Parents Push Back on Woke Ideology in MA Schools with Dept of Ed Complaints
Lexington and Natick advocates set the example. Who's next, MA parents?
Last week we told you about two new ways to inform the Department of Education that your district is still violating the Title IX rights of girls and indoctrinating students with discriminatory DEI-related practices and ideology in violation of Trump’s executive orders. If you missed last week’s post, you can read it now here.
In our post, we asked parents who submitted reports to share them with us, so that we can keep track of what is happening in MA. We also wanted to share their submissions with you, to inspire other parents to speak up. Courage begets courage, as the saying goes. Today we are pleased to share the following reports submitted to the Department of Education since last week’s post.
Lexington
At MIP, we have long been aware of the troubles in Lexington. In 2019 we sounded the alarm about their use of the “Gender Snowperson,” a cartoonish lesson that exposes young children to gender confusion. In 2023 we did a deep dive into Lexington’s obsession with all things gender-sex-and-DEI, including their Serious Talks curriculum, which exposed young learners to diverse sexualities and woke social justice themes, all while refusing parents the right to opt out. And just last month we exposed over 800 pages of Lexington’s sex ed curriculum and related documents, obtained via public records request. These documents not only reveal some of the most radical curricula available, they also beg the question - if the LPS is spending this much time on sex ed, how do they find time to teach anything else? And while one might assume we have seen the worst that Lexington has to offer, we know we have only scratched the surface. The fact that a place that featured prominently in the fight for American liberty has become a leftist indoctrination camp is rather sad, and the politicized climate of the LPS been a source of frustration for many conservative (and moderate) Lexington parents. This is why we were pleased to learn that the following complaint had been filed by a Lexington parent through the DoE’s “End DEI Portal.”
Complaint:
Lexington has long been the "poster child" for DEI - unfortunately, it would be easier to list the places that don't have DEI than that do. In response to President Trump's Executive Orders, the superintendent released a statement which clearly indicates they have ZERO intention of complying with the orders (https://docs.google.com/document/d/18LvhFvmYK6B6EyvYHekb970cdrUEC6x6D_h37ajZrO8/edit?tab=t.0).
I have children currently in the Lexington Public Schools. One wore a MAGA hat to school and was subject to vile and racist remarks from other students (no negative feedback from staff, but also no intervention); one drew a small 'MAGA' banner on an assignment and was told by the teacher to white it out because political statements can't be displayed (the assignment was to be displayed on the wall in the classroom). Despite that, one child attends a classroom with a humongous Black Lives Matter flag hanging in the front of the classroom, next to the equally-large Pride flag with a much-smaller American Flag below. I've attached a picture of this classroom, where you'll also see large signs indicating that the teacher must be referred to with they/them/their pronouns.
The curriculum has been completely infiltrated with DEI propaganda and they are proud of it; just yesterday in health class, my son was told that calling a person in this country illegally an "Illegal" was a "microaggression" despite this being official US policy. In English class, they read books like "The Prince and the Dressmaker" which is about a cross-dressing prince (this is just one recent example of MANY). They learn that gender is fluid, etc. and this 'health' curriculum has been pushed throughout all grades now.
Last year, there was some pushback against a curriculum called 'Serious Talks' which parents were not allowed to see and which clearly pushes DEI and radical gender ideology. One of the outcomes of that pushback was a presentation showing the school system's view on DEI - their complete and total commitment to it and their (successful) effort to push it throughout the curriculum from K-12. (Presentation is linked here: https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1DDqzQPZbktx-ggNONFrppAgeTDgLqB3-J6VfZCo6Gw0/edit#slide=id.g2769386f9f2_1_787)
Please help us, they have ZERO intention of scaling back, in fact I fear that they are only planning on doubling-down on these practices. They truly believe they are righteous and seem completely incapable of understanding that they are achieving the opposite - they have reduced the term 'racist' to a schoolyard taunt and are undermining the fabric of our society.
There are countless other examples, DEI is literally part of their strategic plan (https://drive.google.com/file/d/1GVH8DTfz0LEbrgTwln2ITexnFFnQ6Pef/view) - they are unapologetic and blatantly disregarding the Executive Orders.
I'm sure I and others would be happy to provide additional information as required.
After filing this complaint, this parent also emailed the Lexington Superintendent and school committee to inform them that a complaint had been made. To read the content of this email (with personal information redacted), see the pdf below.
Natick
Natick, like Lexington, has long been on MIP’s radar. We called the Natick Public Schools out last year for having a drag queen at a school dance, and our good friends over at Parental Rights Natick have been exposing the NPS’s nonsense on the regular - and sharing their exceptional research with the MIP Facebook group. Largely because of the brave and tireless work of Parental Rights Natick, we know that the NPS is one of the worst offenders in MA when it comes to gender insanity, woke baloney, and running roughshod over parental rights. Today we owe another debt of gratitude to PRN for submitting two complaints to the Department of Education on behalf of their community, and for sharing their complaints with us.
Complaint:
Parental Rights Natick is reporting the attached gender-related policy and procedures to the Office of Civil Rights based on President Trump's executive order Ending Radical Indoctrination in K-12 Schooling.
Natick Public Schools (Natick, Massachusetts) has a gender policy and supporting procedures that actively allow students to use a secret gender identity at school without notifying parents at the students' request. This also allows the student to change his/her name, pronouns, bathroom facilities, and the like without parental consent or involvement.
We obtained these documents through various public records requests. Policy and procedure documents are attached.
Natick #2
Complaint:
Parental Rights Natick is reporting the attached curriculum to the Office of Civil Rights based on President Trump's executive order instructing U.S. K-12 schools to stop teaching "critical race theory" or risk losing federal funds.
We obtained this through a public records request after a concerned parent, whose child is enrolled in a biased course at Natick High School, reached out to us.
Natick High School (Natick, Massachusetts) is indoctrinating 12th-grade students in "white privilege" and "white saviorism" ideology through a course titled "Identity in America."
Course curriculum documents are attached.
Kudos to Lexington and Natick advocates for stepping up to report the indoctrination and discrimination happening in their local districts!
These reports are important because while we don’t yet know what will come of them, for the first time in a long time, common-sense parents have a new tool in their toolbox. For years, they have hit a brick wall in trying to address these issues, exhausting all available options. We have stood with them as they attempted to make change in their local district, sometimes at the expense of their reputations, and often to no avail. We have witnessed MA public schools trample on their rights as parents, fail to protect their daughters on the athletic field and in their private spaces, and shove biased and discriminatory ideology down their children’s throats - often in violation of federal laws that simply weren’t being enforced, or had been reinterpreted to fit a one-sided political narrative. We can testify to their frustration. We’ve felt it too. But the tide is turning across our nation. Now, it’s time to say, “no more.” It’s time to push back.
If you read the complaints above and said, “Oh wow, that’s just like my child’s school! Enough is enough!” - here’s the link again to last week’s Substack with information on what you can report and how to take the next steps.
This post only gives a sample of the complaints that have been submitted by MA parents. We are continuing to track these complaints, and may publish more in the upcoming weeks. If you are a MA parent (or community member - it doesn’t have to be a parent!) who has submitted a complaint and would like to share it with us for future publication, or if you desire to submit a complaint but would like assistance in doing so, please email us at massinformedparents@gmail.com.
Any questions? You know where to find us!
We hope the Department of Education hears from you soon. And we hope we do, too.
(Please note: MIP reserves the right to decline publication of submitted complaints. We will redact personal information from complaints prior to publication, and may also edit the complaint to remove identifiable details. Complaints submitted to the above email address for publication may also appear in the MIP Facebook group, on MIP’s X account, or on Massachusetts Family Institute’s blog or social media accounts.)
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