Bukele puts an end to inclusive language in El Salvador: he bans it in all schools

President Nayib Bukele announced this Thursday the total ban on the use of inclusive language in all public schools in El Salvador. The decision was communicated by the president himself on his social media, where he reaffirmed his commitment to education without ideological interference.

The memorandum shared by the Minister of Education, military officer Karla Trigueros, details that the ban will apply to all institutions that are part of the Salvadoran public system. Bukele's official emphasized that this measure aims to guarantee "the proper use of language" in educational materials and content.

"As of today, the so-called 'inclusive language' is banned in all public educational centers in our country," Bukele stated. Meanwhile, Trigueros supported the president by confirming that she had already issued the instruction for this measure to be implemented in all departments of her ministry.

No more "compañeres" or "niñes"

The document explicitly details examples of words that are excluded from the educational sphere: "amigue, compañere, niñe, alumn@, jóvenxs, nosotras," among others. According to the education ministry, the objective is to consolidate clear, respectful communication free from ideological impositions.

Bukele had already spoken about this issue at CPAC, the annual political conference attended by conservative activists and officials from across the United States and the world. Back then, the two-time president stated that "it's not only about eliminating this ideology, but about guaranteeing the role of parents in education."

In February 2024, then Minister of Education José Mauricio Pineda had announced that all traces and use of gender ideology would be eliminated from public schools after Bukele delivered his speech at CPAC.

"I believe it's important to bring God back to schools, to bring back morality, civics, to learn traditional subjects—such as mathematics and history—(...) nobody is against modernization, what we're against is the introduction of unnatural, anti-God, anti-family ideologies, that has no place in our schools," Bukele said at the time.