WASHINGTON
The US Supreme Court on Friday ruled in favor of parents who challenged a Maryland county’s decision to include LGBTQ-themed books in elementary school classrooms.
In a 6-3 vote, the court sided with parents who argued that the Montgomery County Board of Education’s refusal to grant opt-outs for LGBTQ-themed instruction infringed on their First Amendment rights to religious freedom.
"The board's introduction of the 'LGBTQ+ inclusive' storybooks, along with its decision to withhold opt-outs, places an unconstitutional burden on the parents' rights to the free exercise of their religion," Justice Samuel Alito stated in the ruling.
Alito added that the government burdens the religious exercise of parents when it requires them to submit their children to instruction that poses "a very real threat of undermining" the religious beliefs and practices that the parents wish to instill.
"The result will be chaos for this nation's public schools," liberal Justice Sonia Sotomayor wrote in a dissenting opinion.
In 2022, Montgomery County schools began incorporating books featuring gay and transgender characters into the elementary language arts curriculum. While parents were initially permitted to opt their children out, the district later revoked that option after a surge of religious-based requests.
A coalition of Muslim, Roman Catholic, and Ukrainian Orthodox parents, along with an advocacy group created to oppose the policy, filed a lawsuit.