Attorney General Todd Rokita releases Parents' Bill of Rights on religious freedom
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Attorney General Todd Rokita unveiled a fourth edition of his Parents' Bill of Rights Tuesday, a document that spells out what Indiana law says about the information and choices parents have the right to access regarding their kids' education.
This new installment answers questions about religious freedom in schools: Can students pray in school, distribute religious materials, leave school for religious activities, recognize religious clubs? (The answers: yes, with some caveats.)
And it updates previously published sections with the new laws legislators passed this year, from requiring schools to notify parents of their kids' desire to use different pronouns or names at school, to establishing a process to request the removal of "obscene" books, to banning gender transition care for transgender youth.
He published the first volume, dealing with school curricula, in June 2021.
More: Student pronouns, service ponies and throwing stars: New Indiana laws to know about
"We came up with this document so parents could have the confidence, armed with knowledge, and do their job of growing their kids," Rokita said during a virtual news conference Tuesday, taking questions from both journalists and the public via email.
Today's "parental rights" movement has gained political steam since the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly among Republicans, focusing on issues like vaccination requirements; diversify, equity and inclusion; and transgender youth. Bills enshrining "parental rights" have popped up in state legislatures everywhere throughout the last two years, including in Indiana. Rokita's bill of rights touches on all of these topics.
The document seeks to answer more than 150 questions on these topics through the lens of parents' legal rights, but also offers commentary that firmly plants Rokita's office on the political right of these issues ― defining Critical Race Theory as "deeply flawed," for example, and saying teachers who draw from the teachings "denigrate" students. Critical Race Theory isn't taught in Indiana public schools but often is used as a catch all phrase for diversity, equity and inclusion issues.
On Tuesday, Rokita cited Indiana's trailing test scores as a reason for parents to be vigilant for "distracting" debates in the classroom.
"We have no time to indoctrinate; schools cannot afford one second of distraction," he said. "This decline in our children’s education is why this very important document is necessary for every Hoosier parent to read."
From 2021: In 'Parents Bill of Rights 2.0,' Rokita takes aim at vaccine mandates, CRT and more
A federal court recently allowed the pronoun law to take effect, just in time for the new school year. The same judge earlier this summer blocked part of the new transgender health care ban: for now, minors can still receive hormone therapy and puberty blockers, but the ban on surgeries remains in effect.
Rokita said his office intends to keep defending the transgender health care ban, which came from Senate Bill 480.
"Who knows, this may all end up in the United States Supreme Court," he said. "I intend to have our office right there in the fight."
The document does not serve as legal advice for individual cases. He said he doesn't expect to publish any more volumes.
Contact IndyStar state government and politics reporter Kayla Dwyer at kdwyer@indystar.com or follow her on Twitter @kayla_dwyer17.
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Rokita releases Parents' Bill of Rights on religious freedom
