by Guy Page
Two recent legal victories on parents’ rights and women’s sports are prompting calls by SPEAK VT, a non-profit parents rights group, for Vermont officials to clarify their stance on the issues.
SPEAK VT also wants the Legislature to approve a binding Parents Bill of Rights.
In Mahmoud v. Taylor, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that parents have the right to direct their children’s moral and religious upbringing, including the ability to opt their children out of lessons they consider objectionable. The case involved storybooks with sexual content that conflicted with some families’ beliefs. Justice Samuel Alito wrote that public education cannot be conditioned on parents’ acceptance of instruction that undermines their faith.
In a separate case, the U.S. Department of Education reached a settlement with the University of Pennsylvania over its decision to allow transgender swimmer Lia Thomas to compete in women’s events. Under the agreement, UPenn will restore female athletes’ records, titles, and awards, issue an apology, and pledge to bar male athletes from competing in women’s programs or using female facilities.
SPEAK VT President Marie Tiemann added that both developments raise questions for Vermont’s Agency of Education: whether it will respect parents’ right to opt out of controversial classroom material, and whether it will protect female athletes under Title IX.
“Now the question is: how will the Vermont Agency of Education respond to both rulings?,” Tiemann said in a recent statement. ‘Will the Agency respect the right that parents have to opt their children out from lessons that are opposed to their family values? This is a big source of frustration and concern for Vermont parents that I have talked to and they are forced to make major sacrifices to protect their children. Parents are the primary teachers of their children, and VT legislators should restore parents’ rights in their role in education.”
“Riley Gaines and the other women athletes will receive the awards that are rightfully theirs and the apologies that they are due,” Tiemann said. “Will Vermont girls also have their rights protected?,”
“Parents’ rights do not end at the schoolhouse door,” she said, urging lawmakers to consider a formal parents’ rights policy for Vermont.