WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled 6-3 in Mahmoud v. Taylor that parents in this case are likely to succeed on the merits to opt their children out of LGBTQ-themed instruction that contradicts their religious beliefs. The High Court sided against Maryland’s Montgomery County Board of Education after it compelled offensive instruction on gender and sexuality for pre-K through eighth grade children without notice or opportunity to opt out.  The High Court said this policy of not allowing opt-outs interferes with a child’s development and is an unconstitutional burden of religious exercise.

In the High Court’s opinion, Justice Samuel Alito wrote, “We have long recognized the rights of parents to direct ‘the religious upbringing’ of their children. And we have held that those rights are violated by government policies that substantially interfere with the religious development of children.” 

The majority stated the parents are “entitled to a preliminary injunction.”

The case arose when a coalition of parents from various religious faiths, including Christian and Muslim, contested a policy change from the Montgomery County Board of Education that no longer requires parents to be informed when the themed instruction will occur, nor allows them to opt their children out. The LGBT instruction includes more than “22 LGBTQ+-inclusive” storybooks infused with radical gender ideology, such as the false idea of “gender transitions,” “Pride parades,” and same-sex romances between minors. The books are used for instruction in pre-K through eighth grade classrooms where some are taught to children as young as three years old. The parents sought to block the cancellation of the opt-out policy by arguing this instruction interferes with their religious beliefs on gender and sexuality as well as their constitutional right to direct the upbringing and education of their children.

Liberty Counsel filed an amicus brief in the case arguing that teaching this curriculum without any ability to opt out compels affirmation of repugnant beliefs, degrades the purity of children, and imposes a penalty on religion by making public education – a government benefit – contingent upon lessons that burden parents’ faith.

Liberty Counsel Founder and Chairman Mat Staver said, “This U.S. Supreme Court has once again upheld that parents have the right to direct the education and provide for the welfare of their children. The First Amendment simply does not allow government schools to require families to sacrifice their religious beliefs for their children to attend school. Parents in all states should be given adequate opportunity to review any instructional material and must be given the ability to opt their children out of instruction that violates their faith.”

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