The U.S. Supreme Court rendered a 6-3 decision in favor of parents who sought the right to opt their children out of public school instruction that conflicted with their sincerely held religious beliefs.
A group of Christian, Muslim, and Jewish parents from Montgomery County, Maryland initiated the case, aiming for a guaranteed exemption from classroom reading of storybooks with LGBTQ themes like same-sex marriage and gender identity exploration.
The big picture: Justices Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan, and Ketanji Brown Jackson dissented in the 6-3 decision, while Justice Samuel Alito authored the majority opinion.
- Alito emphasized that denying parents the ability to opt-out of instruction conflicting with their religious convictions violated the First Amendment’s protections for religious exercise.
- Alito’s decision highlighted the Montgomery County Board of Education’s introduction of LGBTQ+-inclusive storybooks without permitting opt-outs, which was deemed to impose an unconstitutional burden on parents’ rights to freely exercise their religion.
- The court indicated that parents were likely to succeed in their free-exercise lawsuit and granted them a preliminary injunction until the case’s conclusion.
The other side: In her dissent, Sotomayor criticized the court for creating a “constitutional right” to avoid exposure to themes conflicting with parents’ religious principles.
Driving the news: The conflict arose in 2022 when the Montgomery County school board introduced LGBTQ-themed books into its curriculum, initially allowing opt-outs based on faith objections. However, the board later discontinued the opt-out program, causing the parents to file a lawsuit.
- The parents argued that the use of LGBTQ-themed books in elementary school curriculum without opt-out provisions constituted government-led indoctrination on sensitive sexual matters, while the school board claimed the books aimed to expose students to diverse perspectives.
Go deeper: Alito recommended that parents be informed in advance of any contested books being used in curricula and granted the option to have their children excused from such instruction.
- During oral arguments, the conservative majority of the Supreme Court signaled support for establishing parental rights to opt-out of sensitive subjects, calling it a common-sense approach.
- President Donald Trump hailed the ruling as a victory for parents, while Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche expressed gratitude to the court, highlighting the decision’s importance in reinstating parents’ authority over their children’s education decisions.
