WA governor takes stand against parental rights initiative

Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson has officially come out against a conservative-backed initiative to rewrite the state’s so-called “parents bill of rights” law.

“It’s my strong sense that many Washingtonians aren’t aware of some of the facts around this initiative,” Ferguson said at a press conference Thursday morning.

He joined other Democrats and pro-LGBTQ campaigners to speak out against Ballot Initiative 001, which asks voters to roll back changes the state Legislature made to the law last year. Those changes give schools more time to turn over materials like classroom curricula and other records to parents who request them, and keeps student’s medical and mental health records private.