A lawsuit has been filed against the School District of the Chathams in New Jersey over a policy that permits students to change their name and gender identity at school without parental notification. The Thomas More Society, representing plaintiffs including the organization Moms for Liberty and two anonymous parents, argues the policy infringes upon parents' constitutional rights to direct their children's upbringing.
The policy allows students to alter their names in school records, use bathrooms and locker rooms aligning with their gender identity, and leaves decisions on parental involvement to the school guidance counselor. This approach, according to Christopher Ferrara, senior counsel for the Thomas More Society, contradicts recent legal interpretations, including a Supreme Court injunction against California policies that kept students' gender identities confidential from parents in the case of Mirabelli v. Bonta.
"The court has made clear in the Mirabelli case... that parents have standing to challenge a policy like this, which would hide a gender transition from the parents," Ferrara stated. He emphasized that parents are directly affected by such policies and have the right to object, regardless of whether their child is actively transitioning.
Moms for Liberty CEO Tina Descovich echoed these concerns, alleging that the district's policy could lead to disciplinary action against students who do not use a peer's preferred pronouns. "They can do that just one time on accident and they can be punished up to suspension just for using the wrong pronoun or the wrong name of someone that is identifying as something other than they actually are," Descovich said.
The lawsuit, filed on August 24, accuses the school district of violating the First Amendment rights to free speech and religious liberty, as well as the Due Process Clause of the 14th Amendment. Plaintiffs also assert that the district disregards parental rights affirmed in the Supreme Court's ruling in Mahmoud v. Taylor, which allows parents to opt their children out of LGBTQ-centered lessons.
The School District of the Chathams' board president, Ann Ciccarelli, previously stated the district was not legally bound by the Mirabelli decision and instead followed the New Jersey Department of Education's 2018 guidance. However, New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin has acknowledged that the guidance, known as Policy 5756, is not mandatory, according to NJ Spotlight News.
Ferrara also reported that parents who have spoken out against the policy have faced threats and intimidation, with one family requiring police security. "This is what happens when you oppose these policies," Ferrara commented. "You basically are going to be subjected to a vicious public backlash by ideologues who are totally intolerant of basically the normal point of view on this issue."