A conservative legal group wants the Trump administration to investigate the gender identity policies of a Maryland school district that lost a Supreme Court case last year over mandating LGBTQ+ books for students.
America First Legal asked the Justice Department and the Education Department to investigate Montgomery County Public Schools, alleging that the school district has a policy of facilitating students’ social “gender transitions” while concealing them from parents deemed to be non-supportive.
The group says that the policy “Gender Identity in Montgomery County Public Schools“ accommodates student gender transitions, including changes to names, pronouns, school records, bathroom and locker room access, and overnight field trip sleeping arrangements.
“The Handbook repeatedly instructs staff to condition parental involvement on whether the parent is deemed ‘supportive’ of their child’s gender identity,“ the complaint states.
The Daily Signal asked the school district whether it would challenge any characterizations in the complaint.
Montgomery County Public Schools spokeswoman Liliana López told The Daily Signal, “We are aware of the complaint. We will reserve comment until we have had the opportunity to review it.”
America First Legal contends these actions by the school district could violate parental rights under the First Amendment, the 14th Amendment, and the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, a 1974 law that gives parents the right to inspect school records and control their disclosure until their child reaches 18.
“Montgomery County Public Schools has constructed an elaborate system designed to keep parents in the dark about some of the most consequential decisions affecting their own children,” Ian Prior, senior counsel for America First Legal, said in a public statement.
“Federal law and the Constitution are unambiguous: Parents have the fundamental right to direct the upbringing of their children and to access their children’s education records. MCPS’s policies turn both of those principles on their head,” Prior continued.
Last year, the Supreme Court sided with a group of parents against the school district in a 6-3 decision in the case of Mahmoud v. Taylor. The court granted the parents a preliminary injunction as their lawsuit continued, allowing them to opt their children out of reading explicit books in school with gender and sexual content.
The school district reportedly reached a settlement in February with the parents, agreeing to pay them $1.5 million and to allow them to opt their children out of reading such books in the future.
America First Legal’s 13-page complaint alleges that the school district violates the free exercise clause by excluding parents from critical decisions about their children’s identity and well-being.
It further alleges violations of free speech and the equal protection clause, saying the school district discriminates against parents who disagree with gender ideology.