A Columbia County parent has filed suit against members of the board of education and educators contending the availability of material with any reference of LGBTQ violates her Freedom of Conscience and the Parental Bill of Rights.
Katharine Lang Allen filed the Columbia County Superior Court lawsuit Nov. 23. She contends she followed all board of education guidelines for posting an objection to material she deems objectionable but did not receive what she contends is the appropriate response.
Allen alleges in the lawsuit that her middle-school age child informed her in January 2021 that a copy of the graphic novel “Drama” was available in the classroom library. The novel, Allen states, contains LGBTQ sexual content: a depiction of two males kissing.
The book description posted on Barnes & Noble and Amazon websites describes the book as a novel about a middle school age girl who loves the theater and her time as a set designer for a school production play.
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Allen contends she went through the proper channels seeking an agreement that material about Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer is sexual content and as such parental notice and permission is required before exposure to such material is made.
“Although (Allen) holds no animosity toward the individuals that compromise the LGBTQ+ community, the practices and ideologies of that community violate her conscience and sincerely held beliefs,” according to the lawsuit.
Allen cites the state’s constitutional provision, Freedom of Conscience, that provides for every citizen’s right to worship as he wants, and the state’s newly enacted law the Parental Bill of Rights. The LGBTQ material harms her ability to provide for the upbringing and moral/religious training of her child, Allen contends.
Such material should be clearly labeled with a warning that it contains sexual information, and parents should be notified and given the opportunity to object to such material being available to their children, Allen contends.
In Georgia, parents have the right to opt children out of sex education courses.
The petition represents only one side of a dispute. The Columbia County Board of Education and named educators will have an opportunity to respond.
Sandy Hodson is a staff reporter covering courts for The Augusta Press. Reach her at sandy@theaugustapress.com.
