Federal Judge Allows Lexington Parent to Opt Child Out of LGBTQ-Inclusive Lessons

A federal judge has temporarily blocked Lexington Public Schools from exposing a kindergarten student to classroom materials that depict LGBTQ+ people or families, granting a parent's request to opt the child out on religious-freedom grounds.

U.S. District Judge F. Dennis Saylor IV issued the preliminary injunction this week, directing the district to honor the parent's objections at Joseph Estabrook Elementary School, according to reporting by the Boston Globe and court filings.

The decision is one of the first to rely on the Supreme Court's recent ruling in Mahmoud v. Taylor, which expanded parents' ability to seek opt-outs where they claim instruction conflicts with sincerely held religious beliefs, the Globe reported.

Saylor wrote that the parent is likely to show that the lessons "burdened his constitutional right to freely exercise his religion" by undermining beliefs he seeks to teach at home. The court also found the parent would face "irreparable harm" without an injunction.

The injunction bars the district from providing the child materials that "depict or describe LGBTQ+ characters, relationships, or activities, or LGBTQ+ political or social advocacy" during the current school year.

Books cited in court papers include "Families, Families, Families!" and "All Are Welcome," which portray LGBTQ+ families. The order also applies to lesson plans, videos, and other instructional content, and requires the school to make "reasonable efforts" to avoid exposing the student to such materials, according to the filings.

Court documents describe the plaintiff as a practicing Christian who believes that gender is God-given and that sexuality belongs within heterosexual marriage. The parent argued that allowing the child to participate in diversity and inclusion instruction taught from a secular perspective would violate those beliefs, the Globe reported.

Saylor acknowledged that creating notice and opt-out procedures could burden the district, but concluded that those burdens do not outweigh the parent's constitutional claim — especially where the district conceded some opt-outs would already be required.

The injunction will remain in effect until further court action or a final ruling after trial.

The case could shape how Massachusetts schools navigate LGBTQ-inclusive curricula alongside expanding parental rights grounded in religious objections.

LGBTQ-Inclusive Lessons" is the official title of the curriculum