The parents rights movement has never cared about empowering all parents. Just conservative ones.https://www.lgbtqnation.com/2026/04/the-parents-rights-movement-has-never-cared-about-empowering-all-parents-just-conservative-ones/ 🔗Molly Sprayregen (8 April 2026)
The first time my son came home from preschool touting something he learned that I didn't agree with, I panicked.
My job, I've realized, is not to curate their entire existence. All I can do is tell them whether I agree or disagree with something they learn and point them toward resources to find out more. From there, their own critical-thinking skills will have to kick in. It'll be their job to consider what they've heard and decide what they believe.
The modern parents' rights movement rejects this ethos.
Fueled by anti-LGBTQ+ right-wing organizations and GOP politicos, this movement wholeheartedly believes in a parent's right (and ability) to control what their children read and learn in school. Leaders of the movement believe themselves to be the arbiters of what's appropriate not only for their own children, but for entire student bodies.
The hypocrisy is blatant. When these parents fight for control by banning LGBTQ+ content, they are also taking away control from the parents who want their kids to learn about these identities.
It is obvious that the parents' rights movement has never believed that all parents deserve rights, just that conservative parents do. But there is no Constitutional right to bully LGBTQ+ kids out of existence just because they make you uncomfortable.
There are no negative effects on straight cisgender kids who learn about queer people. On the other hand, when LGBTQ+ kids are not affirmed, their mental health suffers greatly. And when non-LGBTQ+ kids don't learn to accept others who are different from them, we all suffer greatly.
