32 states and counting: Why parents bills of rights are sweeping US
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Jackie Valley Staff writer
When it comes to parental bills of rights, not all legislation is created equal.
The House on Friday narrowly passed , known as the Parents Bill of Rights Act, which would amend existing federal education laws. A to the U.S. Constitution also has been proposed.
Multiple pieces of proposed legislation at the state level seek broad protections for parents, using language such as to 鈥渄irect the upbringing鈥� of their children. A bill in Arkansas, meanwhile, revolves around medical records when a child is removed from parental or guardian custody. And legislation in Connecticut would create a bill of rights for parents of students learning English as a second language.
Why We Wrote This
A desire for parents to have greater say in the education of their children has resulted in a tangle of partisan wars and policy changes.
The proposed laws have fueled questions about the role parents should play in their children鈥檚 education. At the same time, they have fanned partisan flames, weaponizing a longstanding concept 鈥� parental rights 鈥� that academic experts and advocates alike say should not be politically charged.
So what鈥檚 driving all of this? Will Estrada, president of the Parental Rights Foundation, says the pandemic accelerated parents鈥� desire to have more say in children鈥檚 schooling, regardless of political inclinations.
鈥淭here鈥檚 varying degrees of what parents want as a response,鈥� he says. 鈥淏ut I think the fact that you have such a broad range of parental rights legislation really speaks to the fact that the legislators and elected officials are trying to respond to the concerns.鈥�
As of mid-March, proposed parental rights legislation has emerged in at least 32 states, up from 18 states in 2022, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. In some states, lawmakers are considering two or more pieces of such legislation.
What鈥檚 in a term?
In Connecticut, the strife over parental rights may land on the steps of a public university.聽
Families for Freedom, a grassroots organization that advocates for parental rights, has planned a rally next week at the University of Connecticut School of Law, which is titled 鈥淎re Parental Rights Always in the Best Interest of Children?鈥�
Susan Zabohonski, founder of Families for Freedom, says the group formed during the pandemic, shortly before Connecticut ended religious exemptions for childhood vaccine requirements for schools. Now, it numbers roughly 1,700 followers on Facebook and 200 active members throughout the state, she says.
For Ms. Zabohonski, whose daughter attends a private 海角大神 school, the group鈥檚 work is guided by what she sees as a societal 鈥渃hipping away at the family unit.鈥�
In action, she says, their work involves educating people in towns across Connecticut about the legislative process and parental rights.
鈥淲hen people feel educated on a subject, I think they feel a little more empowered,鈥� she says.
The nationwide parental rights movement, however, has taken heat for association with hostile interactions at school board meetings, where hot-button issues such as pandemic protocols, critical race theory, sex education, and gender identity have sparked public outcry.
Part of the problem is the discourse surrounding the term 鈥減arental rights,鈥� says Natalia Mehlman Petrzela, a historian and author of 鈥淐lassroom Wars: Language, Sex, and the Making of Modern Political Culture.鈥澛�
It鈥檚 often used to describe conservative activism around education, which, she says, while accurate in some respects, leads to an 鈥渋mpoverished鈥� understanding of an issue with far greater nuance. Ms. Mehlman Petrzela contends that most parents, regardless of their background, ethnicity, or political leanings, 鈥渨ant to have some insight, if not control, over their kids鈥� experiences at school.鈥�
She points to a Supreme Court decision this week as an example of a parental rights issue. The justices unanimously sided with a deaf student, Miguel Luna Perez, who had sued a public school district, alleging that he received an inadequate education. Mr. Perez and his parents had argued that aides who were supposed to help him translate lessons were often absent or unqualified.
As Justice Neil Gorsuch noted in the court鈥檚 , the ruling 鈥渉olds consequences not just for Mr. Perez but for a great many children with disabilities and their parents.鈥�
Ms. Mehlman Petrzela says the discourse could benefit from more balance in the form of default assumptions 鈥� that teachers have expertise and deserve trust, and that parents care about their children and deserve to know what鈥檚 happening in schools.
鈥淚f we operate from that set of assumptions, then when difficult situations do come up, there is an opportunity for a much more productive resolution that doesn鈥檛 involve, you know, online mobs and angry protests and threats,鈥� she says.
The legislative landscape
It鈥檚 too soon to say how the proposals will fare during this lawmaking cycle. At the state level, most remain pending in legislatures, and at least six have failed this year. In prior legislative sessions, the bulk of them failed 鈥� with a few notable exceptions, such as in Florida, which in 2021 approved its . Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis also championed the Parental Rights in Education Act, which critics dubbed the 鈥淒on鈥檛 Say Gay鈥� law, which his administration is now seeking to expand through 12th grade.
At least 10 states have existing statutes that mention parental rights, six of which are broad provisions, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. The other states have more specific language geared toward certain student groups or issues.
The murkiness of legislative success, however, didn鈥檛 stop Connecticut state Sen. Rob Sampson, a Republican, from giving it a try. His 鈥� one of several in the state that fall under the umbrella of parental rights 鈥� would have protected parents鈥� ability to withdraw their children from courses, without explanation, unless the class was required for graduation. It noted that parents 鈥渟hould remain the ultimate authority in what their children are being taught in school.鈥�
State Senator Sampson described it as 鈥渄ead on arrival,鈥� given Democrats鈥� control of both houses of the legislature and governor鈥檚 office. But he wanted his constituents to know where he stood on the issue and see if any Democrats would signal support.
He says parents鈥� growing distrust with local school boards and insights they gleaned while children learned remotely are spurring the rise of parental rights-themed legislation.
鈥淣ow, it鈥檚 less about the local school district making decisions to suit the parents,鈥� he says. 鈥淚t鈥檚 about the school district taking direction from people that are involved in political activism.鈥�
But other organizations have come out swinging against what they see as a culture war-influenced movement that could lead to book bans and curriculum changes. Ariel Taylor Smith, senior director of policy and action at the National Parents Union, says the proposed legislation creates 鈥渦nnecessary tension鈥� and distracts from more important concerns.
Instead, Ms. Smith says legislation should be laser-focused on academic progress, especially after pandemic disruptions left many students behind in reading and math.
鈥淚鈥檓 optimistic that parents will be able to come together and build an actual parent bill of rights that鈥檚 grounded in ensuring that our schools are advancing kids鈥� learning,鈥� she says. 鈥淚 just don鈥檛 think that a lot of these attempts are that right now.鈥�
Joann Mickens, executive director of Parents for Public Schools, wholly supports parent engagement, but she is concerned the legislative trend may only 鈥渇lex voices that are loud and maybe even strident鈥� without regard for what the majority of parents may believe or want. If legislation becomes law, she wonders, will that impose one set of parents鈥� beliefs on the rest of the students?
鈥淚 believe that much of what we鈥檙e seeing today is no different than the violence and the opposition to the Civil Rights movement,鈥� she says. 鈥淚 see that people are afraid. They don鈥檛 want the changes to their way of life.鈥�
Mr. Estrada of the Parental Rights Foundation, for his part, asserts that a large share of parental rights bills carry a 鈥渂roadly bipartisan message鈥� that doesn鈥檛 veer into partisan territory, such as critical race theory. While many bills seek some form of curriculum transparency, he says there鈥檚 a fine line between providing more information while not unfairly burdening schools.
鈥淲e just want some level of transparency of the major things that are being taught in the public schools,鈥� he says.
