There’s a New Sheriff in Town
Last week, I received news that my 35th high school reunion is being held at the end of August. It’s so hard to believe it’s been that long since I graduated especially since it feels like only yesterday that I was starting elementary school. Times were certainly much simpler in the 70s and 80s, and when I went to school, my teachers taught real educational material like the three Rs – reading, writing, and arithmetic – ok, so it’s two Rs and an A, but you get the point.
I also remember when I was in elementary school, we looked forward to library day. For one hour, every week, our whole class went to the library where we could browse, or we could sit at the tables and read – but we had to be quiet! I also remember our librarian, Mr. Livingston, and yes, he looked like a Mr. Livingston – tall, black moustache, well dressed, and sort of British looking. He taught us to use the card catalog (the early version of Google), to understand the Dewey Decimal System, and to be respectful to others in the library by being quiet. This was always my favorite day of the week – behind ice cream day, of course. School certainly isn’t this simple today…
For example, I live in Shenandoah County, and at the beginning of April, one of our local high schools had a very large poster hanging in the hallway detailing what students should wear during the third week of April for “Pride Dress-Up Days.” For example, April 18th was designated “Pride Flag Day,” and, per the poster, students were encouraged to “dress like your PRIDE flags!” But students were reminded not to wear or use actual flags. Yeah, you read that right, school officials discouraged wearing an actual pride flag, whatever that is, because it’s what, distasteful? Excuse me, WHAT? Wearing a pride flag is distasteful, but encouraging the discussion of sexuality in a high school is not? I’m all for school spirit, but let’s be honest, this has absolutely nothing to do with the school or with spirit, and it certainly has no place in a public high school. Oh, and guess what? The parents of the kids who go to this high school were not notified of this “event.” In case you were wondering, it gets worse…
According to Delegate Tim Anderson from Virginia Beach, Lynnhaven Middle School in Virginia Beach and other libraries in public schools across Virginia have a book on their shelves entitled “Gender Queer,” which shows graphic pictures of two minors engaged in a sexually explicit activity. If you’re wondering how this can possibly be happening, it’s because the American Library Association (ALA) recently elected Emily Drabinski – a self-described Marxist – as its president. Members of the ALA include librarians, libraries, members of library boards and associations, and library students. Hence, if your local school librarian belongs to the ALA, chances are good that your school libraries also have these pornographic books on their shelves. It’s certainly worth checking out since it is taxpayer money that is supporting this atrocity.
Fortunately for Virginians, there’s a “new Sheriff in town,” and the tactics used by the left to encourage the teaching or discussion of sexually explicit material in schools in the Commonwealth will soon be a thing of the past.
On April 8, Governor Glenn Youngkin signed a bill (SB 656) into law requiring the Virginia Department of Education (VDOE) to develop model policies by July 31, 2022, that will ensure “parental notification of any instructional material that includes sexually explicit content.” Each local school board will then have until January 1, 2023, to adopt these model policies. According to an article in The Daily Citizen by Zachary Mettler, the VDOE will also include information, guidance, procedures, and standards for local school boards relating to ensuring parental notification; directly identifying the specific instructional material and sexually explicit subjects; and permitting the parent of any student to review instructional material that includes sexually explicit content, and provide, as an alternative, nonexplicit instructional material and related academic activities to any student whose parent so requests.
Of course, there were some who were opposed to this measure, but when it comes to raising children, parents have always assumed a variety of responsibilities including providing for the child’s basic needs. Further, Virginia law clearly affirms this belief in § 1-240.1 where it states that, “A parent has a fundamental right to make decisions concerning the upbringing, education, and care of the parent’s child.” Additionally, in 2000, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the rights of parents in Troxel v. Granville when it noted that “the liberty interest…of parents in the care, custody, and control of their children is perhaps the oldest of the fundamental liberty interests recognized by the Court.”
Parental authority should never be superseded by the State without substantial cause, and public schools have a high duty to respect parents’ fundamental rights and authority over their children. Hence, the fundamental right of parents to raise their children in the manner of their choosing must always be respected and protected, and Governor Youngkin has taken a positive step in securing this right.
In a world that appears to have gone more than a little crazy, I have found solace in knowing that the Old Dominion is finally being governed by at least four amazing individuals – Governor Youngkin, Lieutenant Governor Winsome Sears, Attorney General Jason Miyares, and Speaker Todd Gilbert -- who not only believe strongly in the Judeo-Christian principles and values that helped form this great nation but also believe that parents are ultimately responsible for their children’s care and well-being.
