Maryland
Protests continue over Mont. Co. policy of ‘no opt-out’ for LGBTQ curricula
Parents file lawsuit to reverse rule; LGBTQ supporters stage counter protests
Hundreds of parents participated in a demonstration outside the Montgomery County School Board’s office in Rockville, Md., on July 20 to protest a policy by the county’s public school system that doesn’t allow parents to opt-out their children from classes in which lessons or books on LGBTQ related topics are taught.
The protests against the no opt-out policy, as well as counter protests by LGBTQ supportive students and parents, began in March when the Montgomery County Public Schools announced it had ended a temporary opt-out allowance that it started in October.
School system officials said the no opt-out policy is for lessons and books that were part of a plan to diversify an English language arts curriculum that includes lessons covering LGBTQ related issues as well as other diversity related issues like race, religion, and ethnicity.
School officials point out that the LGBTQ lessons are separate from sex education classes taught in the 10th grade for which parents are allowed to opt-out their children on religious grounds or for other reasons.
The parents who want the school system to reverse the policy to allow an opt-out on LGBTQ lessons or books say these lessons infringe on their religious rights based on the U.S. Constitution’s guarantee of freedom of religion.
Several parents filed a lawsuit in May against the Montgomery County Public Schools, on religious rights grounds, asking a judge to issue a temporary injunction to halt the no opt-out policy by Aug. 28, when the first day of school begins for the 2023-2024 school year.
The lawsuit calls for a permanent end to the no opt-out policy that is expected to be litigated over the next year or longer.
“We are religious; we have rights as Americans,” Adon Gedie, a mother of a kindergarten student, told News 4 Washington. “Our kids have a right to be raised as a kid,” she told the TV news station.
“It should be the parents’ right,” Mark Haile, the father of three MCPS students, told News 4 Washington. “Parents should discuss with their kids to decide what they learn,” he said.
News 4 Washington also interviewed some of the counter protesters, who expressed support for the no opt-out policy, including the school system’s selection of LGBTQ related books.
“The books geared to younger kids are just showing a diverse range of families,” Christina Celenza, a mother of a Montgomery County student, told the TV news station. “We have a two-mom household, so my wife and I are really proud and out, and, of course, my kid in kindergarten or pre-K is going to probably talk about his family and his two moms.”
The Washington Post reported that in a court filing in response to the lawsuit, the school system said the current no opt-out policy is lawful “because it doesn’t coerce [the families] into restraining from raising their children according to their religious values or penalize their efforts to direct their children’s religious upbringing.”
The school system response, according to the Post, also points out that school district leaders met with school principals and determined that “individual schools could not accommodate the growing number of opt-out requests without causing significant disruptions.”
Christopher Cram, a spokesperson for Montgomery County Public Schools, sent the Washington Blade a copy of the school system’s most recent statement regarding its LGBTQ related curricula and lessons. Among other things, the statement says all lessons and instructional materials “are age and developmentally appropriate” and, “There is no LGBTQ+ curriculum in elementary school.”
The statement, called Inclusive and Welcoming Learning in Montgomery County Public Schools, adds, “LGBTQ+ inclusive books benefit all students by promoting acceptance and respect and teaching them more about the diverse people and families in the world.”
Maryland
Supreme Court ruling against conversion therapy bans could affect Md. law
Then-Gov. Larry Hogan signed statute in 2018
By PAMELA WOOD, JOHN-JOHN WILLIAMS IV, and MADELEINE O’NEILL | The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday ruled against a law banning “conversion therapy” for LGBTQ kids in Colorado, a ruling that also could apply to Maryland’s ban on the discredited practice.
An 8-1 high court majority sided with a Christian counselor who argues the law banning talk therapy violates the First Amendment. The justices agreed that the law raises free speech concerns and sent it back to a lower court to decide whether it meets a legal standard that few laws pass.
Justice Neil Gorsuch, writing for the court’s majority, said the law “censors speech based on viewpoint.” The First Amendment, he wrote, “stands as a shield against any effort to enforce orthodoxy in thought or speech in this country.”
The rest of this article can be read on the Baltimore Banner’s website.
Maryland’s legislative caucuses outlined their legislative priorities heading into the final weeks of the 2026 General Assembly during a joint press conference on March 24.
The press conference was titled “We are Maryland,” where a representative for each of the legislative caucuses outlined priorities.
State Del. Kris Fair (D-Frederick County) of the LGBTQ+ Caucus opened the press conference with a statement on the unity of Maryland’s caucus.
“Together we can show our state and our community a different world, one where we mutually support one another and through that support uplift every Marylander,” he said.
In a press conference on March 5, the LGBTQ+ Caucus outlined its top legislative priorities. Fair highlighted two of those bills again during the “We are Maryland” press conference.
The first of the two highlighted pieces of legislation was Senate Bill 626 and House Bill 1589.
The bills would simplify the process of updating an individual’s birth certificate and align the Department of Health and DMV systems to reflect those changes. The bill is being led by state Sen. Clarence Lam (D-Anne Arundel and Howard Counties) and state Del. Ashanti Martinez (D-Prince George’s County).
The second piece of legislation is Senate Bill 950 and House Bill 1209, which would update and modernize laws and regulations around so-called conversion therapy. The bills have failed to pass either chamber thus far. They are being led by state Sen. Cheryl Kagan (D-Montgomery County) and state Del. Bonnie Cullison (D-Montgomery County).
(The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday ruled against a Colorado law that bans so-called conversion therapy for minors. Maryland is among the U.S. jurisdictions that prohibit the widely discredited practice for anyone under 18.)
Martinez and Lam have introduced bills in their respective chambers that would expand PrEP access in Maryland. Martinez did not attend the press conference, and Fair did not mention it when he spoke.
State Del. N. Scott Phillips (D-Baltimore County) represented the Black Caucus during the press conference. State Del. Dana Jones (D-Anne Arundel County) spoke on behalf of the Women’s Caucus, State Del. Teresa Woorman (D-Montgomery County) represented the Latino Caucus, and State Del. Lily Qi (D-Montgomery County) represented the Asian-American and Pacific Islander Caucus. State Del. Jared Solomon (D-Montgomery County) represented the Jewish Caucus, and state Del. Sean Stinnett (D-Baltimore County) represented the Muslim Caucus during the press conference.
Solomon ended the press conference by explaining the importance of all the caucuses coming out together.
“We are stronger when we’re together, and many of these issues that we have talked about, again, impact all of us,” said Solomon.
Cameroon
Gay Cameroonian immigrant will be freed from ICE detention — for now
Ludovic Mbock’s homeland criminalizes homosexuality
By ANTONIO PLANAS | An immigration judge on Friday issued a $4,000 bond for a Cameroonian immigrant and regional gaming champion held in federal immigration detention for the past three weeks.
The ruling will allow Ludovic Mbock, of Oxon Hill, to return to Maryland from a Georgia facility this weekend, his family and attorney said.
“Realistically, by tomorrow. Hopefully, by today,” said Mbock’s attorney, Edward Neufville. “We are one step closer to getting Ludovic justice.”
The rest of this article can be found on the Baltimore Banner’s website.
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