Rocky Mountain Voice

Tag: Parental Rights

Elizabeth schools win court stay—banned books won’t return yet
Approved, Elbert County News, Local

Elizabeth schools win court stay—banned books won’t return yet

By Scott Gilbert | Elbert County News On Thursday, April 3, a Denver-based federal judge ordered the Elizabeth School District to place 19 removed books on library shelves by the weekend, but on the morning of Friday, April 4, a judge with the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals issued a stay, meaning the books will remain off the shelves pending further legal proceedings. The back-and-forth is the latest in a legal battle between Elizabeth Schools and the ACLU of Colorado, which sued the district in December seeking the return of 19 library books that the school board voted to remove on Sept. 9 of last year and then discarded. The ACLU alleges that the school board improperly removed the books because it disagreed with ideas expressed in them and claims that the book removal was a viol...
Davis: Democrat lawmakers target faith as discriminatory under HB25-1312
Approved, Commentary, Rocky Mountain Voice, State

Davis: Democrat lawmakers target faith as discriminatory under HB25-1312

By Chase Davis | Guest Commentary, Rocky Mountain Voice Colorado is rapidly becoming one of the nation’s most “progressive” states. And by “progressive,” I mean “radically opposed to God, family, life, marriage, and basic human biology and aggressively hostile to anyone who holds historic conservative and Christian beliefs on these issues.” Welcome to the modern Left—this ain’t your grandaddy’s Democrat Party. As a Southern Baptist pastor living and ministering in Boulder, Colorado, I’m on the front lines of the fight to maintain both a gospel and a “creation order” witness in a state that is increasingly hostile to the spiritual message of salvation in Jesus Christ and the natural law. And what Colorado Democrats are trying to do right now, if successful, would destroy the ...
Judge overrides parents, reinstates graphic books mid-appeal
Approved, coloradopolitics.com, Local

Judge overrides parents, reinstates graphic books mid-appeal

By Michael Karlik | Colorado Politics A federal judge on Thursday refused to put her prior ruling on hold while an appeal plays out, and instead ordered Elizabeth School District to return 19 restricted books to library shelves by Saturday. U.S. District Court Judge Charlotte N. Sweeney rejected the Elbert County district's claims that her original order was unfair, "breathtakingly broad" and would require whole new library policies. She also slammed the district for disclosing, only after she issued her order, that it had "discarded" the disputed books entirely. "Rather than being forthcoming with the Court about these facts, the District previously represented that the Removed Books were available to Plaintiffs, and only Plaintiffs," she wrote in an April 3 order. "No menti...
Democrat Rep. Zokaie compares concerned parents to KKK during hearing on HB25-1312
Approved, Fox News, State

Democrat Rep. Zokaie compares concerned parents to KKK during hearing on HB25-1312

By Jamie Joseph | Fox News A Colorado Democrat likened parent groups to "the KKK" during an hours-long committee hearing for a controversial bill that could see parents accused of "coercive control" in custody fights for using a trans child's "deadname." "I really am curious about how much stakeholdering went on both sides of the issue, and not just one side," Republican state Rep. Jarvis Caldwell said during the hearing, which began Monday night and ran into early Tuesday. "I'm curious with if the businesses in the community were included in these and if parent groups that are not part of the LGBT community if they were involved." Later during the House Judiciary hearing, Democrat state Rep. Yara Zokaie said the committee that night had "heard a lot about stak...
Cole: Colorado’s gender bills sideline parents and rush kids into harm
Approved, Commentary, Rocky Mountain Voice, State, Top Stories

Cole: Colorado’s gender bills sideline parents and rush kids into harm

By Shaina Cole | Guest Commentary, Rocky Mountain Voice On Friday, March 28, Colorado legislators introduced House Bill 25-1309 and House Bill 25-1312, proposals crafted to safeguard transgender youth. Their aims are well-meaning: one mandates insurance coverage for gender-affirming treatments such as hormone therapy and surgeries, while the other anchors gender identity within custody law to protect vulnerable children.  Yet, beneath these noble intentions lies a troubling prospect—lasting harm to the very youth they seek to shield, coupled with an alarming shift of authority from parents to the state. Consider HB 25-1309, which compels insurance providers to fund gender-affirming care when deemed medically necessary. The goal is clear: ensure access for transgender youth. H...
Education Department cracks down on schools that keep secrets from parents
Approved, National, Rocky Mountain Voice, Top Stories

Education Department cracks down on schools that keep secrets from parents

By Rocky Mountain Voice Staff The U.S. Department of Education under Secretary Linda McMahon has announced a sweeping effort to enforce existing federal laws that protect parental rights in public schools. The March 28 directive reaffirms parents' authority over their children’s education and mental health records—specifically targeting public school policies that have kept parents in the dark. The action revitalizes enforcement of the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) and the Protection of Pupil Rights Amendment (PPRA), two long-standing federal laws designed to guarantee that parents are the primary decision-makers in a child’s education and well-being. “The Trump Administration understands that the immense responsibility of raising children belongs to parents, n...
Overbeck: DougCo school board Conservative leadership delivers results – academic gains and parent power
Approved, Commentary, Local, Rocky Mountain Voice, Top Stories

Overbeck: DougCo school board Conservative leadership delivers results – academic gains and parent power

By Joy Overbeck | Guest Commentary, Rocky Mountain Voice As soon as they were elected in 2021, the four new Conservative Douglas County School District (DCSD) directors were faced with the major issues of the time: the Covid pandemic, and the twisted woke movement to reduce parents’ influence by infecting students with leftist political ideologies.     They began honoring their campaign promises on day one by keeping the Douglas County schools open, knowing that in-person classes instead of ineffective online lessons would lead to solid improvements in student achievement.  They also ended the useless Covid masking and vaccines dictated by the previous leftist board, who had sued the health department to keep kids masked and schools closed.   ...
Ganahl: Smears and fearmongering—The fight for John Adams Academy and school choice in Douglas County
Approved, Commentary, Local, Rocky Mountain Voice, Top Stories

Ganahl: Smears and fearmongering—The fight for John Adams Academy and school choice in Douglas County

By Heidi Ganahl | Commentary, Rocky Mountain Voice In Douglas County, Colorado, a battle over education choice is brewing as efforts to open a new classical charter school, the John Adams Academy, face fierce opposition. Spearheading the initiative is Ellie Reynolds, a Sterling Ranch resident and mom, and Kim Gilmartin, a seasoned advocate for school choice, who has helped launch multiple classical charter schools across the state.   However, the journey to establish this school in Sterling Ranch, a rapidly growing community with no existing school, has been met with aggressive and, at times, deeply personal hostility. The John Adams Academy, modeled after three successful classical charter schools in California, aims to provide an American classical leadership education...
Growth of Obama-era foster care policy unmasks transgender orthodoxy’s inherent threat to parental rights
Approved, National, The Daily Signal

Growth of Obama-era foster care policy unmasks transgender orthodoxy’s inherent threat to parental rights

By Tyler O'Neil  | Daily Signal A groundbreaking new report from The Daily Caller exposes the backstory behind the Biden-Harris administration’s regulation on foster care rules for children who identify as LGBTQ, and underscores the inherent threat that transgender orthodoxy poses to the parental rights of moms and dads who reject the idea that children can be “born in the wrong body.” In April, the Administration for Children and Families at the Department of Health and Human Services released a final rule for agencies to fully implement on or before Oct. 1, 2026. The HHS agency’s first released a version of the rule in September 2023, and updated it in response to public comment. Katelynn Richardson and Megan Brock, writing for The Daily Caller, reporte...
Colorado Democrats Push Controversial Bill, Undermining Parental Rights and Imposing Extreme Ideology on Foster Families
Approved, State, thelobby-co.com

Colorado Democrats Push Controversial Bill, Undermining Parental Rights and Imposing Extreme Ideology on Foster Families

SOURCE: THELOBBY-CO.COM A deeply concerning bill has been introduced in Colorado that seeks to impose a highly controversial and destructive policy on foster families. Colorado HB 24-1017, known as the Bill of Rights for Foster Youth, would compel foster families in the state to affirm the chosen gender identity of a foster child under their care. This alarming legislation, sponsored by Democrat Rep. Lindsey Daugherty, is yet another example of Colorado Democrats eroding parental rights in favor of an extreme and divisive woke agenda. The bill claims to protect the rights of children and youth in foster care, including those who identify as LGBTQ+. While it is crucial to ensure fair and equal treatment for all individuals, this bill goes too far by mandating that foster famil...