Parental Rights

Protecting the right of parents to raise their children consistent with their religious beliefs

Do parents lose their rights when they send their children to public school?  Can parents raise their children consistent with their religious beliefs free from state interference, even when those beliefs are unpopular? Recent government efforts to mandate uniform views in the classroom and to strip custody from parents with traditional religious beliefs place increased focus on these questions. Becket is at the forefront of defending parents of all faiths from such attacks. 

The right of parents to direct the religious upbringing of their children is one of our most deeply rooted freedoms. Teachings about the most important issues in a family’s life are essential to perpetuating the human race and promoting human flourishing. Becket thus defends the right of parents to opt their children out of one-sided indoctrination that conflicts with their religious beliefs on sensitive and complex topics. We also defend parents’ right to raise their own children in their beliefs without fearing that the state will remove their children from them.