Seattle mandates LGBT indoctrination in schools despite Supreme Court ruling
Seattle’s school district is mandating LGBT indoctrination in schools, despite a recent decision by the US Supreme Court against it.
On June 27th, the Supreme Court issued a 6-3 ruling in Mahmoud v. Taylor that upheld parental rights. The decision sided with religious parents against the Montgomery County Board of Education in Maryland, which had barred parents from opting their children out of gender ideology materials. The Supreme Court ruled that this violated the First Amendment’s Free Exercise Clause and the Fourteenth Amendment’s Due Process Clause, which protects the right of parents to direct their children’s education and religious upbringing.
Seattle Public Schools, however, says parents are not permitted to opt their children out of “LGBTQ-Inclusive Instruction.”
“Seattle Public Schools works to provide a wide range of educational opportunities that reflect who students are, help them build empathy for others, and prepare them to be compassionate citizens of a diverse and changing world,” the website for Seattle Public Schools states.
“There is no option to ‘opt students out’ of learning about particular identities or groups of people. This guidance is reinforced by OSPI (state superintendent’s office), the policies of other major urban districts (including the states of California and New York), and the outcomes of federal cases around the country. We celebrate all students in SPS,” the notice continued above a Pride flag (emphasis original).
The district added that while “families do have the right to opt out of” the state’s sex education program, “instruction about LGBTQ identities” is “not subject to an opt-out provision.”
The school district clarifies that its “LGBTQ Inclusive Instruction” involves “book readings that include LGBTQ+ characters, discussing bullying prevention, sharing pronouns, answering student questions, displaying posters or flags supporting the LGBTQ+ community, acknowledging Pride Month or teaching LGBTQ+ history, defining terms (such as ‘Transgender' or ‘Gender Identity') for the purpose of increasing kindness.”
Schools are not required to notify parents in advance of such instruction.
Is Seattle defying the Supreme Court?
The instruction complies with SB 5462, a law passed by Washington’s legislature last year that requires all schools to implement an “inclusive curriculum.” The law takes effect on October 1st.
Although Seattle’s mandate appears to defy the Supreme Court’s ruling in Mahmoud v. Taylor, Conservative Ladies of America (CLA) notes there are a few differences between that case and SB 5462. The Montgomery school district mandated specific books, while SB 5462 mandates a system-wide curriculum. Montgomery was rescinding an opt-out provision, whereas Washington never offered one to begin with. Additionally, whereas Montgomery was imposing the materials on elementary grades, Washington is forcing the propaganda on all grades.
It is unknown whether these differences are material.
Attorney and America’s Frontline Doctors President Dr. Simone Gold says Seattle’s mandate “directly contradicts Mahmoud v. Taylor.”
“Seattle’s policy is not just misguided—it’s a defiance of a clear Supreme Court precedent. This must be challenged,” she wrote on X.
