There are many discussions happening right now regarding HB1431, the Parent’s Bill of Rights. Those who oppose it appear to be focused on one aspect alone: how they believe this bill would endanger students struggling with gender identity. Those who share this viewpoint do so despite the actual language in the bill, which only requires schools to provide notification to parents if the school finds the need for any action involving their child.
To those who believe that parents, and not school personnel, are the rightful, legal caregivers of a student, the language in HB1431 seems fair and reasonable. For those who believe that children must be protected from their parents, and school is the safest place to do that, then this bill is viewed far differently.
So how do we reconcile these polar opposite perspectives? We could test the limits of the parental notification argument by using a different scenario because that is really where we can gauge the strength of a reasoned assumption. Hypothetically, what would people think if we were talking about Christianity and not gender issues?
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What if a deeply religious teacher felt compelled to provide students with a safe place to discuss their emerging Christianity because he/she felt that the suppression of a student’s innate moral beliefs was leading to increased depression? What if this kind teacher provided this outreach service after school, and invited students who he/she felt were personally struggling and who needed to hear the word of God? What if the kind teacher decided to call this after-school activity the “Art Club” so it would not attract any unwanted attention, and he/she could discreetly invite and encourage students to participate? What if this kind teacher then used this opportunity to expose the students to Christianity, and made sure that each God-curious student knew that the teacher would guide them through any questions they had? And what if this kind teacher encouraged the “Art Club” students to keep the conversations they had on Christianity a secret, because there was a concern that some of the students’ atheist parents would strongly object to their student’s newfound faith?
How would those who oppose HB1431 feel about parental notification then?
Very different, I surmise.
