AFPI Demands Seattle Public School District Upholds Parents’ Rights

Washington D.C.— The America First Policy Institute (AFPI) on Sept. 15 sent a letter to Seattle Public Schools and the Washington Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction demanding that the district comply with federal law and allow parents to opt their children out of LGBTQ-inclusive instruction.

The letter cites the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent decision in Mahmoud v. Taylor, which affirmed that public schools cannot compel students to participate in lessons that burden parents’ constitutional right to direct the religious upbringing of their children.

AFPI argues that Seattle’s “Gender Jamboree,” “It Feels Good to Be Yourself,” and “I Am Jazz” lesson plans, to name just a few, present gender ideology as fact, in violation of parental rights and Supreme Court precedent.

Seattle Public Schools currently states on its website that “[t]here is no option to ‘opt students out’ of learning about particular identities or groups of people.” AFPI calls this position unconstitutional and requests that the district issue clear opt-out guidance for parents.

“The Supreme Court has made it clear: schools cannot place unlawful burdens on parents’ rights to guide their children’s faith and moral formation,” said Leigh Ann O’Neill, interim director of litigation at AFPI. “Seattle schools must respect families’ rights and follow the law."