Understand the LGBTQIA+ news: 'New Section 28': Is Labour set to be responsible for a “transphobic” curriculum?

In the last year, there have been more times in my entire career where I've questioned whether what I'm reporting is fact.

Not because I've been fooled by misinformation, or even because I'm not sure I've fact-checked to the critical degree I hold myself accountable to.

But instead, because the story is one that I am so deeply upset, moved, and infuriated by, it makes me question how on earth it can be real.

This week, in an angle that had been entirely missed by the mainstream in their reporting of new sex-ed guidance, and not picked up by any other title in the queer press until we produced our breaking coverage of it - it was the new RSE guidance for schools in England.

I'm not shocked that hundreds of you deemed it 'Section 28 2.0' in response. As I outline in my analysis, there is little doubt that it will have the same impact.

We're a small outlet that takes a slow news approach, designed to help you understand what's happened each week. However, it's increasingly clear how valuable it is for us to be on the beat and provide clarity in complex matters in a timely manner.

It's inherently queer to do something, because no one else will. And it's QueerAF to do that, by investing in queer creatives.

Understand the LGBTQIA+ headlines and keep track of the latest queer content and perspectives. This week QueerAF is written by Jamie Wareham and Vic Parsons, with the Queer Gaze from Alec Turner.

💬 This week:

• Sex Ed guidance: Following our rapid response thread and carousel this week, we unpack the new curriculum in detail, and ask - as many of you have already - is this a 'New Section 28'? 
• Labour: The party was once at the forefront of our community’s liberation in law. How much has that changed? We look at several key developments from this week.
• First Protest: A new generation are being activated into protesters on the frontline as they recognise the danger their rights are in. Alec Turner writes about how their inner queer revolutionary has been awoken in the Queer Gaze. 

Skip the doomscrolling and support queer creatives instead. We are QueerAF – and so are you.

‘Section 28 2.0’: New “transphobic” curriculum restricts teachers from encouraging Trans+ pupils to understand their identity

TL;DR: New statutory Relationships and Sex Education guidance from the Labour government for England has been dubbed 'Section 28 2.0' because it restricts schools from using materials that "encourage pupils to question their gender", as well as putting pressure on teachers to avoid teaching about parts of Trans+ lives. It also makes it compulsory to teach children the laws about 'biological sex' and adopts a number of other gender-critical perspectives.