Moore County school board targets transgender kids in approving a local parents’ rights bill

“Sam” (not their real name) lives in a house divided. The Pinecrest High School student who is transgender and uses “they/them” pronouns has a mother who is “aware and supportive” and a father who is also “aware” but offers no emotional support.

“It’s strained in my household because of the divided opinions on my identity,” they told NC Newsline. “For the most part, I try to live under the guidelines of laying low with my parents.”

There is support at school, the student said, which has eased the enormous pressures they face at home.

“My teachers all refer to me as “Sam” and use they, them pronouns, which are my preferred set of pronouns,” the student said. “My guidance counselor has been nothing but supportive of me and my identity and helping me to come to terms with that part of myself.”

“Sam” was one of several students who attended Moore County’s Board of Education meeting on Monday to protest a proposed district-based policy that would require teachers to get parents’ permission before referring to LGBTQ+ students by their preferred names and pronouns.

The board approved the controversial “Parents’ Bill of Rights” policy in a 6-1 vote at the conclusion of a spirited meeting that was punctuated by frequent eruptions of cheers by those on both sides of the issue. The parking lot of Robbins Elementary School in the small, rural town of Robbins was full, forcing some attendees to park along side of the narrow road that leads to the school.

“We have to ask ourselves when talking about a parents’ bill of rights, who has to the final say with regards to students,” said School Board Chairman Robert Levy. “A lot of our teachers would love to say they [students] should be able to keep a secret and confide in me [teachers]. We don’t have that right. That right is in the parents.”

Levy, a former chairman of the Moore County Republican Party, said the district must recognize and respond to the beliefs and needs of the faith community, as well as those who are part of the LGBTQ+ community.

“We need to guarantee to parents that if you entrust your children to our schools, we’re going to make sure that we’re in partnership with you in raising those children and when it comes to critical things such as … [gender] transitioning, we will consult with you,” Levy said.

Stacey Caldwell was the lone school board member to vote against the policy. Caldwell voted against it she said, because her nephew didn’t have the necessary tools at age 16 that would enable him to talk to his parents about gender identity. The nephew received help from a school counselor, Caldwell said.

“As much as I agree with some of the stuff that’s set in here, I do feel like we’re targeting the LGBTQ community,” Caldwell said.

Several students who spoke during the meeting complained that the policy, if adopted, will force teachers to violate LGBTQ+ students’ confidentiality by “outing” them to parent who might become abusive.

“Trans kids who get outed to trans-phobic parents are put in danger of abuse, homelessness and suicide,” said Alex Lafferty, a 14-year-old student who came out to his parents as transgender four years ago. “And the truth is, many of their parents show no signs of being abusive until their kids come out.”

Lafferty said the relationship with his parents was rocky at first, but they now offer unconditional support. Many of the district’s trans kids don’t have parents who support them, he said.

“This policy is making school more unsafe for a group of students who are already constantly targeted by their peers and even their teachers,” Lafferty said. “Your [school board] personal biases should not have a place in deciding how Moore County Schools’ students are treated. “We all deserve equal treatment, and yet time and time again you have gone after LGBTQ+ students, even after we have told you that you are endangering kids that you are supposed to be helping and educating.”

Policy 5416 does provide exceptions for educators who believe that “disclosure would result in a child becoming an abused juvenile or neglected juvenile.” The reason for using the exception must be in writing and submitted to the school principal.

The district’s policy is modeled in part after Republican-backed Senate Bill 49, which is wending its way through the General Assembly. SB 49 also requires schools to notify parents of any changes in the name or pronouns used for a student in school records or by school personnel. The Senate approved the bill and sent it to the House.

At times, Monday’s school board meeting had the feel of an old-fashioned church revival. Speakers from the conservative county who supported the policy read from the Bible and intimated that therapy and prayer can cure students of an LGBTQ+ orientation.

Children can “grow out” of being transgender if removed from the “indoctrination” that takes place in public schools, claimed Marge Swierz.

“I see this in the public school system as a power and control thing,” Swierz said. “They’re trying to change actual truths, that a boy is born a male and a girl is born a female.”

If a member of her family identified as a gender different from the one assigned at birth, Swierz said that she would turn to prayer.

“That’s my go to, to think about prayer, to think about God,” Swierz said.

William Bullen said society shouldn’t bend to everyone’s emotional whim.

“What are we going to do next, start letting kids dress as animals?” Bullen asked. “This is going down a road that cannot be sustained in our society. It’s time to stop the foolishness. It’s time to allow God reign in our schools, in our lives and in our communities once again.”     

Bullen bowed his head, stretched out his arms and asked God to raise a hand against the “demonic influence” that cause children to commit suicide and that confuses them and their parents.     

Amy Dahl, a former Moore County high school science teacher who now works in Montgomery County, urged the board to not pass a policy that prevents students from talking to teachers. Children are sometimes unable to talk to parents; teachers provide them with the mature guidance they need during difficult teen years, Dahl said.

“You have an awesome responsibility as the board of education making decisions for 12,000 children,” Dahl said. “Please center your decision on the well-being of our children. Take a cue from the medical profession: First do no harm.”    

Michelle Cunningham, a Moore County teacher, said the Parents’ Bill of Rights is a harmful and dangerous policy that attempts to delegitimize gay and trans students.

“What child is going to come out to their parents when they hear from their parents is that gay people are sinners and that trans people are mentally ill,” Cunningham said. “Being gay or trans is just like one’s skin. It’s part of one’s being. Cover it up as much as want, but nothing will change.”

Cunningham noted that the state’s GOP has filed more than a half-dozen bills targeting LGBTQ students. Those bills include two that would prohibit transgender students from playing on school teams for the gender with which they identify.

Noah Farrell, another transgender student who attends Pinecrest High School, has parental support but is concerned about the impact the policy will have on students who do not.

“Passing this policy will stifle the internal growth of students and the realization of who they are,” Farrell said. “It will be harmful to their psyche.”