The Ordo Iuris organization has issued a harmful guide aimed at teachers, claiming that even a student who has legally changed their gender can be addressed by their previous name (known as deadnaming) and pronouns. The guide, authored by Marek Puzio, encourages teachers to disregard documents and specialists' opinions. - A school counselor's opinion or a certificate of gender dysphoria is not yet a reason for a teacher to address a boy by a female name - he asserts.
(The Ordo Iuris Institute for Legal Culture Foundation is a Polish ultraconservative organization that promotes the extreme agenda of the Catholic Church. Ordo Iuris is best known for drafting and promoting the "Stop Abortion" bill in 2016, which proposed a total ban on abortion in Poland. The bill sought to introduce an absolute prohibition on terminating pregnancies and criminal liability for anyone involved in abortion-related activities, including the mother. The foundation opposes in vitro fertilization. In 2016, it created a proposal stating that a single act does not constitute domestic violence. Ordo Iuris has also fought to roll back the right to gender recognition and has played a role in the persecution of LGBT individuals).
Disgusting Fragment on Abuse
The Ordo Iuris legal advisor completely ignores the fact that these students face significant challenges with acceptance and understanding. Without citing any examples, he insinuates that a child may pretend to be transgender to commit sexual offenses. "The presence of a teenage boy in a restroom or locker room designated for girls violates the girls' right to privacy, intimacy, and may create opportunities for sexual abuse" - emphasizes Marek Puzio.
One person associated with an elementary school in a large city reported that in one of the institutions, a transgender child was allowed to use a teachers' restroom. It should be noted that it was a unisex restroom, and none of the teachers had an issue with it.
"The Child Was Forced to Change Schools"
Another teacher from a Warsaw elementary school (name known to the editorial team) teaches a transgender boy. It turns out that due to discriminatory behavior at the previous school, the child had to change schools.
Krystian, around the fifth grade, with full support from his parents, asked that the school community not use his deadname and use male pronouns. The atmosphere was such that, unfortunately, the child was forced to change schools. In our school, the homeroom teacher simply informed Krystian's teachers at a staff meeting that such a student exists, has gone through certain experiences, and that we should address him by his chosen name and pronouns. End of discussion. There was no outrage or debate. The child is happy and can thrive. As an educator with many years of experience, I cannot fathom how someone could create a guide that essentially encourages harming children. It's inhumane and simply disgusting
- the teacher stated.
"It’s a Harmful Publication"
The Ordo Iuris guide was responded to by the GrowSPACE Foundation, which released a "competing" guide defending the rights of transgender students in schools.
The guide authored by the Ordo Iuris Institute is harmful from the perspective of protecting and realizing human rights, particularly for the vulnerable group of transgender students. It contains theses that contradict international and constitutional law norms, completely distorting their meaning - especially undermining the right of transgender individuals to inherent dignity. This guide is a negative response to progressive education efforts and attempts to raise awareness among educators about the systemic issues transgender students face daily and the rights they are entitled to, which we at the GrowSPACE Foundation detailed in our recently published guide 'Rights of Transgender Youth in Light of the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights'
- says Robert Lisiewicz, head of the legal team at the GrowSPACE Foundation.
