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by JORDAN CARPENTER and TONYA SHELLNUTT
For a lot of us, the COVID pandemic of 2020 served as a wake-up call. Parents with children in school got a behind-the-scenes glimpse into how much control many school districts exerted – the type of decision-making power that rightfully belongs to parents.
Instead of working with parents in the best interest of their child, government officials made educational and medical decisions for children without seeking parental consent. After the pandemic, parents expressed how much school districts had lost sight of parental rights.
Fortunately, some politicians are paying attention. On the federal level, Sens. Tim Scott of South Carolina and James Lankford of Oklahoma — along with Rep. Virginia Foxx of North Carolina — introduced the Families’ Rights and Responsibilities Act, which protects the fundamental right of parents to direct the upbringing, education, and health care of their children. Similar action is taking place on the state level, like in Tennessee, where last year Gov. Bill Lee signed one of the strongest parental rights laws in the nation.
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That brings us to two pieces of legislation proposed in the South Carolina General Assembly: H. 3638, which respects parental rights in health care decisions, and H. 3011, which upholds parental rights in education. These vital pieces of legislation give parents in the Palmetto State the opportunity to restore their decision-making authority, which was once assumed and is now increasingly disregarded.
Sadly, at Alliance Defending Freedom and ADF Action – where we work to preserve parental rights — we’ve too often seen instances where parents have had to take legal action against school districts that undermine parents’ guidance for their children.
One Wisconsin mother saw the mental health of her 12-year-old daughter, Autumn, deteriorate during the COVID shutdowns. When the parents sought counseling, the counselor recommended they treat her as a boy instead. The parents knew this was not the right path. When the back-to-school season approached, they informed the school district that they wanted the best approach for their daughter, which was to only use Autumn’s given name and female pronouns when addressing her.
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RELATED | SOUTH CAROLINA STILL FAILING TO DEBATE REAL SCHOOL CHOICE
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School district officials said they are the advocate for the child, not the parent, and they would use whatever name and pronouns Autumn chose. The parents, along with another family, sued the school district on the basis that its parental exclusion policy violated their fundamental parental rights and the Wisconsin Constitution — and they won. With time and the love and support of caring parents, Autumn is thriving and has embraced her sex. Gender ideology would have steered her away from her parents—and herself.
This is not an isolated incident. More and more, we’re seeing school employees go behind parents’ backs and insert themselves as the final arbiter of how a child should be raised.
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“School officials should partner with parents to ensure that their children are educated in a safe and nurturing environment…”
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It’s not the government cradling your daughter when she is born. The government didn’t help your son take his first step or say his first word. The government doesn’t tuck your daughter in at night and read her a bedtime story. All of these and more are the wonderful responsibilities of being a parent.
Principals, teachers, and counselors play important, necessary roles. Parents must be able to trust that the people with access to and influence over their children will respect the critical role parents play in their children’s lives. School officials should partner with parents to ensure that their children are educated in a safe and nurturing environment.
That’s why the proposed bills in the General Assembly are so important. Parents know and love their children best. While our educators play an important role in childhood development, it is ultimately parents who have the right and moral duty to raise and nurture their child.
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ABOUT THE AUTHORS…
Jordan Carpenter is legal counsel for the Center for Public Policy at Alliance Defending Freedom (@ADFLegal). Tonya Shellnutt is Senior State Government Relations Director at ADF Action (@ADF_Action).
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