About Us
We are parents, grandparents, students, friends, community members, and voters within the Canandaigua City School District of the New York Finger Lakes region.
About Help Not Harm
We are parents, grandparents, students, staff, friends, community members, and voters within the Canandaigua City School District of the New York Finger Lakes region.
We have become increasingly aware of the school district’s push to glorify modern culture’s sexual ideologies, gender theories and transgenderism while pressuring students and staff to not only accept, but celebrate, these sexual ideologies. Because we love and care deeply for every Canandaigua student, we are concerned that promoting these one-sided ideologies (especially without parental awareness or consent) could be harmful to students, cause premature sexualization, mental illness and possibly irreversible physical alterations of children- all before their brains have fully formed and matured. There’s an ever-increasing population of young Canandaigua students who are confused about, experimenting with, and declaring various sexual and gender identities.
As we began reaching out to parents of students in the CCSD primary/elementary, middle and high school buildings, we learned about their children’s similar experiences. Those parents were also upset by the messaging, thought they were alone in their concerns and were unsure how to address those concerns.
In the summer of 2021, several CCSD parents met together and decided to form a grassroots group for mutual support in voicing our concerns to the school and for protecting our rights as parents to educate our children at home about our own beliefs regarding sexual matters, without the school imposing its views on our children. Thus, Help Not Harm was created.
So far we’ve individually met with building principals, joined teacher/parent committees, created a petition and collected signatures, met with Superintendent Jamie Farr, wrote letters to the board of education and made speeches at board of education meetings.
We are not done yet. Our mission is to help and protect hurting and questioning kids from current and future harm, protect our rights as parents and community members to influence what the school teaches and promotes, and insist on more transparency and accountability from the school district to parents. We’re not done by a long shot.
Our Purpose Statement
Members of Help Not Harm strive to protect children who attend Canandaigua Schools (CCSD) from psychological, emotional or spiritual confusion and alienation caused by CCSD promoting controversial sexual and transgender acts, lifestyles, or beliefs. Children’s parents or guardians have the sole responsibility- and constitutional right- to determine their child’s readiness for the presentation and discussion of such matters. Canandaigua Schools’ encouragement of minor students to accept and/or engage in controversial sexual and gender transformative lifestyles exceeds their purview as public educators and contributes to the detrimental sexualization of children.
Help Not Harm promotes academic excellence. All academic subjects and school programs must educate students using truthful, common sense, factual information that bolsters students’ overall health, success, and future flourishing.
We advocate for parental rights. Parents have the right to be informed about everything their children are learning and experiencing at school. Custodial parents- not any governmental institution- are the legal guardians of their children and as such have the sole right and responsibility to affect the content and character of their child’s education. CCSD must allow easy access to all curriculum, educational materials (including digital), goals, signage, and policies. Additionally, the school must pre-emptively provide all survey questions posed to students.
We vehemently insist CCSD share sensitive information (including physical and mental health information) about a child with his/her parents or legal guardians in an expedient manner. The school must not keep secrets from parents about their own children. These parental rights must be upheld without CCSD stonewalling, defaming, or attempting to cause hardship on any parent or taxpayer who communicates concern or proposals.
Help Not Harm urges CCSD to exercise fiscal responsibility. Monies in their care must aid the healthy and truthful education of parents’ children. Any spending that fails to advance this purpose is a waste of taxpayer money.
We believe all current diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives by CCSD are antithetical to what those words imply. Current DEI initiatives divide our community, create inequalities and exclude students of certain people groups and religions from helpful education and reasonable expression. DEI is based on Marxist and racist ideals.
We believe bullying of any kind is intolerable, therefore we present our views with consideration and respect. However, we refuse to shrink from our constitutional rights and freedoms afforded to us as American parents and citizens as we respectfully challenge controversial school narratives and activities.