The U.S. Supreme Court is hearing the case Mahmoud v. Taylor this week, which asks the question: “Do public schools burden parents’ religious exercise when they compel elementary school children to participate in instruction on gender and sexuality against their parents’ religious convictions and without notice or opportunity to opt out?”
Note: The petitioners — Christian and Muslim parents of elementary school-age children in Montgomery County, Maryland, including Tamer Mahmoud — are suing the Montgomery County Superintendent of public schools, Thomas W. Taylor, and the county’s Board of Education.
The petitioners claim their First Amendment rights are being infringed upon as they can no longer opt their children out of a program that includes the reading of LGBTQ-themed storybooks in their public elementary schools — content they say is contrary to their religious beliefs.
As heard below in audio provided by C-SPAN, Trump-appointed Justice Brett Kavanaugh (a Catholic and resident of Maryland’s Montgomery County) questioned how banning parent opt-outs from LGBTQ storybooks can be squared with Maryland’s long tradition of religious liberty.
Kavanaugh said: “Maryland was founded on religious liberty and religious tolerance, a haven for Catholics escaping persecution in England, going back to 1649. And Montgomery County has been a beacon of that religious liberty for all these years with strong Catholic population, a substantial Jewish population.” He noted that “you see religious building after religious building” as you drive in the county.
Kavanaugh said: “I guess I’m surprised, given that this is the hill we’re going to die on in terms of not respecting religious liberty given that history.”
Justice Kavanaugh questioned how banning parent opt-outs from LGBTQ books can be squared with Maryland's long tradition of religious liberty.
— Katelynn Richardson (@katesrichardson) April 22, 2025
"I guess I'm surprised, given that this is the hill we're going to die on in terms of not respecting religious liberty." pic.twitter.com/a7BMNcMbqp
Alan Schoenfeld, the attorney for Montgomery County Public Schools, was allowed to respond. He told Kavanaugh: “Every school board walks a tight rope…it’s a difficult job balancing the interests of a diverse community, Montgomery County public schools are the most religiously diverse in the country.”
Schoenfeld added: “There may be different ways to handle this under different circumstances, Montgomery County did its best given their curricula goals. That seems to be a fundamentally different question — it’s an important one — but a fundamentally different question about whether there’s a constitutional right to opt your child out of curriculum that you deem religiously offensive.”
Kavanaugh thanked Schoenfeld and said: “Thank you, it’s a tough case to argue. I appreciate it.” A decision in Mahmoud v. Taylor is expected by summer.
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