A fiery New York Magazine op-ed eviscerating the parents’ rights movement as a threat to children and democracy has sparked heated backlash — with critics ripping it as “disgusting.”
Sarah Jones, senior writer for the publication’s politics and news offshoot, Intelligencer, published an opinion piece Saturday titled, “Children Are Not Property.”
In it, Jones argues at length that “right-wing Christians” have embraced the parental rights movement in a bid to mold their children how they choose, “much like any domesticated animal,” she writes.
“Conservatives betray a conviction that a child is the property of parents. Because parents own their children, they can dispose of the child as they see fit,” Jones argues.
Unsurprisingly, Jones’ commentary sparked a furious backlash online, with critics fuming that the op-ed implies children should be the “property” of the state.
“Narrator: What Sarah really means is that children are not property of their parents, rather, they are property of the state,” California Assembly candidate Corbin Sabol tweeted.
Angry parents were quick to hit back, insisting that it is parents — and not the state — who have children’s best interests at heart.
“Disgusting. They’re trying to shame people who believe parents are essential to the lives of their children,” tweeted Republican California Assemblyman Joe Patterson.
“This is a red line for me. No one, and I mean NO ONE, has domain over my children other than me and my wife.”
California activist Denise Aguilar sounded a similar note, tweeting: “It honestly doesn’t matter what your opinion is. My kids are mine.”
Former federal prosecutor and California Assemblyman Bill Essayli even ripped the notion as unconstitutional.
“Hey Sarah have you ever heard of the Constitution? I guess you only care about the rights you agree with,” he tweeted.
“The Constitution protects the fundamental right of parents to direct the care, upbringing, and education of their children. Washington v. Glucksberg, 521 U.S. 702 (1997).”
Jennifer Sey, a former national champion gymnast and author, pointed out the failings of the government during the pandemic when it came to the well-being of children.
“@GavinNewsom actively threatened the well-being of children in CA by keeping schools closed for a year and a half,” the mom of four seethed.
“Now we’re supposed to believe the state has our kids’ best interest in mind?”
The “parental rights” cause has become a national lightning rod issue in the wake of the pandemic.
Conservative PACs have funneled millions of dollars to school board races across the country on the back of frustration over remote learning and school mask mandates.
In Virginia, Gov. Glenn Youngkin, a Republican, won election last year with his slogan “Parents matter.”
But the movement for decades has seen parents invoke their “rights” in disputes related to everything from homeschooling to sex education in schools, from library books to transgender students’ use of school bathrooms.
In her op-ed, Jones sensationally argues that at the core of the parental rights cause is conservatives’ devotion to authoritarianism, which is antithetical to democracy.
“Parental rights are merely one path to the total capture of state power and the imposition of an authoritarian hierarchy on us all,” she warns.
In Jones’ telling, the only children whom conservatives truly care about — and whose rights they fervently protect — are the unborn.
“Conservatives claim personhood for the fetus, who cannot disobey and requires nothing but a womb,” the op-ed states. “The fetus is more valuable than the child because the fetus is a means to an end: the subjugation of women. Once born, a child’s value depreciates.”
Jones’ conclusion is that children are to be treated as “people who have independent minds and will develop private lives of their own.”
The polarizing op-ed has gone viral on Twitter, drawing more than 2.7 million views as of Thursday, along with a string of negative comments.
Jones has written for New York Magazine since 2018. Earlier in her career, she worked for the New Republic and for the nonprofit group Americans United for Separation of Church and State.
