Protesters gathered outside the Montgomery County Public School system鈥檚 Board of Education office Tuesday afternoon to press the school board to reverse its decision barring an opt-out provision over the use of LGBTQ+ books for children from pre-K through fifth grade.
Before Tuesday afternoon鈥檚 Board of Education meeting, which wants a return to an opt-out policy, showed protesters chanting, 鈥淲e don鈥檛 hate anyone!鈥� and 鈥淲e will never surrender our children!鈥�
Inside the school board meeting, speakers were given time to express their concerns.
The first speaker, who described herself as a Christian and 鈥渁n ambassador of Christ and his coming kingdom,鈥� told the school board that the board鈥檚 authority 鈥渋s indeed asserted by God and God alone.鈥� She added that the protesters outside were not being 鈥渞epresented rightly鈥� by the school board.
Laura Stewart, a member of the new Coalition for Inclusive Schools and Communities, told the school board that the issues that were being protested become so charged that several LGBTQ+ advocates have told her they were 鈥渦ncomfortable with how heated the debate has become,鈥� and as a result, stayed away from Tuesday鈥檚 meeting.
Zainab Chaudry, regional director of the Council on Islamic American Relations, told the school board that the protesters outside the meeting were 鈥渄emonstrating for their right to be able to have a say on when and how children are exposed to content that conflicts with their sincerely held religious beliefs.鈥�
Chaudry said the heated debate included 鈥渄ifferent forces with political agendas who are trying to pit communities against one another and fuel culture wars.” But, unlike those who applaud the school system鈥檚 no-opt-out policy, Chaudry said the way the school board has handled the issue is 鈥渞eprehensible.”
Saleem Peter, who described herself as a 鈥渃oncerned parent鈥� of elementary and middle school children, said the school system should be more transparent and restore the opt-out policy.
鈥淚ntroducing sexual behavior and preference at an early age raise legitimate concern for us parents,鈥� she said.
Jocelyn Guyer told board members that she was present because of her concern about the safety of LGBTQ+ students, which she said is personal for her.
Guyer said that her older daughter, who is transgender, was subjected to “vicious, vicious bullying鈥� in 2018, and the school system was responsive to her family鈥檚 concerns at the time.
Guyer said that one student who bullied her daughter targeted one of her daughter鈥檚 friends 鈥� also transgender 鈥� and allegedly assaulted them with a group of other students who, she said, laughed and videotaped the assault.
鈥淪o yes, I am concerned. I am beyond concerned about student safety as this ugly, ugly debate intensifies,鈥� Guyer said.聽鈥淚f this were truly about teaching kids at too young an age about sex, I would get it 鈥� I would.鈥�
But she added that one of the books in the schools’ curriculum, “Prince & Knight,” is “no more about gay sex than Cinderella and Snow White are about heterosexual sex.鈥�
The policy adopted in March states, 鈥淢CPS expects all classrooms to be inclusive and safe spaces for students, including those who identify as LGBTQ+,” and 鈥淪tudents and families may not choose to opt out of engaging with any instructional materials,鈥� other than those in the 鈥淔amily Life and Human Sexuality Unit of Instruction.鈥�
The books that were introduced earlier in the year are part of the school system鈥檚 language arts curriculum, and according to school officials, reading them is not mandatory.
Last month, three Montgomery County familiesover the no-opt-out policy. The complaint filed in U.S. District Court in Maryland alleges the First Amendment rights of the families have been violated under the school board鈥檚 policy.
