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Several Supreme Court judges signaled sympathy with Maryland parents on Tuesday to pick out their children from LGBTQ-themed classroom materials. One education expert said the incident could lead to an ruling expanding custody of public schools across the country.
“This looks quite promising to parent petitioners in this case,” said Sarah Partial Perry, vice president and legal fellow for grassroots organization education. “I have heard very aggressive questions from three liberal justice, and no matter how sliced this apple, it appears to be a very clear violation of the first amendment, as exercised through the 14th amendment right to direct the religious upbringing of children.”
Perry previously served as the Chief Attorney for the U.S. Department of Education’s Civil Rights Aide from 2020 to 2021, where he drafted the Office of Civil Rights (OCR) annual report to Congress.
The Supreme Court appears to be on side with parents in the religious freedom conflict over storybooks
Attorney General, Left, Roberts (AP/Scotus)
“They’re very adaptable,” Perry said of the four- and five-year-olds in the incident. “They are very shaped by their environment and are exposed to them, and they have no meaningful institutions that can be opted out, opposed, or pushed back. So these individuals are learning their own family values as justice, that is, exposure to the material. [Amy Coney] Barrett and Justice [Neil] Gorsuch pointed out that it is designed to influence their thinking. ”
At the heart of Mahmoud v. Taylor is a lawsuit brought by religious parents (Muslims, Roman Catholics, Ukrainian Orthodox Church) who argue that district policies violate their initial right to amendments by forcing leadership that contradicts their beliefs.
The Fourth Circuit, a federal court of appeals, found last year that it did not violate the rights of religious movements, and said the policy forced parents to not change their religious beliefs or behavior, and that parents could still teach their children outside of school.
Several conservative justice, including Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito, appeared sympathetic to the concerns of their parents during the two and a half hours of verbal discussion. Alito questioned the moral messages conveyed by books such as Uncle Bobby’s Wedding, suggesting that such content could contradict deeply religious beliefs. Judge Brett Kavanaugh also urged the district’s attorneys about why opt-out provisions could not be extended to these storybooks, as did the sex education ones.
Parents Tell Scotus: Classroom LGBTQ Storybooks Clash with Our Faith
Scotus’ justice appears to support straight women in cases of discrimination. (istock)
Meanwhile, liberal justice argued that mere revelations of these books may not constitute a violation of coercion or religious freedom. The district argued that policies promote inclusion and that exposure to an LGBTQ perspective is not comparable to a forced change in belief.
“I think it was very predictable,” Perry said of the liberal justice debate. “They are trying to prove that it will put too much strain on the district to allow these children to opt out, for example, because public schools can be devastating in their ability to manage their own issues.”
“The reason we see these issues in the Supreme Court is that they are directly related to religious freedom and directly related to the very early cognitive stages of minor children’s development,” Perry said. “And that’s very clear… the burden of religious freedom in public education must be treated very seriously by the courts, and if the burden is very clear, then respectful to religious parents.”
“In this example, I think it’s certainly transparent,” she added.
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Among the picture books at the heart of the case is Prince & Night, a modern fairy tale story aimed at children aged 4 to 8 years old. Another book that is frequently mentioned in oral discussions was Uncle Bobby’s Wedding.
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“I think we’re confident that we’re seeing more lawsuits, fewer, fewer, more pushbacks, as parental rights have become something of a cultural periodist in where we’re in this political era,” Perry said.
The Supreme Court is expected to rule in the suit by late June.
Jamie Joseph is a US political reporter for Fox News Digital, covering transgender and cultural issues, the departments of education, health and welfare, and state legislative development.
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