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Parents win in Pennsylvania court after school was accused of teaching first-graders about gender transition

In the lawsuit, Carmilla Tatel, Gretchen Melton and Stacy Dunn named the district, the school board and a first-grade teacher.

The parents claimed the teacher read a book to six- and seven-year-old students that discussed gender transitioning and played a video in class called "Jacob’s New Dress," which touches on issues like "gender nonconformity."

The three parents filed a lawsuit against the school after it refused to allow them to opt their children out of lessons dealing with gender. (iStock)

The teacher, Megan Williams, also allegedly "explained to her students that sometimes ‘parents are wrong’ and parents and doctors ‘make mistakes’ when they bring a child home from the hospital."

"A teacher instructing first-graders and reading books to show that their parents’ beliefs about their children’s gender identity may be wrong directly repudiates parental authority," Conti wrote in her opinion.

"Williams’ conduct struck at the heart of Plaintiffs’ own families and their relationship with their own young children. The books read and Williams' instruction to her first-grade students taught that gender is determined by the child – not, in accordance with the Parents’ beliefs, by God or biological reality," she continued.

Transgender policies have been a point of contention between those who believe parents should have more control over their children's education and those who think LGBT students should be allowed to decide what to tell their parents, or not tell them.  (Adobe Stock)

Conti added that Williams’ conduct showed "intolerance and disrespect" for the moral and religious beliefs of the parents. She also stated that the elementary school violated the fundamental rights of parents to "control the upbringing of their young children."