ADF applauds Congress for introducing key legislation protecting parental rights
The following quote may be attributed to Alliance Defending Freedom Senior Counsel Matt Sharp, director of the ADF Center for Legislative Advocacy, commending U.S. Sens. Tim Scott, James Lankford, and Rep. Virginia Foxx for introducing the Families’ Rights and Responsibilities Act, a bill that protects parents’ right to guide the upbringing, education, and health care of their children:
“Parents love and know their child best, and they have the right and duty to direct the upbringing and care of their children. Yet parental rights have been eroded by government actions that view children as the property of the state and that exclude parents from critical educational and health care decisions. Federal courts are not as protective of families as they should be with some courts treating parental rights as a second-tier right. These concerns are what led to the creation of the Promise to America’s Parents—a coalition of grassroots and policy organizations that work to preserve the fundamental right of parents to direct their children’s upbringing, education, and care through sound laws and policies like this bill.
"The Families’ Rights and Responsibilities Act restrains federal government overreach by reaffirming the role of parents to guide the upbringing, education, and health care of their children. It also requires federal courts to safeguard parental rights with the same level of protection afforded other fundamental rights, like free speech and religion. ADF applauds Sen. Scott, Sen. Lankford, and Rep. Foxx for stepping into the gap to protect the parent-child relationship that forms the bedrock of our society. The government should never intrude on parenting choices just because it disagrees with the parents. Now and always, it’s parents who know their children best, not the government.”
Alliance Defending Freedom is an alliance-building, non-profit legal organization committed to protecting religious freedom, free speech, parental rights, and the sanctity of life.
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ABOUT Matt Sharp
Matt Sharp serves as senior counsel with Alliance Defending Freedom, where he is the director of the Center for Public Policy. In this role, he leads ADF's team of policy experts as they craft legislation and advise government officials on policies that promote free speech, religious freedom, parental rights, and the sanctity of human life. Since joining ADF in 2010, Sharp has authored federal and state legislation, regularly provides testimony and legal analysis on how proposed legislation will impact constitutional freedoms, and advises governors, legislators, and state and national policy organizations on the importance of laws and policies that protect First Amendment rights. He has twice testified before the U.S. Congress on the importance of protecting free speech and religious liberty in federal law. Sharp also authored an amicus brief to the U.S. Supreme Court on behalf of nearly 9,000 students, parents, and community members asking the court to uphold students’ right to privacy against government intrusion. Sharp earned his J.D. in 2006 from the Vanderbilt University School of Law. A member of the bar in Georgia and Tennessee, he is also admitted to practice in several federal courts.