Schools must notify parents of LGBTQ ‘Day of Silence’ Friday or face legal action, Catholic legal group says

In the wake of the Supreme Court empowering parents to opt their children out of LGBTQ material, the Thomas More Society is warning school districts nationwide that they must notify parents before involving children in Friday’s LGBTQ “Day of Silence.”

The Chicago-based Catholic legal society sent a letter to the Kirkwood, Missouri, school district on Tuesday informing it of its obligations to notify parents and allow them to exclude their children from the event.

According to the letter, North Kirkwood Middle School near St. Louis planned to show students a promotional video Wednesday for the event but had not informed parents or described their right to opt their children out.

However, the Supreme Court’s Mirabelli v. Bonta ruling from March 2 says schools cannot keep a child’s “gender transition” secret from parents, and the Mahmoud v. Taylor decision last year allows parents to opt their children out of school teachings on gender that violate their religious beliefs.

The society is providing an opt-out form parents can use to inform their local district they do not want their child taking part in the activities.

“Hundreds of school districts across the country are promoting the ‘Day of Silence’ this Friday without telling parents a thing about it,” Peter Breen, Thomas More Society executive vice president and litigation director, said in a release. “This event drafts every student into LGBTQ+ advocacy whether they want to participate or not – you either stay silent in support, or you’re marked as a dissenter for simply speaking.”

He also cautioned districts that do not follow the law, urging parents to contact the organization to report violations.

“Any district that ignores that obligation should expect to hear from us – and the consequences of noncompliance are costly.”

The society said that while students can organize their own protests, school districts endorsing and facilitating events such as the Day of Silence – where “every student who simply speaks normally is marked as a dissenter” – is the type of pressure to conform the Supreme Court banned.

“A school that organizes this protest, announces it in homeroom, and reserves a day on the calendar for it has made it its own,” said Mary Catherine Martin, senior counsel at the society. “The Supreme Court has been clear that when a school exposes children to instruction that violates their family’s sincerely held religious beliefs, parents have a constitutional right to know about it in advance and to opt their children out.”

In the case of the Missouri district in Kirkwood, it agreed in writing in November to fully comply with the Mahmoud v. Taylor decision after Thomas More Society “demanded it take down a similar LGBTQ+ promotional video that it had broadcast and then posted for student access without parental notice,” but it is again under scrutiny.

The society’s letter said the district could face a lawsuit, as well as paying damages and legal fees, if it does not comply.