The conservative-dominated US Supreme Court is set to deliberate on a case this Tuesday that pits religious freedom against public education policies, as it examines whether parents have the right to opt their children out of classes involving LGBTQ-related content.
The case arises from Montgomery County, Maryland, where in 2022, public schools introduced books for kindergarten and elementary students aimed at promoting diversity and combating prejudice, including discussions on homosexuality and gender identity.
The schools had initially offered parents the chance to opt out of controversial coursework, but later retracted the option, saying: “These opt-outs were unworkable. Some schools, for example, experienced unsustainably high numbers of absent students.”
Parents are suing because the opt-outs were canceled. They say the schools’ inclusive curriculum choices infringe on their Christian and Muslim faiths and First Amendment rights.
The complaint alleges that the Montgomery County school board “wants to disrupt” parents’ rights to “pass those beliefs on to their young children.”
School systems in some conservative states have already issued book bans or cracked down on library catalogues, with parents and conservative groups saying it is inappropriate for public spaces to host books they accuse of promoting homosexuality and inclusive progressive ideologies.
Florida’s Republican governor Ron DeSantis in 2022 signed a measure widely known as the “Don’t Say Gay” law which prohibits the teaching of subjects related to sexual orientation or gender identity in primary schools.
Court precedent has generally established that exposing students to ideas contrary to religion does not constitute coercion.
The Justice Department of President Donald Trump’s administration supports the parents in the case, accusing the schools of “textbook interference with the free exercise of religion.”
The decision of the high court, with its six conservative and three progressive judges, is expected before the current session ends in late June.
AFP
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