Parental Rights Vs. Child Privacy

Ohio school decided if a student apart of the lgbtq community wanted to change their name, pronouns, and or sexual identity the school would respect and support the student. They also decided that if a student decided they were not ready for their parents to know about their sexuality the school would not share that information with the parents. Parents blew up about it not liking the secrecy and plan to sue the school.  

The parents\Guardians do not agree with the school and think it is up to the adult (the parents) whether the student should be allowed to express their sexual identity. They believe that the students, because they are not fully grown, should not be able to make that decision. And it is up to the parents to lead them the right way. Many parents think their children are going through phases but as teachers who may also be parents and are fully grown adults should not feed into the children’s confusion.  

The parents sparked outrage and many of them came together to sue the school. Saying the school had no right to withhold their children’s information from them, them being the guardians of the children. Many parents shared how disappointed they were with the school and with their decision.  

Other adults and the teachers within the school saw it differently. If students decided not to disclose the information to their parents, the teachers decided to respect the student’s privacy. And a huge question a lot of people are wondering is as the parent or guardian why didn’t your child go to you about their sexuality? Why did they not feel comfortable enough with sharing that information with you? For many I’m sure it’s a table turner when or if the question will be asked. But I’m sure the question lingers in a lot of minds when you hear about the case.  

There is a lot of disagreement between the school and the parents. But I think we can all agree that students should feel comfortable and safe within schools and homes. From a parental view I’m sure feelings get involved and maybe even hurt when a child of yours doesn’t go to you first about something as serious as sexual identity. But maybe instead of suing a school for respecting your child’s pronouns or their changed name, maybe talking to your child, make the discussion a priority. In this case it’s all in your approach just talk to your child. And share your support and love for them and maybe then they will feel more comfortable with sharing the nitty gritty with you.