


A New Jersey parents group ripped the state’s Democratic attorney general after he moved to halt policies requiring teachers to notify parents when their child wishes to change their gender identity.
New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin filed the civil rights complaints Thursday against three Monmouth County school districts — Middletown Township, Marlboro Township and Manalapan-Englishtown Regional Boards of Education.
The policies mandate that staff notify parents when students express a desire to change names, pronouns, or bathroom and/or locker accommodations.
In a series of complaints filed in a New Jersey Superior Court, Platkin argued that the policies are discriminatory and would “harm our kids and pose severe risk to their safety.”
But one group of parents vocally disagrees.
“We want transparency with the school,” Nikki Stouffer, founder of a conservative parents group called the New Jersey Project, told Fox News.
“Our children are safer when we know more about what’s happening in school. Why in the world would the AG and [New Jersey Gov.] Murphy think that it would be appropriate to hide any sort of information from parents?” she continued.
“They think that we are monsters and that we would only hurt our kids if we found out they were being bullied and at risk for suicide.”

Platkin, however, argued the policies break the state’s law against discrimination because they “expressly target students for disparate treatment” based on their gender identity and expression.
This forced “outing” puts the students at tremendous risk, the AG said in a statement.
It also contradicts earlier guidance from the state education department about the confidentiality and privacy of such information.

“Without question, the discriminatory policies passed by these Boards of Education, if allowed to go into effect, will harm our kids and pose severe risk to their safety,” Platkin said.
“Simply put, these policies violate our laws, and we will not relent in protecting our LGBTQ+ community—especially our children — from discrimination.”
The attorney general is also looking for a judge to grant an injunction that would stop the policies from taking effect while the complaints move forward.

Marlboro’s policy also allows teachers and administrators to ignore a student’s chosen name or pronoun if their parents don’t like it, the attorney general said.
Meanwhile, the Middletown policy insists kids in fifth grade or younger can’t determine their own gender identity, according to Platkin.
In an email statement, Manalapan-Englishtown school board president Brian Graime said he was trying to schedule a meeting with the attorney general to work out their differences without expensive litigation.
“Our hope is to consider each revision jointly and craft a mutually acceptable version consistent with New Jersey law that could serve as a template across the state,” Graime wrote.
“We are confident [the policy] will never jeopardize students’ physical or mental wellbeing or result in differential treatment based on personal characteristics,” he continued. “We respect the range of opinions generated by this issue. Our focus, of course, remains providing the best educational environment for students.”
The Post reached out to Platkin, the New Jersey Project, Middletown Township and Marlboro Township.