Muslim-led parents’ organization opposes Maryland’s mandatory LGBT education.

Tuesday, a group of Muslim parents joined campaigners for parental and religious freedom rights to protest a Maryland school system’s new rule that eliminates the ability of parents to choose not to have their children participate in courses that support homosexuality and transgenderism.

Family Rights for Religious Freedom spearheaded the demonstration on June 6 at the administrative offices of the Montgomery County Public School District. Approximately 50 parents and activists held posters that stated “family rights” and “restore the opt-out” while yelling “protect our children” and “religious freedom now.”

According to Maryland law, school districts must let parents to choose not to participate in classes that include “family life and human sexuality.” Nevertheless, the school district declared in March that it did not regard reading materials that tackle issues like homosexuality, transgenderism, and other manifestations of gender ideology as a part of “family life and human sexuality instruction.”

Due to this, as of May 1, the school district will no longer inform parents about this content in the coursework and will not give them the option to opt out.

Leader of Family Rights for Religious Freedom Wael Elkoshairi told CNA, “We don’t want to be ignored as essentially useless.

For youngsters as young as 3 or 4 years old, the school system has authorized a number of books that include topics like homosexuality and transgenderism. A book titled “Pride Puppy!” is one example of this. It aims to teach kids the alphabet via a tale about a gay pride parade while also introducing them to terms like “drag queen,” “leather,” and “zipper.” They are also introduced to Marsha B. Johnson, a drag queen, fighter for homosexual rights, and brief prostitute.
Elkoshairi told CNA that while he had previously chosen to exclude his daughter from this kind of assignment, the new regulation prevents him from doing so now. The second grade is for his daughter.

We have always had the option to decline, according to Elkoshairi.

Elkoshairi noted that neither the event nor the reason they were there were anti-LGBT or anti-school district protests. The only thing they ask for, he said, is to be “allowed to opt out because the state of Maryland has that provision in it.”

“We’re not anti-LGBT, but we are pro-family rights [and] pro-religious freedom,” Elkoshairi continued.

Muslim parents made up the majority of the founding members of Family Rights for Religious Freedom, but according to Elkoshairi, many Christian organizations have reached out to them and are joining the alliance.

Moms for Liberty Montgomery County, which also participated in the event, was represented by Lindsey Smith, who told CNA that her group joined forces with other parents “to rally with parents who are standing up for parental and religious rights to opt out of sexual orientation curriculum being used in English literature classes and social studies in pre-K and up.”

The BOE has repeatedly said that they would continue to support diversity, equality, and inclusion while ignoring its own religion policy that gives parents the choice to choose not to have their children learn about sexual orientation, Smith continued. In order to make it clear that we do not co-parent with the government but rather that we are the parents and champions for our children, not any educational governmental body, “We will continue to empower parents and stand beside like-minded organizations.”
The biggest public school system in the state of Maryland, Montgomery County, is situated within the greater Washington, D.C. metropolitan region and is home to more than 160,000 pupils.

At the on-site school board meeting, several of the demonstrators spoke about the policy.