Repost from The Virginia Star.
The Virginia Department of Education’s new draft transgender policies received over 20,000 comments on Monday and Tuesday, the first two days of the 30-day public comment period.
Comments on the “Model Policies on the Privacy, Dignity, and Respect for All Students and Parents in Virginia’s Public Schools” document include both support and opposition, and often show strong feeling about the policies.
“We support this policy! God bless Governor Youngkin,” commenter Heather West wrote. “As a parent of six school aged children, I am grateful that Gov Youngkin has chosen to go to bat for us. It is brave to stand up against the tyranny of the rainbow crowd. Onward with more policies that promote REAL education and not social indoctrination. God bless us all as we work to restore truth to our educational institutions.”
Commenter Matthew Dillon II said he opposed the policies: “My opinion would be that kids have rights over their identities. If my kid likes football and hates history, I cannot as a parent demand the school kick my kid off the football team and load up his studies on Ancient Roman provinces. I can encourage them to take an interest, and expose them to things I hope will spark some curiosity, but I can’t demand it. If I can’t force what my kids must enjoy, I certainly cannot command who they are.”
One anonymous comment said, “Support this move. Need to still consider how to handle transphobic parents keep trans kids safe.”