One of the biggest changes of the century is the rise of LGBT+ lifestyles. The avalanche began when the Supreme Court legalized gay marriage, starting a ripple effect throughout the country and other parts of the world. Soon after, drag queens freely walked among the public and transgenders called out for their own rights too. The desire to escape from the “social constructs” of sex and gender to become one’s own unique greatly affected children. A decade had barely gone by before children were being indoctrinated with the belief that their sex and genders were changeable, and they could be whomever, or whatever, they wanted to be. Kids who yearned to be popular and unique chose to adopt new and different genders, and even species. This led to angry and concerned parents who spoke out against the pushing of sex education on children far below the age of consent. Parents demanded to know and have a say in school curriculum and refused to be silenced by threats of punishment. This rise in LGBT+ culture among adolescents led to a new awareness among parents regarding what goes on in school classrooms, and this desire launched H.R. 5: Parents Bill of Rights Act.
H.R. 5 is a bill introduced to the 118th Congress on March 1, 2023, by Julia Letlow, the Republican representative for Louisiana’s 5th congressional district. This bill “establishes various rights of parents and guardians regarding the public elementary or secondary school education (including secondary career and technical education) of their children. Local educational agencies (LEAs) and schools must comply with the requirements of the bill in order to receive federal education funds.”[@a2023_hr5] In other words, H.R. 5 would require schools to let parents review curriculum, meet with teachers, speak to the school board, be informed about any violent activity, be warned about cyberattacks against the school, as well as know about any LGBT-specific actions the school takes. Additional privacy rights are also added, including prohibiting schools from acting in a parental role from medical procedures and a minor child’s sex-based desires and accommodations. The current status of the bill is that it passed the House on Mar 24, 2023, and is pending in the Senate. It has 122 cosponsors (all Republicans) and an estimated 18% chance of being enacted.[@a2023_hr]
Christians in every state need to keep an eye on this bill because if it is signed into law, it will be a massive win in the spiritual war for our children. There are several Bible passages that command parents to take care of their little ones, like 1 Peter 5:2-3[[1 Pet 5#3|]] which tells us to be good shepherds and care for the one’s that God has put under our care. Psalm 127:3 tells us that children are a reward from God, and Deuteronomy 6:6-9[[Deut 6#7|]][[Deut 6#8|]][[Deut 6#9|]] commands us to teach our children about the love of God every moment of every day. It is the parents’ job to raise their children, not schools or the States. Schools were put there to teach children how to read, write, spell, do math, and work with their hands; schools were never meant to replace a child’s parents or teach him morality. It doesn’t matter if the school district you live in has beliefs that mirror yours, it is your responsibility to teach those beliefs to your children and yours alone.