ROCKVILLE, Md. — Emotions ran high during the public comment portion of Tuesday night's Montgomery County Public School Board meeting.
Eighteen out of 20 speakers showed up to discuss the board's decision that would deny a parent's right to opt their kid out of reading books in school that include LGBTQ+ characters.
"Outside, there are over a thousand parents, in the pouring rain, demonstrating," said Zainab Chaudry, the Maryland Director for the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR). "Families, not just parents, also children, demonstrating for their right to be able to have a say in when and how children are exposed to content that conflicts with their sincerely held religious beliefs."
According to Family Rights for Religious Freedom, an organization created in opposition to the "opt-out" policy, the books listed below would be among those students could read in school with parents having little to no say.
Opponents of the new policy say forcing such material on children violates their first amendment right to freedom of religion.
"You have to ensure that our voices are not trampled on because they are not in line with the dominant narrative," said Ali Elkoshairi, in favor of restoring the opt-out option.
Many advocates and members of the LGBTQ+ community were also on-hand to speak in support of the policy.
They say it promotes inclusivity, arguing an opt-out option would serve as an erasure of the LGBTQ+ community.
"I'm here today because of my concern about the safety of our LGBTQ students and this is personal for me," said Jocelyn Guyer. "I'm beyond concerned about student safety as this ugly ugly debate intensifies," she added after describing incidents of her child and their friend being bullied at an MCPS school.
Some pushed back on those claims, saying the policy is the opposite of inclusive.
"Opt out IS that inclusion," argued Jahangir Baig
Both sides, however, agreed the debate was getting too heated, endangering children on both sides.
"This coalition of allies and the LGBTQ+ community came together after the last BOE meeting because we realized how harmful this debate had become to our MCPS families, staff Board of Education members, and community members," said Laura Steward of the new Coalition for Inclusive Schools and Communities.
"The debate here in Montgomery County has become so heated and so contentious with different forces with political agendas who are trying to pit communities against one another and fuel culture wars and its created an unsafe climate for those on both sides of the divide," said Chaudry.
