When classes resume in public schools next month, parents across the nation should expect notification from school administrators about any “LGBTQ+ inclusive” instruction and the right to opt their children out of it for religious reasons.
The Supreme Court on June 27 ruled in favor of Maryland parents, many of them Christians and Muslims, who complained that their school district forced instruction about LGBT lifestyles on their young children. In a 6–3 vote, justices determined that although the district said the instruction consisted of lessons in mutual respect, the materials conveyed and reinforced viewpoints about same-sex marriage.
The Supreme Court decision establishes that public school districts must allow for opt-outs of curricula including LGBT materials.
Nate Kellum, senior counsel for the First Liberty Institute, said that these communication measures were likely in place for decades with respect to health and sex education instruction.
“It’s easy enough to incorporate,“ Kellum told The Epoch Times. ”It’s just a matter of common sense and common courtesy. It won’t become an administrative nightmare.”
“But it becomes a question of will,“ he said. ”For some districts, this is a bitter pill to swallow.”
Kellum said there will likely be questions about activities outside the classroom, such as morning announcements, school-wide assemblies, and displays. If those events are planned ahead of time and potentially interfere with a family’s religious exercise, the school is obligated to provide advance notice and the option not to attend.
Questions will also emerge about age and grade level. While advance notice is a reasonable request, it’s also reasonable to expect that older students are less impressionable, so families should act in good faith before taking actions against their school, Kellum said.
Still, given that the Supreme Court establishes the interpretation of the law of the land, families who are not granted the appropriate accommodations as outlined by the court have a “slam dunk” case, he said, adding that he anticipates some lawsuits across the nation in the coming months as the parameters of the decision are fleshed out.
Kellum successfully represented parents in a similar case in suburban San Diego. They sued in federal court after their district didn’t allow them to opt their children out of a program in which pairs of fifth graders read “My Shadow is Pink” to kindergartners.
The book is about a boy with a pink shadow who likes to play with dolls and wear dresses. The fifth graders were also required to chalk an outline of their kindergarten buddy’s body and discuss with them their preferred shadow color, according to court papers.
With the recent Supreme Court decision, Kellum said, “I don’t know if they really have any place to go.”
How other school leaders across the nation plan to proceed remains to be seen. Attorneys general from Massachusetts, Maryland, and California issued statements expressing disappointment with the decision.
Republican members of Congress called the decision a historic win for families.
Defending Education, an education watchdog group, is encouraging parents to contact their local schools about this matter before the school year begins. The organization has provided an email template that cites the Supreme Court decision and further requests that the school allow a child to opt out of mandatory preferred pronoun usage and shared bathrooms and locker rooms with the other sex.
“It is the right of religious parents to opt their children out of this type of sex and gender-focused curriculum, regardless of when and where it is introduced during the school day,” Defending Education’s July 13 announcement said.
The organization also asks parents to let them know if their school district does not allow children to opt out of the programs in question.
