The Department of Justice has announced a new policy aimed at protecting parental rights and First Amendment liberties in schools. Attorney General Pamela Bondi issued a memorandum on September 8, 2025, to all United States Attorneys outlining the department’s commitment to prevent and address violations of these rights in educational settings.
The memorandum instructs U.S. Attorneys to collaborate with federal, state, and local partners to identify and respond to credible threats against parents whose federal rights may have been violated.
According to the Department of Justice, “Under the leadership of President Trump and General Bondi, parents’ First Amendment rights – and their ‘fundamental right to direct the moral and religious education of their children’ – will be protected from unlawful attacks.”
United States Attorney Ellis Boyle commented on how this policy will be implemented locally: “Here in the Eastern District of North Carolina, parents should feel safe to raise their children in accord with their religion and customs and as the Supreme Court recently recognized in Mahmoud v. Taylor to protect them from the radical ideology that has infiltrated our schools. We will protect parental rights when parents interact with their children’s schools. To promote this and inform parents across the District, we shared a copy of the Attorney General’s memo with all county boards of education in the EDNC, the North Carolina Department of Education, the Speaker of the North Carolina House of Representatives, and the President Pro Tempore of the North Carolina Senate. Let me be very clear – here in Eastern North Carolina, we fully support the Attorney General’s policy, and we will act quickly to enforce it. Conspiring to violate constitutional rights is a crime under federal law. We will enforce these laws.”
The full text of Attorney General Bondi's memorandum is available online at https://www.justice.gov/ag/media/1413671/dl?utm_medium=email&utm_source=govdelivery
