The Murphy Administration may’ve won an injunction against three school districts that planned to notify parents if their children wanted to use a non-gender conforming bathroom, but the governor’s party may pay a political price in November.
According to a brand new Monmouth Poll, “[j]ust under half (45%) of New Jersey adults say the state’s public schools are doing too much when it comes to teaching about gender identity” relative to “23% who say schools are doing the right amount and 16% who say they are not doing enough.”
Age matters for state residents. “While a majority of New Jerseyans (60%) approve of teaching students in grades 9 through 12 about ‘the range of ways people express their gender,’” the report continues, “support dips below a majority for doing this in grades 6 through 8 (42%) and drops to less than one-quarter for grades 1 through 5 (22%).”
“It does seem clear that a large cross section of New Jerseyans are uncomfortable with discussing these issues in elementary school even though the state has different gender identity education standards for various grade levels. An open question is to what extent those distinctions are understood by the public,” said Patrick Murray who serves as director of the Monmouth University Polling Institute.
An overwhelming majority – 77% – “feel middle and high schools should be required to notify parents if their child wants to be identified as a different gender than what is on their school registration.” That puts a supermajority of New Jersey adults in direct conflict with the position of the Murphy Administration which, during recent oral argument before the Monmouth County Superior Court, argued that even the expressed preferences of a 5-year-old wouldn’t permit parental notification under the current state policy.
You can view the full poll results here.
There’s a good reason why Democrat legislative leaders are backpedaling and the executive branch is cutting checks! And thus far, Republicans have been almost unanimously vocal in their opposition to the Murphy Administration’s efforts to thwart parents’ efforts to be involved in their children’s major life choices especially while attending a public school.
“The judge overseeing this case got it wrong by issuing that injunction against the schools. The government does not have the authority to wedge themselves between parents, their children, and the schools that they attend,” said state Senator Bob Singer (R-30). “As a father, I can say that there is no more important relationship than that of a parent and their child. Telling schools to cut parents out of the equation is the definition of government overreach and makes schools liable for those student’s mental health needs. Parents deserve to know every aspect of their child’s life.”
