The Mahmoud v. Taylor case is a pending United States Supreme Court case that centers on a dispute between a group of parents and the Montgomery County Board of Education in Maryland. The parents, who come from diverse religious backgrounds including Muslim, Catholic, and Ukrainian Orthodox, are challenging the school district’s policy regarding the inclusion of LGBTQ-themed storybooks in the elementary school curriculum.
On October 2022, the Montgomery County Board of Education approved these storybooks as part of the language arts curriculum for pre-K through eighth-grade students. Initially, the schools notified parents before the books were used and allowed them to opt their children out of those lessons. However, in March 2023, the district changed its policy, eliminating both the notification and the opt-out option. The parents argue that this revised policy violates their First Amendment right to freely exercise their religion by compelling their children to participate in instruction that conflicts with their religious beliefs about gender and sexuality, without any opportunity to excuse their children from those lessons.
The case has progressed through the lower courts, with the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland and the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals ruling against the parents. The Fourth Circuit, in its May 15, 2024, decision, found that the policy did not sufficiently burden the parents’ religious exercise.
On September 12, 2024, the parents appealed to the Supreme Court, which agreed to hear the case on January 17, 2025. Oral arguments are scheduled for April 22, 2025, during the Court’s October 2024-2025 term. The key question before the Supreme Court is whether public schools infringe upon parents’ religious rights when they require elementary school children to engage in instruction on gender and sexuality that contradicts their parents’ religious convictions, without providing notice or an opt-out option.
The outcome of this case could have significant implications for parental rights, religious freedom, and the scope of school authority over curriculum decisions.
Gordana Schifanelli, Esq
This article originally appeared on X.
