Advancing American Freedom led a coalition of 31 other amici filing an amicus brief in Rocklin Unified School District v. Public Employment Relations Board, a case in which a California teachers’ union had a pro-parent school district policy struck down by a state labor board. If the Supreme Court does not take this case, the school district’s parental notification policy will not go into effect.
In this case, Rocklin Unified School District (RUSD) amended its policies to require that parents be notified if their child expresses interest in “gender transition” at school. The local teachers’ union objected, claiming RUSD did not bargain with it before adopting the policy. The union brought its case to a Public Employment Relations Board (PERB)court, whose judges are chosen for their favorable views of unions. The PERB judges unsurprisingly ruled in favor of the union.
As the Supreme Court has long held, parents have the right to direct the upbringing and education of their children. While many schools in the nation are attempting to cut parents out of critical decisions regarding their children’s mental health, RUSD rightly stood by parents and ensured that the RUSD schools would not keep parents in the dark. The teachers’ union’s attempt to block that policy cannot stand.
“The fundamental right to raise one’s children consistent with one’s beliefs belongs to all parents. Neither a teachers’ union nor a government agency have any authority to stand in the way of parents’ rights. If PERB’s decision is allowed to stand, it and unions, not courts, would exercise final authority on fundamental constitutional questions in California,” said AAF General Counsel J. Marc Wheat. “The Court should grant certiorari here and clarify that teachers’ unions and state employment boards cannot conspire to undermine school policies that codify constitutional protections for parental rights.”