A school board dispute in Encinitas, a suburb of San Diego, recently escalated into a legal case. In May 2024, La Costa Heights Elementary School launched a “Buddy” program that introduced gender ideology without giving parents the choice to excuse their children from the lesson.
The program included a book titled My Shadow is Pink, which focuses on a boy who perceives his shadow as pink instead of the typical blue, suggesting that children can alter their own gender. The narrative encourages kids to discover the “color of their shadow,” representing their true identity. The story unfolds as the boy confronts his authentic self by choosing to wear a dress on his first school day. Initially, his father is anxious and stressed about the situation but eventually supports his son by wearing a dress himself, suggesting that if others disapprove, the fault lies with them.
One family, the Encinas, had a fifth-grade son who is a devout Christian and felt uncomfortable being a spokesperson for beliefs opposing his own. Carlos, the boy’s father, made two requests to the school: prior notification regarding discussions of sensitive topics and permission for his kids to opt-out. Unfortunately, these requests were not met.
Adults under this type of pressure cave, so the fact that Carlos expressed his discomfort at such a young age is a reflection of his steadfast character, and the character of this family. The Encinases and other parents took their concerns to the Encinitas Union School District Board. But as is typical of school boards across the country over gender indoctrination, the board took the coward’s way out and failed to address the issue.
Supporters of the book say that coordinated protests from outsiders are becoming more common.
“They come in and rabble-rouse at school boards and undermine really what our local heroes are trying to do every day in the classroom,” said Marco Gonzales, a district parent.
There was no action item on this book, so no action was taken on Tuesday.
In September 2024, the First Liberty Institute and the National Center for Law & Policy filed a complaint and a motion for preliminary injunction on behalf of the Encinas family and one other family unit. According to First Liberty, after Carlos raised his concerns, employees of the school district and other parents in the school became hostile toward Carlos and his family. The president of the PTA even organized a “Pink Out The Hate Day,” where half the school wore pink in support of transgender rights. The Encinas family even received verbal threats and threatening phone calls, and Carlos was bullied to the point where his parents had to transfer him to a different school.
Apparently, the phrase “Hate has no home here” that the Woke love to spout doesn’t apply to people with Christian beliefs.
