{"id":2426005,"date":"2025-04-22T04:20:03","date_gmt":"2025-04-22T08:20:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/supreme-court-weighs-right-to-opt-students-out-of-lgbt-content\/"},"modified":"2025-04-22T04:24:46","modified_gmt":"2025-04-22T08:24:46","slug":"supreme-court-weighs-right-to-opt-students-out-of-lgbt-content","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/supreme-court-weighs-right-to-opt-students-out-of-lgbt-content\/","title":{"rendered":"Supreme Court weighs right to opt students out of LGBT content"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">22<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fsupreme-court-weighs-right-to-opt-students-out-of-lgbt-content%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2426005&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The U.S. Supreme Court is set to hear a case concerning parental rights regarding the content taught in public schools, specifically related to LGBT themes. The lawsuit originates from parents in maryland who argue that Montgomery County public Schools have violated their religious rights by not allowing them to opt their children out of LGBT-themed story time and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/china-and-russia-now-working-with-taliban-controlled-afghanistan-one-year-after-u-s-withdrawal\/\" title=\"China And Russia Now Working With Taliban-Controlled Afghanistan One Year After U.S. Withdrawal\">related educational materials<\/a>.The parents contend that they should have the right to know about, and refuse, such content, which <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\">includes books addressing gender identity<\/a> and same-sex relationships, particularly as these are aimed at very young students.<\/p>\n<p>Initially, the school district provided opt-out options, but this policy was reversed in March 2023 without explanation.The parents assert that this reversal infringes on their rights to guide their children\u2019s religious upbringing, and they are requesting that the Supreme Court apply strict scrutiny to this case. The Montgomery County officials argue that the curriculum is essential for fostering an inclusive environment and that allowing broad opt-outs would disrupt consistent teaching and ostracize LGBT students.<\/p>\n<p>Lower courts have sided with the school district, but dissenting judges have emphasized the parents\u2019 rights. The Supreme Court&#8217;s decision on this case, which is one of several important religious liberty cases this term, is anticipated by the end of June.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-header-search-button-mob dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search\" aria-labelledby=\"td-header-search-button\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search-inner\">\n<form method=\"get\" class=\"tdb-search-form\" action=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\"><\/form>\n<div class=\"tdb-aj-search\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/#\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"Search\" class=\"tdb-head-search-btn dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<h1 class=\"tdb-title-text\">Supreme Court weighs right for parents to opt students out of LGBT content<\/h1>\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-title-line\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div id=\"Brid_2097058\" class=\"tpd-featured-video bridtv\"><\/div>\n<p>The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/supreme-court\">Supreme Court<\/a> on Tuesday will hear a case brought by Maryland parents who say public schools are trampling their <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/religious-liberty\">religious rights<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>At issue is whether <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/maryland\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"Montgomery County Public Schools\">Montgomery County Public Schools<\/a> violated the Constitution by requiring elementary school children to sit through LGBT-themed story time without notifying parents or letting them opt out of books about gender identity, Pride parades, and same-sex relationships.<\/p>\n<div class=\"recommended-stories\">\n<h2>Recommended Stories<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/justice\/3386240\/supreme-court-alito-dissent-highlights-concern-over-scotus-shortcuts\/\">&#8216;Enough of this&#8217;: Alito&rsquo;s dissent highlights concern over SCOTUS shortcuts<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/policy\/healthcare\/3386199\/obamacare-supreme-court-case-preventive-services\/\">Supreme Court skeptical of undoing Obamacare preventive coverage mandates<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/justice\/3386130\/supreme-court-usps-appeal-bias-claims\/\">Supreme Court takes USPS appeal over black woman&#8217;s bias claims<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<p>Outside the high court, a coalition of&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/religion\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">Muslim, Catholic, Protestant, and Jewish<\/a>&nbsp;parents is expected to rally in support of restoring what they describe as a simple and long-standing accommodation: the right to be notified and say no.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/maryland\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">Montgomery County<\/a>&nbsp;had initially provided opt-out notices when it rolled out its &ldquo;inclusivity&rdquo; reading program in 2022. The books, used for children as young as three years old, include&nbsp;<em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.supremecourt.gov\/DocketPDF\/24\/24-297\/351568\/20250310115158983_No.%2024-297_Amicus%20Brief.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"Pride Puppy\">Pride Puppy<\/a><\/em>, which asks students to identify images such as a &ldquo;drag queen,&rdquo; an &ldquo;intersex flag,&rdquo; and &ldquo;leather,&rdquo; and&nbsp;<em>Born Ready<\/em>, which encourages students to embrace self-defined gender identity and questions the role of doctors in determining a newborn&rsquo;s sex.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The above image shows examples of books that parents in this could would seek to opt their children out of listening or engaging with during classrooms hours. (Courtesy of America First Legal&rsquo;s brief in favor of the parents in this case.)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The lawsuit at issue was filed the following spring after the school board reversed its plans to allow parents to opt their children out of LGBT-related content, according to Michael O&rsquo;Brien, an attorney with the&nbsp;Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, who spoke to the <em>Washington Examiner<\/em>. <\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;On March 22, 2023, [the board] publicly reaffirmed that notice and opt outs would continue. And then, literally overnight on March 23, 2023, the board posted on its website, without explanation, that the opt outs would now be barred and no notice would be afforded to parents when the instruction would take place,&rdquo; O&rsquo;Brien said.<\/p>\n<p>Becket lawyers argue that the school board&rsquo;s sudden reversal violates both&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/maryland\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">Maryland law<\/a>&nbsp;and the board&rsquo;s own prior policies.<\/p>\n<p>In a similar episode nearly two decades ago, the district introduced controversial materials in middle school sex education, and at the time it not only followed opt-out rules, but offered an opt-in &mdash; an extra safeguard, O&rsquo;Brien noted, that implicitly recognized the religious sensitivity of such topics.<\/p>\n<p>The parents are asking the justices to affirm that the curriculum imposes a &ldquo;substantial burden&rdquo; on their&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/religious-liberty\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">free exercise rights<\/a>&nbsp;and to apply the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/florida-court-temporarily-blocks-vaccine-mandate\/\" title=\"Florida ... Temporarily Blocks Vaccine Mandate\">strict scrutiny test<\/a> the Supreme Court has used in similar religious liberty cases.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;The board hasn&rsquo;t come close to meeting its burden,&rdquo; O&rsquo;Brien said, noting parental rights have been under violated for nearly two years. &ldquo;The court has everything it needs to resolve this now &mdash; before another <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/calif-school-board-member-compares-bringing-teachers-back-for-in-person-learning-to-slavery\/\" title=\"Calif. school board member compares bringing teachers back for in-person learning to \u2018slavery\u2019\">school year starts<\/a> and more harm is incurred.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Montgomery County says its curriculum is age-appropriate and necessary to foster an inclusive learning environment. Officials argue that broad opt-outs would make it impossible to administer consistent instruction and expose&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/lgbt\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">LGBT<\/a> students to isolation and stigma.<\/p>\n<p>Maryland Attorney General Anthony Brown, a Democrat, argued in an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.supremecourt.gov\/DocketPDF\/24\/24-297\/355166\/20250409132648053_24-297acMaryland.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">amicus brief<\/a> to the Supreme Court that &ldquo;declining to allow opt-outs reflects a determination that, whatever one&rsquo;s views about whether being LGBTQ is &lsquo;right&rsquo; or &lsquo;wrong,&rsquo; students must learn to treat LGBT people with respect and dignity.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Lower courts sided with the school system, with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit ruling there was no evidence students were being compelled to change their religious views. But in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ca4.uscourts.gov\/opinions\/231890.p.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">dissent<\/a>, Judge A. Marvin Quattlebaum Jr. said the policy &ldquo;burdened these parents&rsquo; right to exercise their religion and direct the religious upbringing of their children.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>O&rsquo;Brien noted that nothing at issue before the justices Tuesday is asking them to tell schools what they can and cannot teach to students.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Parents aren&rsquo;t trying to change the curriculum &mdash; they&rsquo;re just asking not to be kept in the dark, and to opt out when this kind of instruction substantially interferes with their right to guide their children&rsquo;s religious upbringing,&rdquo; O&rsquo;Brien added.<\/p>\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/supreme-court\/3291381\/supreme-court-to-weigh-parental-objections-to-lgbt-books-in-classrooms\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"SUPREME COURT TO WEIGH PARENTAL OBJECTIONS TO LGBT BOOKS IN CLASSROOMS\">SUPREME COURT TO WEIGH PARENTAL OBJECTIONS TO LGBT BOOKS IN CLASSROOMS<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The case is one of three major&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/religious-liberty\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">religious liberty<\/a>&nbsp;disputes the justices are weighing this term, alongside a challenge to&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/oklahoma\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">Oklahoma<\/a>&rsquo;s approval of a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/supreme-court\/3300379\/supreme-court-fate-publicly-funded-catholic-charter-school\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"Catholic charter school\">Catholic charter school<\/a> and a&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/wisconsin\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">Wisconsin<\/a>&nbsp;tax exemption case involving <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/supreme-court\/3363093\/catholic-charities-challenges-non-religious-label-supreme-court\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"Catholic Charities\">Catholic Charities<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>A decision in the case, <em>Mahmoud v. Taylor<\/em>, is expected by the end of June.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p> <script data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/cdn-cgi\/scripts\/5c5dd728\/cloudflare-static\/email-decode.min.js\"><\/script><script>!function(){var g=window;g.googletag=g.googletag||{},g.googletag.cmd=g.googletag.cmd||[],g.googletag.cmd.push(function(){g.googletag.pubads().setTargeting(\"has-featured-video\",\"true\")})}();<\/script><script>var _bp=_bp||[];_bp.push({\"div\":\"Brid_2097058\",\"obj\":{\"id\":\"27789\",\"width\":\"1280\",\"height\":\"720\",\"stickyDirection\":\"below\",\"video\":\"2097058\"}});<\/script><script defer src=\"https:\/\/services.brid.tv\/player\/build\/brid.min.js\"><\/script><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Supreme Court considers parents&#8217; rights to opt out of LGBT content<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2633,"featured_media":2426006,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/AP25085546569962.webp","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[35136,41110,50422,32275],"class_list":["post-2426005","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-education-policy","tag-lgbt-rights","tag-student-rights","tag-supreme-court"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/AP25085546569962.webp","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2426005","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2633"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2426005"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2426005\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2426009,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2426005\/revisions\/2426009"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2426006"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2426005"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2426005"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2426005"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}