SPOKANE, Wash. – A ballot initiative establishing a ‘Parent’s Bill of Rights’ passed the Washington Legislature with bipartisan support in early March. After a civil rights lawsuit alleging that the policy violates student privacy rights, Superintendent of Public Instruction Chris Reykdal won’t enforce parts of the law.
LGBTQ+ advocates expressed concern that the policy could violate the privacy rights of queer students when the bill initially passed, sparking a lawsuit from the American Civil Liberties Union, Legal Voice and QLaw filed in late May.
Washington Republicans have slammed the lawsuit and used it as an opportunity to tout their socially conservative platforms. Meanwhile, LGBTQ+ advocacy organizations argue that the law constitutes a threat to queer students, particularly transgender youth. KJ January, the director of advocacy and engagement for Spokane’s Spectrum Center, illustrated the organization’s concerns.
“[It] is an intentionally vague and misleading piece of legislation that creates the opportunity for: emboldening parents to harass teachers for inclusive curriculum, granting access to medical and mental health records that students have the right to keep private, and adopting aggressive tactics to pressure policy changes which will harm BIPOC, 2SLGBTQIA+, and disabled youth,” January said.
The Washington Superintendent of Public Instruction’s Office acknowledged concerns that the bill could violate student privacy rights on Wednesday and said the contested parts of the bill stemming from the ACLU lawsuit would not be enforced.
“The initiative states that parents and legal guardians have the right to inspect their child’s public school records…However, the initiative defines what constitutes as a ‘record,’ to include items such as medical or health records…Some of these records contain personal information and are protected under [federal law], and as such, cannot be disclosed without the student’s consent,” Reykdal’s office said.
January’s support of the lawsuit is in part due to recent instances of alleged discrimination against the queer community in eastern Washington schools.
“As we have seen on a local level: Deer Park, Central Valley, and Mead school districts all signed onto a letter to WA State Legislature denouncing legislation that would require the inclusion of queer history in curriculum, as well as legislation that would make it more difficult to exclude identity-based instructional materials from curriculum,” January said.
A former Mead School District teacher resigned in May after an investigation he says was targeted as a gay man, causing further concerns for Spectrum Center organizers about giving broader authority to local educational leaders on LGBTQ+ issues.
“We have also seen Mead School District draw a line in the sand with their mistreatment of Jacob Knight, an all-star teacher that came under scrutiny only after coming-out as a gay man. These kinds of actions do not inspire confidence in our local school districts’ ability to protect QTBIPOC and 2SLGBTQIA+ students,” January said.
Reykdal advised school districts to make no changes to their privacy or LGBTQ+ policies until the ‘Parent’s Bill of Rights’ lawsuit is further resolved.
“When in doubt, school districts should follow federal privacy laws,” Rekydal’s office said.
While the lawsuit continues to progress through the King County court system, it continues to polarize candidates for public office and voters. It is unclear whether the lawsuit will progress past the superior court system.
