Kansas lawmakers advance bill allowing parents to bar their kids from LGBTQ lessons

Kansas lawmakers approved a bill Thursday that would allow parents to opt their children from lessons on LGBTQ topics in school.

The Republican-controlled Kansas House passed the bill with a 76-46 vote, paving the way for it to be sent to Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly (D). If enacted, the bill, which was passed by the state Senate last week, would allow parents to choose an alternate activity or lesson for their children in K-12 to a lesson or activity they feel “impairs the parent’s sincerely held beliefs, values or principles.”

This bill is in line with other states that have enacted similar “parental rights” pieces of legislation that allow parents or guardians to have more say in their children’s education. Many states have used the premise of parental rights to prevent schools from teaching students about topics of race and LGBTQ issues.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) signed the so-called “Don’t Say Gay” bill last year to prevent schools from teaching students about sexual identity or orientation in kindergarten through grade 3. He recently proposed an expansion of the bill which would ban teaching these topics in 4th through 12th grade as well.

House Republicans passed a bill called the Parents Bill of Rights last month, a move that is likely to fail in the Senate. The bill proposes expanded parents’ input in school policies and would require schools to publicly publish their curricula and mandate that parents be allowed to meet with their children’s teachers.

This bill also comes after the Kansas legislature overrode a veto from Kelly to approve a bill that will ban transgender athletes from competing in women’s sports. Kansas will now join a growing list of states that have sought to limit transgender athletes from athletic competitions.

At least 18 other states have banned transgender athletes from participation in competitions to some extent, according to the Movement Advancement Project.