On November 3, 2022, Parents Defending Education (PDE) filed its opening brief in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit in its lawsuit against Iowa’s Linn-Mar Community School District. PDE challenged the district’s Policy 504.13R, arguing it violates the constitutional rights of parents and students.
According to the brief, the policy:
- lets children make major decisions about their gender identity at school, such as changing their name, pronouns, and participation in school activities, without any parental involvement
- bars school officials from telling parents anything that “may reveal a student’s transgender status” unless the student agrees
- punishes students for speech that does not “respect a student’s gender identity” and for “misgendering,” which the policy defines as “intentionally or accidentally” using the wrong name or pronouns
PDE has members whose children are harmed by the policy. These parents want to regularly ask the district whether their children have a gender support plan and to have their children speak freely at school without fear of punishment. PDE argued that the lower court was wrong to deny its request for a preliminary injunction, a court order blocking the policy while the case goes on, and asked for 30 minutes of oral argument.
Read the full brief below:
