This Monday, the NRB came alongside 30 other organizations as amici in a brief before the Supreme Court of the United States in support of parents’ First Amendment rights.
The case, Foote v. Ludlow School Committee, centers around two parents who sued their Massachusetts school district after learning that school officials were having secretive conversations with their eleven– and twelve-year–old children about their gender identity, and were addressing their children with different names and pronouns at school while concealing these actions from the parents.
Siding with the parents, the brief argues that fundamental decisions about a child’s identity or how that child is raised rests with the parents and that child alone. Noting that the state’s “Guidance for Massachusetts Public Schools Creating a Safe and Supportive School Environment” holds an anti-parent bias, the brief rejects the measures taken by the school district to undermine parental authority, arguing that “these actions on the part of the school, and arm of the state, are inconsistent with the fundamental, constitutionally recognized right of parents to direct the upbringing of their children, the right of the parents to freely exercise their religious beliefs, and the Protection of Pupil Rights Amendment of 1978.”
The brief points to what it calls “one of the most ancient of liberties of parents: to direct the upbringing, education, and care of their children“—and holds that the Supreme Court should reverse the lower court and enter a preliminary injunction in favor of the parents. Authors cite preceding case law to assert: “There is no constitutional justification for school officials to conceal from parents some of the most sensitive matters a family may face, except in the most extreme circumstances. For nearly a century, the Supreme Court has repeatedly affirmed the rights and responsibilities inherent in parenthood.” Read the full amicus brief here.
The brief was led by Advancing American Freedom. Other amici included likeminded advocacy organizations including NRB members My Faith Votes and Center for Urban Renewal and Education (CURE) as well as Dr. James Dobson Family Institute, whose broadcast ministry is an NRB member. NRB is proud to join this amicus brief alongside distinguished faith and values-based organizations who stand together against violations of First Amendment freedoms.
