Parents To Ask Supreme Court To Take Gay Book Case
by 365Gay.com Newscenter Staff

Posted: February 4, 2008 - 1:00 pm ET

(Boston, Massachusetts) Two sets of parents whose lawsuit over the use of a gay-themed book by a Lexington, Mass. public school was dismissed by a federal appeals court say they will take the case to the US Supreme Court.

Last week the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Boston upheld the dismissal.

A teacher read the book King and King to second-graders at the Estabrook elementary school in April 2006 as part of a lesson about weddings.

Following the reading the teacher noted that same-sex marriage is legal in Massachusetts and some children have two mommies and others have two daddies.

King and King is aimed at elementary school children and helps teach diversity. The book, by Linda De Haan and Stern Nijland, tells the story of Prince Bertie who searches for love through a bevy of eligible princesses before falling for Prince Lee.

Parents David and Tonia Parker and Joseph and Robin Wirthlin said the school was attempting to indoctrinate their children about an "immoral lifestyle".

The lawsuit said that school officials bypassed their parental rights to raise their children how they wish and in doing so violated their civil rights.

After the book was read to students Robin Wirthlin complained to the school board that her seven-year-old son should not be exposed to discussions of such at such an early age. (story)

School superintendent Paul Ash said that Lexington schools are committed to "teaching children about the world they live in."

Not satisfied the Wirthlins and the Parkers decided to sue.

Last year U.S. District Judge Mark Wolf ruled that federal courts have decided in other cases that the constitutional right of parents to raise their children does not include the right to restrict what a public school may teach them. (story)

Last week a three-judge appeals court panel upheld the ruling.

"Public schools are not obliged to shield individual students from ideas which potentially are religiously offensive, particularly when the school imposes no requirement that the student agree with or affirm those ideas, or even participate in discussions about them," Judge Sandra Lynch wrote in the unanimous decision.

Lynch also said that the parents who brought the suit have no constitutional "right to be free from any reference in public elementary schools to the existence of families in which parents are of different gender combinations."

Boston-based Gay & Lesbian Advocates & Defenders applauded the ruling.

"We’re delighted that school systems remain free to include age-appropriate material featuring a wide variety of families, including those with two moms and two dads," said GLAD Staff Attorney Nima Eshghi.

"As a result, gay and lesbian parents and their children can feel safe and supported in their schools, and all children can learn about the true diversity of the society we live in."

GLAD filed an amicus brief in support of the Lexington Public Schools, on behalf of a number of gay & lesbian organizations, including GLSEN, the Human Rights Campaign, and Greater Boston PFLAG.

Even if the litigants appeal to the Supreme Court there is no guarantee the justices will hear the case.