Ninth Circuit Deals Blow to Parental Rights
by: Attorney Brad Dacus
San Francisco, CA – The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals on Wednesday rejected a lawsuit brought by parents against a school which administered sexually-themed surveys to young schoolchildren. In so doing, the Ninth Circuit made clear that parents have little control over what their children will be taught in public schools.
The case, Fields v. Palmdale School District, arose after school officials obtained parents’ permission to administer a psychological survey to first, third and fifth-graders. The school stated that the survey would measure exposure to early trauma and behaviors such as anxiety, depression and aggression.
In fact, the survey contained ten sexually-provocative questions, asking the seven- to ten-year-olds to rate on a scale from “never” to “almost all the time” how often they engaged in activities such as “Touching my private parts too much,” “Thinking about having sex,” “Thinking about touching other people’s private parts” and “Not trusting people because they might want sex.” Outraged parents filed a lawsuit attempting to assert their privacy rights under Supreme Court precedent to direct the upbringing of their children, especially in regard to sexual issues.
Parents who send their children to public schools do not have a constitutional right to exercise control over the school’s decisions to teach or discuss sexuality.
The Ninth Circuit disagreed, stating that parents who send their children to public schools do not have a constitutional right to exercise control over the school’s decisions to teach or discuss sexuality. The Court further declared that schools may teach freely about issues such as gay marriage and evolution without regard for objections by “idiosyncratic” parents.
The Court even went out of its way to praise right to privacy cases including Roe v. Wade and to note that, in some cases, the state may “supplement or even in some circumstances supplant parents’ interest in the custody, care and nurture of their children.”
Religious liberty advocates are raising serious concerns about the potential impact of this case. Although some protections are still available through state law, such as exemption of students from comprehensive sexual health education, they are somewhat narrow. “The concealment of material facts by this District was a classic bait and switch. What is troubling is that it reveals blatant disrespect for parents,” said Kevin Snider, Chief Counsel for the Pacific Justice Institute. “Regrettably, though parents have the ability to prevent this abuse of power by school officials, few know how to effectively deal with schools which cross the line,” Snider continued.
The Pacific Justice Institute is a non-profit 501(c)(3) legal defense organization specializing in the defense of religious freedom, parental rights, and other civil liberties.
P.O. Box 276600 Sacramento, CA 95827-6600
Phone: (916) 857-6900
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Internet: www.pacificjustice.org
Contact: Attorney Brad Dacus (916) 857-6900