Three people were arrested in Los Angeles on Tuesday when a group of LGBT activists clashed with a parental rights group protesting school policies that keep parents in the dark about their children’s gender identity.
The incident began when a small group of unruly LGBT counter-protesters faced off with a rally of nearly 200 parental rights protesters, organized by the Instagram-based group “Leave Our Kids Alone,” which was marching from City Hall to the Los Angeles Unified School District’s offices.
When the parental rights marchers arrived at the Los Angeles school district offices, the group of LGBT activists gathered on the opposite side of the street.
The Los Angeles Police Department set up skirmish lines to separate the groups.
However, police eventually declared an unlawful assembly and ordered all protesters to leave the area. At one point, police attempted to push back the LGBT activists, which led to the arrests.
Three protesters were ultimately arrested for failure to disperse, police said, and all three were jailed on $5,000 bond.
The parental rights protesters were calling on the Los Angeles school district to adopt parental notification policies similar to those passed by other California school districts, which require schools to notify parents if their child asks to go by a new name or pronouns or asks to use the bathrooms or play on the sports teams of the opposite sex.
“Teach the Bible, not porn,” read one protester’s sign. “Listen To Detransitioners,” read a large banner carried by other parental rights protesters. Many of the protesters wore white shirts emblazoned with the groups slogan, “Leave Our Kids Alone.”
The smaller LGBT counterprotest was reportedly organized by Queer Nation Los Angeles and Ground Game LA, who accused the parental rights group of a “hate-filled, fascist agenda of fear” and “trying to bring their hate to City Hall.”
The Los Angeles school district said in a statement that it follows state law and a state-approved curriculum that “reflects and embraces the experiences and backgrounds of our diverse community.”
“However, the District will always and unequivocally provide additional resources and support for every student, including those experiencing gender dysphoria and questioning their sexual orientation, and will respect whatever decision a student and their family determines,” an LAUSD spokesperson told NBC Los Angeles in a statement.
Two Los Angeles area school districts recently adopted a policy requiring schools to inform parents if their child changes their gender identity.
The Murrieta Valley Unified School District south of Los Angeles adopted the policy at a school board meeting this month.
The policy, which requires parents to be notified of gender identity changes within three days, is similar to one adopted last month by the Chino Valley Unified School District just east of Los Angeles.
This month, California’s attorney general responded to the Chino Valley district’s new gender identity policy by launching a “civil rights investigation into potential legal violations” by the district.
The Chino Valley school board president responded by accusing state officials of “overstepping their boundaries.”
“This is a ploy to try to scare all the other boards across California from adopting the policy,” Chino Valley school board president Sonja Shaw said. “I won’t back down and will stand in the gap to protect our kids from big government bullies.”
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