Supreme Court sides with parents over LGBT curriculum

Crux Staff • June 28, 2025

A Supreme Court decision allowing parents to opt out of storybooks that promote one-sided ideology on gender and sexuality has been praised by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.

In a 6–3 decision on Mahmoud v. Taylor, the Montgomery County Board of Education, the Court on Friday ruled that a policy was unlawful when it removed parental notice and opt-outs for storybooks that celebrate gender transitioning, pride parades, and pronoun preferences with children as young as three and four.

“Parents have a right to direct their children’s education, especially regarding subjects that touch on faith and morals,” said Bishop Kevin C. Rhoades of Fort Wayne–South Bend, chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on Religious Liberty.

The new “inclusivity” books were introduced in 2022 for students in pre-K through fifth grade in the Maryland county. Parents objected to the way the books promoted controversial ideology around gender and sexuality.

The Becket Fund is a non-profit legal organisation that defends religious freedom in court and is backed by conservative activist Leonard Leo. It noted that one book tasks three- and four-year-olds with finding images from a word list including “intersex flag,” “drag queen,” “underwear,” “leather,” and the name of a celebrated LGBTQ activist and sex worker.

Becket said another book advocates a child-knows-best approach to gender transitioning, telling students that a decision to transition does not have to “make sense,” and instructs teachers to say that doctors only “guess” when identifying a newborn’s sex.

The school board revoked notice and opt-outs for these storybooks, in violation of Maryland law, the board’s own policies, and the advice of its elementary school principals.

Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito, writing for the majority, said: “Today’s decision recognises that the right of parents ‘to direct the religious upbringing of their’ children would be an empty promise if it did not follow those children into the public school classroom.”

Bishop Rhoades noted that public schools in a diverse country include families from many communities with a wide range of deep-seated convictions about faith and morals.

“When these schools address issues that touch on these matters, they ought to respect all families. Parents do not forfeit their rights as primary educators of their children when they send their kids to public schools,” the bishop said in a statement.

“The parents in Montgomery County did not seek to impose their religious viewpoints on others; they simply asked to opt out of a programme that was offensive to their faith,” he added.

“To be sure, children should not be learning that their personal identity as male or female can be separated from their bodies. But if a public school chooses to offer these kinds of programmes, it ought to respect those who choose not to participate. The school board was wrong to interfere with the rights of the parents, and I am grateful that the Supreme Court has moved to rectify this injustice,” Rhoades said.

Grace Morrison, board member of Kids First, said the U.S. Supreme Court was sending a “powerful message”.

“Parents do not take a back seat to anyone when it comes to raising their kids. I am deeply grateful to have been part of this historic triumph for parental rights nationwide,” Morrison said in a statement.

Eric Baxter, vice president and senior counsel at the Becket Fund, called the decision a “historic victory” for the rights of parents in the United States.

“Kids shouldn’t be forced into conversations about drag queens, pride parades, or gender transitions without their parents’ permission. [On Friday], the Court restored common sense and made clear that parents—not government—have the final say in how their children are raised,” he said.

The Montgomery County school board and district responded that the decision “is not the outcome we hoped for or worked toward.”

“It marks a significant challenge for public education nationwide. In Montgomery County Public Schools, we will determine next steps and navigate this moment with integrity and purpose—guided, as always, by our shared values of learning, relationships, respect, excellence, and equity,” the board said in a statement.

(Photo by Brandon Bell/Getty Images)