A Mother’s Muzzling Request

Ethical Educator

Scenario:

A middle school counselor has been supporting a student who is transgender. Upon discovering their child’s request to the school to be referred to as “they/them” and electronic communication with friends exploring this issue, the parents pull their child from school and transfer the child to a conservative private school. The mother e-mails the counselor asking her to tell their child’s friends not to reply to any communications from the child. While wanting to respect the wishes of a parent, the counselor cannot imagine telling children to ignore a friend who is going through a challenging phase of life. She seeks guidance from her principal.