Slide shared by New Brunswick Premier: ‘Blatant misrepresentation’ of sexual health presentation

ST. JOHN’S, NL — The sex education slide that enraged New Brunswick Premier Blaine Higgs is the first of more than 100 slides in a presentation on healthy relationships and sexual health that will be shown to high school students across the country.

Teresa Norris, president of the Montreal-based organization HPV Global Action, walked reporters through the presentation today to provide context for the single opening slide, which Higgs shared on social media last week and deemed “clearly inappropriate.”

The screenshot of the slide includes questions such as “Do girls masturbate?” and “Is anal sex good or bad?” Norris explained that the presentation is intended to show teens that such questions are normal and that it will help them better understand their sexual health.

In the next few slides, she tells her own story of losing her best friend to cervical cancer. She hopes to use this story to connect with her audience and show them that some of what they are about to learn could save a life.

The presentation, titled “Healthy Relationships 101,” which Higgs said he did not watch in its entirety, goes on to discuss healthy and unhealthy friendships and relationship behaviors, sexuality and puberty, consent, abstinence and sexually transmitted diseases.

Although Higgs said the material is not part of the provincial curriculum, a government website shows that puberty, gender identity, sexual orientation and healthy romantic and sexual relationships are all topics in a high school course on individual and family well-being.

Norris said she has given similar talks at schools across the country for more than two decades, in consultation with local education and health authorities, and has never faced backlash or criticism.

She said focusing on a single slide from her talk was a “gross misrepresentation” of her work and its importance. She also fears that Higgs’ announcement banning her group from speaking in the province will have a chilling effect on educators in New Brunswick and across the country.

“We should put teenagers at the center of the current discussion,” Norris said in an interview. “What happens if we don’t give teenagers space to ask questions and express concerns?”

She said she documented 12 cases in which female students went home after their lecture and encouraged their mothers to get tested for HPV, which can cause cervical cancer, and that subsequent testing revealed a problem.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 31, 2024.

The Canadian Press