In a case that could have national impact, a diverse group of religious parents in Maryland have asked the U.S. Supreme Court to restore their right to opt their children out of storybooks that promote progressive views on gender identity and sexuality.
According to the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, a public-interest legal and educational institute devoted to protecting the free expression of religion, the case involves the introduction of 20 new Pride Storybooks in the Montgomery County School District for its pre-K through eighth grade classes. The books promote subjects such as pride parades, gender transitioning and pronoun preferences.
For example, in one book, three- and four-year-olds are asked to search for images from a word list that includes words such as “drag queen,” “underwear,” “leather” and the name of LGBTQ activist and sex worker.
As the Becket Fund describes, “Another encourages fifth graders to discuss what it means to be ‘non-binary.’ Other books advocate a child-knows-best approach to gender transitioning, telling students that a decision to transition doesn’t have to ‘make sense’ and that doctors only ‘guess’ when identifying a newborn’s sex anyway.”
In another book about a same-sex romance in the playground, the teacher’s guide suggests inviting students to share what it means to not just “like” someone of the same sex, but “like like” someone.
“The curriculum suppresses free speech and independent thinking by having teachers tell students they are ‘hurtful’ if they question these controversial ideologies,” Becket reports.
When the books were first introduced in 2022, the school board assured concerned parents that they would be notified when the books were being read and could opt their children out of the class. But that changed in 2023 when the Board issued a statement saying it would no longer notify parents or honor opt-out requests.
“One Board member justified the decision by claiming that allowing opt-outs because these books ‘offend[] your religious rights or your family values or your core beliefs is just telling [your] kid, ‘Here’s another reason to hate another person’,” Becket reports.
Soon after, a diverse coalition of religious parents, including Muslims, Christians, and Jews, sued the School Board in federal court. Despite faith differences, these parents believe the new storybooks are age-inappropriate, spiritually and emotionally damaging for their kids, and inconsistent with their beliefs. After a lower court upheld the opt-out ban, the parents sought relief from the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals but were denied again, with one judge dissenting. The parents have now resorted to petitioning the Supreme Court to restore their right to notice and opt-outs so they can help guide their children’s education in accordance with their beliefs.
“The School Board is pushing a controversial ideology that has been rejected by governments around the world and has even been criticized by the Board’s own principals as inappropriate for the intended age group,” said Grace Morrison, board member of Kids First, an association of parents and teachers advocating for notice and opt-outs in Montgomery County Schools. “Children deserve a period of innocence. The Supreme Court should take this case, restore the opt-out, and let parents decide how and when to introduce their own elementary school kids to these sensitive topics.”
Attorneys at Becket agree.
“Parents shouldn’t have to take a back seat to anyone when it comes to introducing their children to complex and sensitive issues around gender and sexuality,” said Eric Baxter, vice president and senior counsel at Becket. “Nearly every state requires parental consent before high schoolers can attend sex-ed. Parents should have the right to excuse their elementary school children when related instruction is introduced during story hour.”
The Court will consider whether to hear the case later this fall.
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