Progressives have a huge problem with the notion that people would think it necessary for the government to protect the rights of parents. Somehow, they want us to believe that parents should not have the ultimate say over what their children are being taught.
Indeed, as parental backlash against flagrant efforts to indoctrinate children into progressive orthodoxy ignited three years ago, Democrats and their close friends and allies in the activist media have smeared anyone who would suggest that parents have a right to know what is going on in the classroom as bigots who despite racial minorities and members of the LGBTQ community. Nevertheless, Republican politicians are pushing for measures that would prevent school districts from concealing their activities in K-12 classrooms.
On Friday, the House voted to pass the Parents Bill of Rights Act amid objections from Democrats who argued that the bill promotes “fascism” and “extreme” views of Republicans. The bill, proposed by the GOP, requires school districts to provide parents with access to curricula and reading lists, as well as informing them if school staff begin encouraging or promoting their child’s gender transition.
The bill passed narrowly in a 213-208 vote, Fox News reported, with just a handful of Republicans voting against it, along with every Democrat. Democrats blasted the bill during debate by accusing Republicans of attacking LGBTQ+ students and trying to make it easier to ban books at school.
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) showed once again that she could benefit from reading some history books, claimed that the legislative proposal would ask “the government to force the outing of LGBT people before they are ready,” and claimed that her progressive value is “freedom over fascism.”
That’s right, AOC. Not allowing government-run schools to hide critical information from parents about their children is exactly what Hitler and Mussolini would have wanted.
Not to be outdone, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) accused Republicans of wanting to censor important material.
“Extreme MAGA Republicans don’t want the children of America to learn about the Holocaust,” he bloviated. “They want to ban a book called ‘Melissa,’ a book describing, in very personal terms, the experience of a trans girl beginning to understand her identity.”
He added: “They want to ban books, they want to bully the LGBTQ+ community, they want to bring guns into classrooms, kindergarten and above. That’s their educational agenda.”
Republicans rejected these arguments and argued that parents have the right to know what is happening to their children in school, especially if schools are promoting gender transition without their knowledge. The bill does not address a student’s identity or statements, but only focuses on notifying parents about actions taken by school personnel to act on a gender transition, such as changing pronouns or switching locker rooms.
Democrats also accused Republicans of trying to ban books at school, but Republicans dismissed those arguments and stated that the bill does nothing to ban books. The bill gives parents the right to see a list of books in school libraries and access to those books. Republicans argued that the books under attack in some states and communities are those that include explicit sexual content that they say is not appropriate for certain ages and is not a core educational requirement.
Progressives have continually lied about the books being removed from school libraries, claiming that parents who take issue with this material are doing so because they feature LGBTQ themes. However, a cursory glance on social media or Google shows that many of these works include graphic depictions of sex that are clearly not appropriate for small children. There may have been some cases where folks have gone too far in removing this material. But, by and large, these efforts are focused on rooting out content that is not suitable for children – especially in a learning environment.
The bill would also require districts to give parents notice if they plan to do away with gifted and talented programs for kids and “alert them to any violent activity taking place at school and give them the right to speak at school board meetings,” according to Fox News.
The logical question is: Why would anyone have a problem with the idea that parents should be entitled to know what is going on in their children’s schools?
As I have said on many occasions, the authoritarian mindset – especially on the left – says that children should belong to the state, not the parent. Throughout history, we can see situations in which communist regimes regularly stole children from their parents to place them in indoctrination camps where they could be the primary force molding their young minds.
What progressives are trying to make a reality is a version of what happened in Soviet Russia under Josef Stalin. It is why they are pushing so hard to compel educators and school staff to adopt their principles in the school system. It is why they are adamantly against school choice. These people want to do everything possible to ensure that state-run learning institutions have the power while parents remain subject to their dictates.
Make no mistake: This is a wholesale effort to have the government usurp much of the role of being a parent. Progressives are on a mission to wrest this responsibility from adults and place it in the hands of the state. If there isn’t enough resistance, they will succeed.
