Moms and Dads Don’t Check Their Rights at the School Door

Once upon a time, public school educators and administrators routinely complemented the work of parents in the home.

No more.

With increasing regularity, moms and dads find themselves battling “woke” policies along with radical politicians and activists seeking to usurp their rights and threaten the health and safety of their kids.

Two years ago, January Littlejohn’s 13-year-old daughter came home from school and shared with her mom that her Florida middle school had given her the option of which bathroom she would prefer to use – girls or boys. It seems the teenager had expressed confusion about her gender and so administrators made the young woman aware of a “transgender support plan.”

Only the girl’s mother wasn’t consulted or brought into the conversation. The school believed it had the right to help January’s daughter “transition” without any parental permission.

“Eventually we did see the transgender support plan, which was a six-page document that they completed with my daughter,” Ms. Littlejohn said. “They asked her questions that would have absolutely impacted her safety, such as which restroom she preferred to use and which sex she preferred to room with on overnight field trips.”

In Missouri, a group of parents have enlisted the help of the Southeastern Legal Foundation after their children were given (without their permission) surveys asking about their gender identity, mental health, racial identity and political beliefs.

Incidentally, here in Colorado Springs, a colleague of mine was taking his 9-year-old son for a wellness checkup. The doctor asked the young boy about his preferred pronouns. The child responded with a blank stare. “He doesn’t know what you’re talking about,” the father told the doctor.

So much for allowing kids to be kids anymore.

Parental rights are under assault across the nation. In truth, the love and care of our children aren’t partisan issues – but try telling that to activists who feel otherwise.

I’m actually headed to Virginia later today to interview Virginia’s Lieutenant Governor Winsome Sears. Ms. Sears and her boss, Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin, won a bruising campaign last fall after their opponent, former Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe, suggested in a debate that parents shouldn’t be telling schools what they should teach.

A majority of Virginia’s voters had a very different point of view.

In reality, parental rights are sacrosanct. Moms and dads don’t check their authority at the school door. I’m looking forward to discussing this (and other matters) with Lt. Gov. Sears. I’ll be sure and let you know when the program will air.