Governor Gavin Newsom and the California State Legislature have decided they can raise your children better than you.
On July 15, Newsom signed AB 1955, which cuts off the line of communication between parents and teachers that is vital to children during their formative years. This is not only bad policy; it violates the U.S. Constitution by enshrining a reckless disregard for parents’ basic rights.
Recently, several California school districts have adopted common-sense policies requiring open communication with parents. Schools must inform parents if, for example, a student is injured at school, is bullied, or is having problems because of their gender. This “no secrets” approach strikes the right balance in the relationship between parents, students, and teachers and strengthens those who know and love their children best – the parents.
Amazingly, AB 1955 prohibits these policies. According to the law’s authors, notifying parents violates a student’s right to privacy. This is not true. If a school has information that affects a child’s welfare, parents have a right to know about it.
If a child is having trouble in class, consistently skipping lunch, or trying out for a team, the school is not violating anyone’s rights by informing the child’s parents so they can make decisions in their child’s best interest. This is even more true if a child develops a new gender identity, which may prompt the school to make fundamental changes to the child’s school experience, such as using different restrooms or addressing them by a new name and pronouns.
Hiding information from parents violates their fundamental right to determine the upbringing, education and care of their children. The state must provide a safe environment for all students, but must not trample on the rights of parents. Properly understood, these interests are not in conflict. As the Alliance Defending Freedom explained in a written statement to Parliament, parents’ rights are essential to protecting children. When schools give parents’ rights the wrong priority, children lose the benefit of being advised by their parents. most motivated And least conflicts supporters.
Consider a student in the Spreckels Union School District who was allegedly encouraged to bind her breasts at school and distrust her mother at a time when she needed her mother’s loving guidance the most. The district paid nearly $100,000 to settle the distraught mother’s lawsuit.
In Wisconsin’s Kettle Moraine School District, school officials forced a male identity on a 12-year-old girl because she expressed confusion about her identity at school – even after her parents told them to stop. Just weeks after her parents removed her from school, the girl’s confusion was resolved. A court ruled that the district had violated the parents’ rights, and the school apologized.
Similar cases are currently being tried in Michigan, New York and elsewhere. AB 1955 opens the door in California for stories like this one.
At-risk children who experience a discrepancy between their sex and gender identity have the right to have their parents manage their health care. But now California is mandating that schools keep parents away from their children and fill that gap with “school-based supports,” including “counseling services” and “physical and mental health services.”
This is backwards. The state’s legal obligation to parents is not diminished when a child is faced with – in the words of AB 1955 – “deeply personal decisions that affect health and safety and critical relationships.” In fact, this is the case when parental involvement the most necessary.
Because of its serious flaws, the bill already has at least one lawsuit pending, and state officials will waste California taxpayer dollars defending an unconstitutional and unwise policy. It’s a shame that Governor Newsom and the Legislature were willing to move forward anyway. But that’s what happens when the government thinks it knows how to raise your children better than you do.
Frosted Sharp is Senior Counsel at Alliance for the Defense of Freedom (@ADFLegal) and director of the Center for Public Policy. Jordan Carpenter is legal counsel and also works for the Center.
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