A Call to Pray – Every Thursday in May – to Protect our Right to Personal Privacy

In a case of great importance to students and families nationwide, six courageous students from the Boyertown Area School District (Boyertown, PA) are suing their school over an unwritten and unannounced policy that invades the privacy rights that all students have under the U.S. Constitution and Pennsylvania law to use bathrooms and locker rooms without members of the opposite sex present.

The Boyertown Six:

Mary Smith* – She discovered the school’s policy when she encountered a boy in the girls’ restroom.

Joel Doe* and Jack Jones* – They learned about the policy while they were undressed in the locker room and noticed a girl changing next to them.

Macy Roe*, Chloe Johnson* and James Jones* – They challenged the policy so that they can use the locker rooms and restrooms without worrying that their privacy will be violated.

* Fictitious names from filed complaint.

What is the status of the case?

On Thursday, May 24, the case goes before a three judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. In August 2017, a federal judge ruled against the students, holding that girls’ right to privacy from members of the opposite sex entirely depends on how a boy identifies his own gender, and vice versa.  If a boy believes he is a girl, other girls’ privacy rights disappear. No girls’ have privacy rights from that boy based on the beliefs of the boy.

Thursdays in May: Pray for the Boyertown Six

Every Thursday in May, starting with the National Day of Prayer on May 3rd and including the day of the court arguments on May 24, we are calling on individuals, families and church communities to pray for the students, for the legal team, for the judges and for the eventual outcome that will impact families both in Pennsylvania and across the nation.

Specific prayer requests for each Thursday are as follows:

  • Thursday, May 3 – National Day of Prayer
  • Thursday, May 10 – Pray for the legal team in preparation for the case.
  • Thursday, May 17 – Pray for the six students directly involved in the lawsuit, and for all students that will be impacted by the case ruling.
  • Thursday, May 24 – Day of the court arguments in the 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals: Pray for the day’s court arguments and for Randall Wenger, Chief Counsel of the Independence Law Center, who will be presenting the case before the judges.

 On the day of the court arguments, would you commit to praying at a specific time? To help us have prayer throughout the entire day, click here to select a time slot.

  • Thursday, May 31 – Pray for the judges on the three-panel court and their ruling on the case.

Thank you for your prayers. For more about this case, click here.