A mother is taking legal action against the South Australian government over claims her 14-year-old daughter was exposed to a school presentation referencing bestiality and incest.
In an exclusive television interview, Nicki Gaylard broke down as she explained why she plans to sue the state in the District Court of South Australia to ensure no other family has to suffer the same distress as hers.
The impending lawsuit is being funded by faith-based legal organisation Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) International, which is working with Ms Gaylard’s local Adelaide lawyers.
The hour-long presentation was part of a Respectful Relationships program meant to “promote LGBTQIA+ inclusivity and acceptance” that was delivered to year 9 girls by an external provider in March last year at Renmark High School in regional South Australia.
Ms Gaylard, a mother of six, wept as she recounted how her daughter Courtney felt so upset by the presentation, she left halfway through and went to the school’s sick bay.
Her mother collected her from school early and withdrew all her children attending the school that same day.
They now attend a local Catholic school.
“The first thing she said was: ‘They’re talking about having sex with animals’, so it took me a few minutes to get my jaw off the floor,” Ms Gaylard told Sky News.
“She said they just presented this list of words… Bestiality was one of the words and she said: ‘No one knew what that was, Mum.’ One of the girls asked: ‘What is bestiality?’
“(The presenter) said: ‘Oh, it’s having sex with animals, but don’t Google it girls’.
“When your daughter comes home from school, you don’t expect them to tell you things like how uncomfortable, how unsafe and how trapped they felt.”
She said Courtney had told her the first thing the students saw when they walked in the room was a slide that read: “We can see queer-ly now” and the students were left with three external presenters and no teacher present.