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Opinion
Minnesota's St. Louis Park Public Schools is allowing parents to opt their children out of LGBT-related curriculum after six Muslim families requested an exemption for their children due to religious beliefs.
Alpha News reported that two public interest law firms sent letters to the school district saying that past denials of opt-out requests violated the First Amendment and state law.
One of the mothers involved in the case said, “We believe that we have a sacred obligation to teach our children the tenets of our faith without being diluted by schools.”
Another Somali mother said one school introduced books discussing gender identity and two-father families to third grade students.
“These books were introduced to our children without our knowledge or consent, leaving us with no way to leave them, despite our serious religious objections,” he said.
Their complaints may have opened the door to other religious exemption arguments.
RELATED: National School Board Association could lose millions after letter comparing parents to terrorists
Mothers speak out at school board about books included in LGBT curriculum
Initial reports suggested that only Muslim families would have the option to opt out, but the process has been opened up to all families who do not wish to be included in the LGBT curriculum.
At a St. Louis Park school board meeting in October, several Somali mothers claimed that books that went against their religious beliefs were introduced to their children without their knowledge. They demanded that their children be exempted from the LGBT curriculum.
LGBT advocates argued that they should not be able to opt out.
At a press conference on the legislative priorities of the Minnesota Queer Caucus, LGBT advocates indicated their opposition to allowing Muslim families in the St. Louis Park District to opt out of LGBT-related material. pic.twitter.com/5zPbnwmX0N
– Alpha News (@AlphaNewsMN) 15 February 2024
State law in Minnesota requires schools to have procedures in place for parents to review instructional materials and, if parents object, the district must make “reasonable” arrangements for alternative instruction.
Since that board meeting, six families have reportedly successfully opted out of the LGBT curriculum.
RELATED: Emails reveal NSBA coordinated with White House before AG mobilizes FBI to 'identify and prosecute' parents who likened parents to 'domestic terrorists' .
White House compares parents worried about their kids' curriculum to terrorists
The parents' move to exempt LGBT curriculum in Minnesota schools comes just years after the Joe Biden administration attempted to define parents as domestic terrorists at school board meetings.
The Nationwide College Boards Affiliation (NSBA) coordinated with the White Home and the Division of Justice (DOJ) on a controversial letter despatched to President Biden that made home terrorist comparisons.
Home Republicans later launched paperwork offered by a whistleblower displaying that the FBI investigated dad and mom who criticized native faculty boards utilizing “anti-terrorism instruments.”
Paperwork reportedly present the FBI created a tag for threats towards lecturers and college directors.
The “risk tag” was devised as a part of the Bureau's implementation of a controversial memo revealed by Legal professional Normal Merrick Garland, which mobilized the FBI based mostly on the request for help within the NSBA letter.
Will these Muslim households be handled equally?
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