans who are dismayed about what is going on,” Pennacchio said. “The Administration is trying to sugar-coat this agenda, but parents can see right through it, and they aren’t happy.”

Pennacchio said he looks forward to working with the Administration to restore sanity to school curriculums.

“The problems are deeper than just sex education. The emphasis on ‘unconscious bias’ has to go. It assumes our children are flawed from the start and they need to be brainwashed by the schools to re-set their mental and emotional barometers,” said Pennacchio. “To keep our children out of harms’ way, we must stop using education as a tool to control young minds and silence parents.”