RIGHT SPEAK: Defying the Supreme Court to Push the Trans Agenda: Seattle Public Schools Won’t Let Parents Opt Out of Gender Lessons; Reading, Writing, and Removing Rights in Seattle Public Schools

Defying the Supreme Court to Push the Trans Agenda:

Seattle Public schools won’t let parents opt out of gender lessons.

The Seattle Public Schools which are already facing a lawsuit from the parents of a Jewish teen who suffered months of antisemitic abuse while under their charge are now refusing to align their policies with a recent Supreme Court decision which gives parents the right to “opt out” their children from lessons that promote an LGBTQ+ agenda.

The Seattle policy explicitly violates the Court’s 6-3 decision in Mahmoud v. Taylor which was handed down in June. That decision held that parents of children in public schools have the right to opt their children out of lessons or assignments that highlight LGBTQ+ protagonists and themes if those lessons will contradict their families’ religious beliefs.

“The Board’s introduction of the ‘LGBTQ+-inclusive’ storybooks, combined with its decision to withhold notice to parents and to forbid opt outs, substantially interferes with the religious development of petitioners’ children and imposes the kind of burden on religious exercise that Yoder [an earlier Supreme Court ruling] found unacceptable,” wrote Justice Samuel Alito on behalf of the majority. “The books are unmistakably normative. They are designed to present certain values and beliefs as things to be celebrated, and certain contrary values and beliefs as things to be rejected.”

“Many Americans, like the parents in this case, believe that biological sex reflects divine creation, that sex and gender are inseparable, and that children should be encouraged to accept their sex and to live accordingly,” Alito added. “The storybooks, however, suggest that it is hurtful, and perhaps even hateful, to hold the view that gender is inextricably bound with biological sex.”

The Court’s ruling in this case is clear: parents have the right to opt their children out of lessons which promote the LGBTQ+ cause and gender ideology, which runs not only counter to religious teachings but also to observable reality. But the Seattle Public Schools appear to have missed the message.

In a section of their official website aimed at parents who seek “Opt Out Requests for LGBTQ-Inclusive Instruction,” Seattle Public Schools gives a definitive answer: “NO”

Seattle Public Schools works to provide a wide range of educational opportunities that reflect who students are, help them build empathy for others, and prepare them to be compassionate citizens of a diverse and changing world.

There is no option to “opt students out” of learning about particular identities or groups of people. This guidance is reinforced by OSPI (state superintendent’s office), the policies of other major urban districts (including the states of California and New York), and the outcomes of federal cases around the country. We celebrate all students in SPS.

Learning about identities or groups of people is different from sexual health education. Families do have the right to opt out of Comprehensive Sexual Health Education (CSHE) under state law. Instruction about LGBTQ identities provided for purposes such as bullying prevention, or safe and welcoming environments, is not part of CSHE and thus not subject to an opt-out provision. (emphasis in original)

The Seattle Schools’ message to parents is clear: you have no rights here. If you want your children to get a free public education, gender ideology will be shoved down their throats. Supreme Court precedent be damned!

And they plan to start young --->READ MORE HERE

Reading, Writing, and Removing Rights in Seattle Public Schools:

It’s another Washington back-to-school season, which means lots of crayons, calculators, craft paper, and, sadly, controversy.

Seattle Public Schools proclaims that "families are our students' first and most important teachers" and "encourages families to talk with their children about their own cultural values and beliefs. Lessons at school create opportunities for meaningful conversations at home. We hope families will join us in sharing messages of kindness, acceptance, and standing up to bullying.” (Scroll down, click “SPS for ALL: English.”)

Yet the district is simultaneously banning parents from opting their children out of its LGBTQ-Inclusive Instruction—a hypocritical move garnering national attention (see here and here, for example).

The Irony of Anti-Bullying Bullying

SPS declares on its website: "There is no option to 'opt students out' of learning about particular identities or groups of people." (Emphasis original.) The district claims this mandate prevents bullying and creates "safe and welcoming environments."

So, SPS is bullying parents in the name of preventing bullying.

And their stated rationale? SPS says its “guidance” is “reinforced by OSPI…the policies of other major urban districts (including the states of California and New York), and the outcomes of federal cases around the country.”

Regardless of what the big, cool non-Washington school districts are doing, existing law and the latest U.S. Supreme Court ruling back up parents wanting to opt their children out of instruction they find objectionable.