The U.K.’s largest teacher’s union said this week that schools across the country should welcome in drag queens and promote more LGBT events. 

At a meeting of the National Education Union (NEU) this week at Harrogate, the teachers voted in favor of a motion to bring drag queen story hour and other LGBT events to schools in order to take on “heteronormative culture.” 

“Initiatives like drag queen story time and inviting LGBT+ authors into schools can help challenge the heteronormative culture and curriculum that dominates education,” the motion read. 

According to NEU joint secretary general Mary Bousted, one reason for the motion was to counter the influence of online personalities like Andrew Tate. 

“The NEU is committed to sharing and disseminating teaching resources and strategies to help members support success and positive school experiences for all LGBT+ students, including trans and non-binary students,” she said. 

The motion was voted on after one teacher accused Prime Minister Rishi Sunak of “supporting the far-Right attacks on drag queen storytime” and “the murder of beautiful souls like Brianna [Ghey],” according to The Telegraph. Ghey, a trans-identifying teenager, was stabbed to death in a park earlier this year. 

The teacher later apologized, according to a spokesman for the union, saying that she did not mean to say that the prime minister was complicit in murder. 

“She apologizes and withdraws the specific allegation that Rishi Sunak supported the murder of a young trans girl. Many trans and non-binary teachers feel strongly that the Government is not doing enough to support them but it is essential that we always debate policy solutions in calm and measured ways,” the spokesman said. 

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The teachers union’s acceptance and promotion of drag queen story hour drew criticism from conservative organizations and members of parliament. 

“It is highly concerning that the NEU is endorsing the exposure of young children to drag queens dressed and performing in a highly sexualized way in the supposed safety of the classroom. I can’t believe that most teachers or parents would support this and I would urge the NEU to revisit some basic safeguarding principles,” said Miriam Cates, an MP for Penistone and Stocksbridge. 

Safe School’s Alliance spokeswoman Tanya Carter said that the union’s “persistence in abandoning established safeguarding the minute they are distracted by glitter and rainbows brings the entire teaching profession into disrepute.”

Part of the impetus for the measure came from the U.K. government blocking a Scottish measure earlier that would change the way that people officially alter their designated gender in Scotland.

Sixty-three Chinese Christians who were facing expulsion back to China have been given shelter in the United States after being detained in Thailand.

The Christians are members of the Shenzhen Holy Reform Church, also known as the “Mayflower Church,” and left China due to religious persecution in November 2019. They had hoped to be granted refugee status in Thailand by the United Nations, but instead they faced immigration-related charges. 

After negotiations with the State Department, Department of Homeland Security, and the U.N, Thailand agreed to let the U.S. take in the Christians, who hope to become permanent residents of the U.S. 

“ChinaAid welcomes the landing of the persecuted Chinese ‘Mayflower Church’ to freedom in America, and welcomes them to Texas,” ChinaAid Founder Bo Fu said in a Friday statement, according to RealClearPolitics. “This is truly a Good Friday. Barely a week ago, members of the Mayflower Church were still incarcerated in a jail facing imminent danger of [Chinese Communist Party] kidnapping threats. Now they are safe and free.”

The group, led by Pastor Pan Yongguang, a minister ordained by the Presbyterian Church of America (PCA), landed at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport on Friday. It had been a tumultuous three years for the group, who initially had attempted to stay in South Korea before moving to Thailand. 

“This is a successful example of nonpartisan, international cooperation,” ChinaAid CEO Chad Bullard said. “We are thankful to all parties including various U.S. government agencies, particularly the State Department’s International Religious Freedom Office led by Ambassador Rashad Hussain, the U.S. Embassy in Bangkok, USCIRF, and a number of congressional offices including Chairman Mike McCaul and Chairman Chris Smith.” 

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Smith, a New Jersey Republican who is chairman of the Congressional-Executive Commission on China, was pleased with the news. “It is a very Good Friday indeed, and a perfect Easter gift to see these persecuted Chinese Christians arrive and be allowed to practice their faith freely in the United States,” he said. “Had they been forcibly repatriated to China, they would have been jailed and severely persecuted.”

Other lawmakers who asked the State Department to intervene on behalf of the Chinese Christians included Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) and Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL).