US Supreme Court to hear dispute over LGBT books in Maryland school district

Andrew Chung - Reuters - 17/01
The U.S. Supreme Court agreed on Friday to hear a bid by religious parents to keep their children out of classes in a Maryland public school district when LGBT storybooks are read, the latest case to come to the justices involving the intersection between religion and LGBT rights.
  • Religious parents oppose LGBT storybooks in public school
  • Maryland school district refuses to let children opt out
Jan 17 (Reuters) - The U.S. Supreme Court agreed on Friday to hear a bid by religious parents to keep their children out of classes in a Maryland public school district when LGBT storybooks are read, the latest case to come to the justices involving the intersection between religion and LGBT rights.
The justices took up an appeal by parents with children in Montgomery County Public Schools, just outside of Washington, after lower courts denied a request by the plaintiffs for a preliminary injunction ordering the district to allow the children to opt out when these books are read.
The lower courts rejected the argument by the plaintiffs that the school district likely was violating the U.S. Constitution's First Amendment protections for free exercise of religion.
The plaintiffs objected to exposing their elementary school-aged children to instruction that they said conflicts with their Roman Catholic, Ukrainian Orthodox and Muslim religious beliefs.
The Supreme Court, which has a 6-3 conservative majority, ha...
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