The Prejudices Of Homoparental Families

The prejudices of homoparental families

There are currently several family models, although it is true that the imposition of the heterosexual nuclear family predominates as the only existing model in classrooms. And not only do we talk about the didactic material itself, but also in most of the activities that arise and in the discourses of the teaching staff. I consider vital importance to educate children and adolescents in the concept of family diversity present in society currently. There are many types of families: the heterosexual nuclear family, the homoparental family, that of divorced parents, the adoptive, multiethnic, etc.

Since the arrival of democracy to our country, the family institution has suffered significant transformations that have been reflected in the daily life of many people and in the legal apparatus. However, the heterosexual nuclear family is still presented as the cultural ideal of the family, not only in collective imagination and in the media, but also, and especially, in one of the main spaces of socialization of children: the education system. Often, in the speeches of the teachers, in much of the didactic material, in the textbooks, in the activities that are proposed in the centers, the family formed by mom, dad and sons and daughters still presents itself as the only Model to continue, without taking into account that today the family reality of a good part of our students is much more diverse. In this context, homoparental families remain generally invisible and unknown to the entire educational community.

The ideology of the national Catholicism, imposed for several decades by the Franco dictatorship throughout Spanish society, only considered the family formed by a man and a woman, married by the Church and its descendants. The Spanish Constitution of 1978 recognizes the equality of men and women within civil or religious marriage, and equal rights and duties of sons and daughters born inside or outside the marriage.

In the subsequent years, society continued with its process of transformation of the family institution, as well as issues of sexuality and gender relationships linked to it: divorce, abortion, adoption, assisted reproduction techniques, de facto couples and, in 2005 , the legalization of homosexual marriage

Despite all these changes and the enormous variety of homes of homes that in practice do not respond to the heterosexual nuclear family model, the latter is still represented, in most cases, as the only available. If other alternatives appear in society, they are shown as subordinate or secondary to what some call ‘the natural family’.

Social anthropology, throughout its history, explained that biological and social reproduction is articulated in very different ways in different cultural groups, and especially, in one of the main spaces for children’s socialization: the educational system. Often, in the speeches of the teachers, in much of the didactic material, in the textbooks, in the activities that are proposed in the centers, the family formed by mom, dad and sons and daughters still presents itself as the only Model to continue, without taking into account that today the family reality of a good part of our students is much more diverse. In this context, homoparental families remain generally invisible and unknown to the entire educational community.

Although children raised in LGBT families have no impediments to their normal development, their parents are generally worried that homophobic prejudices and attitudes that still experience a minority of our society lead to situations of rejection of their children. In this context, school is a space that generates special concern in homoparental families.

First, because the cultural ideal of the heterosexual nuclear family, as a single model, is constantly presented in classrooms at all levels of the education system. It is significant that many homosexual parents have had to face this problem as soon as early and primary education.

While for a child who has two mothers or two fathers, or only a mother or a father, this is the most advantageous in relation to the rest of the families studied, in several of the investigated sections. From childhood we learn that this structure (mother / father / children) is ‘family’, although later children are perfectly able to confront this reference with their own family reality. For example, when asked to draw ‘a family’, most of them will reproduce that hegemonic image, but they are asked to draw ‘their family’, they will reflect their real family structure, highlighting the differences between imaginary and practices.

In the presence of a child of a homoparental family that has been presented as such in school, it is not unusual of family structures. As children from same -sex families grow, they increase the fear that these children will be discriminated or harassed by their classmates in the classroom.

On the other hand, many of these children raised by gays and lesbians, who are heterosexual, homosexual or bisexual, in the same percentage as the rest of society, are potential allies of those classmates who suffer from bullying due to the Homophobia. generally do not fear the spread of the stigma of being considered homosexual.

To work on respect for homoparental families, the best strategy seems to be to include the diversity of families transversely, to overcome, in this way, a monolithic vision of the family that does not correspond to social reality. To do this, it is usually important to know and public. can have. Another strategy to avoid discrimination is to address homophobia together with work on gender equality, two closely related realities. It is about analyzing, for example, not only the sexist nature of the news, series or ads, but also the heterosexist vision that is inevitably present in most of them.

There is an increasing amount of didactic and audiovisual material available for the classroom on the so -called ‘rainbow families’. An example is the documentary Homo Baby. Boom, published by the Catalan Association Flg-Famílies Lesbianes I Gais, which presents the daily life of these homoparental families through the lives of mothers, fathers, children and adolescents who live and build these families.

In addition to these specific proposals, it is convenient to include family diversity through the most varied activities and areas of knowledge: in the statements of mathematical problems, in the examples of family vocabulary in language classes, etc. In this sense, it would be convenient to opt for those textbooks and teaching materials that reflect family diversity, as well as try to maintain inclusive practices and language in the relationship that centers have with families: in the celebrations that take place (days (days of father or mother and family days), in communications (letters, notes), in the forms of the center (surpassing the binary proposals ‘name of the father / name of the mother’), etc.

In conclusion, it is worth remembering that when you must show and teach all the wealth of family diversity, we are building a more respectful, tolerant and civic society for all .

Bibliography

1. Ceballos Fernández, M.: Being mothers and fathers in homoparental families: analysis of the discourse of their perceptions on the education of their sons and daughters, in essays, magazine of the Faculty of Education of Albacete, No. 27, 2012. (Web link: http: // www.magazine.UCLM.It is/index.PHP/Tests – Accessed on date (05–03-2020).
2. Alicia Molina Baños – Society, Family and Education