US Supreme Court

The United States Supreme Court on Friday ruled in favour of parents seeking to opt their children out of elementary school lessons involving LGBTQ-themed books, citing religious freedom concerns. The 6–3 decision marks a significant legal win for Christian and Muslim families challenging a Maryland public school district’s curriculum.

The case stemmed from a 2022 decision by the Montgomery County school system to introduce children’s books aimed at promoting inclusion, addressing prejudice, and discussing gender identity, including same-sex relationships, as part of its kindergarten and elementary curricula.

In the majority opinion, Justice Samuel Alito wrote that the parents were likely to prevail on their claim that the policy “unconstitutionally burdens” their religious rights by denying them the option to withdraw their children from specific lessons.

“For many people of faith, there are few religious acts more important than the religious education of their children,” Alito stated. He argued that the books used in the curriculum “are designed to present certain values and beliefs as things to be celebrated and certain contrary values and beliefs as things to be rejected”, pointing to same-sex marriage as an example.

The court’s ruling effectively strengthens the constitutional protection of religious freedom in the realm of public education, particularly in matters where moral or faith-based objections to curricular content arise.

However, the decision drew strong dissent. Justice Sonia Sotomayor, writing for the minority and joined by Justices Elena Kagan and Ketanji Brown Jackson, warned that the ruling risks undermining the role of public education in a pluralistic society.

“Public schools offer to children of all faiths and backgrounds an education and an opportunity to practice living in our multicultural society,” Sotomayor argued. “Yet it will become a mere memory if children must be insulated from exposure to ideas and concepts that may conflict with their parents’ religious beliefs.”

The Biden administration opposed the parents’ challenge, while former President Donald Trump’s Justice Department supported the plaintiffs, calling the policy a “textbook interference with the free exercise of religion”.

The ruling is expected to have wide-ranging implications for school districts across the United States, as it opens the door for more religious exemptions to public school curricula dealing with topics such as gender identity, sexual orientation, and diversity education.