Judge Rules Religious Parents Cannot Restore Opt-Out Option for LGBT Lessons
The district judge determined that the interfaith group of parents had no evidence their rights were being violated
A U.S. district judge has rejected a motion from a group of Christian, Jewish, and Muslim parents who wanted the option to opt their children out of lessons that discussed LGBT identities.
The group of Montgomery County Public Schools parents objected to a curriculum that included children’s books meant to normalize alternative sexual lifestyles and identities.
The parents made clear they only wanted to opt their children out of reading the material rather than seeking to ban the books from the school.
U.S. District Judge Deborah Boardman rejected their motion, however, arguing that the parents “have not shown that [the school district’s] use of the storybooks crosses the line from permissible influence to potentially impermissible indoctrination.”
“The evidence suggests that, generally, MCPS teachers will occasionally read one of the handful of books, lead discussions and ask questions about the characters, and respond to questions and comments in ways that encourage tolerance for different views and lifestyles,” Judge Boardman wrote. “That is not indoctrination.”
The Christian Post reports that the parents plan to seek a federal appeal.
“Parents know and love their children best; that’s why all kids deserve to have their parents help them understand issues like gender identity and sexuality,” attorney Eric Baxter, vice president and senior counsel for the law firm Becket, which is representing the parents, told the Post. “The school board’s decision to cut parents out of these discussions flies in the face of parental freedom, childhood innocence, and basic human decency.”
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