Montgomery County School Board Votes to Scrap Controversial Sex Ed Curriculum
May 24, 2005
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Montgomery County, MD – On May 23, the Montgomery County School Board voted to completely scrap a controversial sex education curriculum that was the subject of a federal lawsuit by Liberty Counsel and also voted to reconstitute the advisory committee that recommended adoption of the curriculum. Liberty Counsel represents Parents and Friends of Ex-Gays and Gays (”PFOX”) and Citizens for a Responsible Curriculum (”CRC”) in the lawsuit against the school district.
On May 5, Judge Alexander Williams issued a Temporary Restraining Order against the curriculum, saying that Liberty Counsel had demonstrated a likelihood of success on the merits of the claims that the sex education curriculum violated the Establishment Clause by showing a preference for religious organizations that were not “homophobic” and by urging referral to “sensitive clergy” to counsel students struggling with homosexuality. Judge Williams also believed that Liberty Counsel had shown a likelihood of success on the claim that the curriculum violated the Free Speech Clause, because the curriculum was one-sided and took a position on the issue of sexual orientation to the exclusion of other viewpoints.
Mat Staver, President and General Counsel of Liberty Counsel, stated, “We are pleased with the School Board’s decision to scrap the curriculum and to reconstitute the citizens’ advisory committee that recommended adoption of the curriculum. The Board’s action is a good first step in the right direction toward resolution of the issues in this case. However, there remain issues to be resolved before the lawsuit can be completely settled. We will continue to work with the Board on a possible resolution.” Staver concluded, “The Board’s actions send a strong message that other school districts should heed. School Districts may not cross the line from instruction to engaging in indoctrination on socially sensitive topics such as sexual orientation. Schools are for instruction, not for ideological indoctrination.”
ACTION ITEM:
Click here to politely express your opinion about this issue to the Montgomery County Board of Education
RELATED LINKS: Read an article by Dr. Warren Throckmorton, PhD., about the Montgomery County curriculum.
Montgomery County Schools prohibits ‘discrimination’ on the basis of ’sexual orientation’