I understand the necessity of parental rights, but when did we decide that anyone under eighteen doesn't get to have rights? When I was seven, I think I had the right not to die of measles. When I was twelve, I think I had the right not to be permanently disabled by polio.

Anyone making an argument for "parental rights" fundamentally does not see children as unique, independent people. Parents have *responsibilities* to their children, not rights to them.

When "Parental Rights" Become a Shield for Child Abuse open.substack.com/pub/bruceles...

"Parental rights are being used as a cudgel to enable harm upon children in the name of making them straight,” said Rep. Aime Wichtendahl, the subcommittee's sole Democrat, pointing out the "faulty science" undergirding so-called conversion therapy, banned in 23 states and D.C.

This is a great piece looking at the twisted MAGA ideal of fatherhood, and I'm super excited to join @amandamarcotte.bsky.social today on Standing Room Only to discuss my related article and the intersection of parental rights extremism and fascism newrepublic.com/article/2059...

Discipline or abuse? This Texas case could change parental rights nationwide.

Just coincidentally, the family of a billionaire GOP candidate for Texas comptroller now owns Epstein's Zorro Ranch.

Doug Wilson protects child molesters.

120 Champions and Defenders of Children: The Lawmakers Who Show Up for Kids open.substack.com/pub/bruceles...

"We are collectively witnessing the mass-scale abuse of children."

Thank you so much Bruce and First Focus for being a champion for families first. Your take down of the latest anti-family scheme is something we all should be doing.

Thank you @brucelesley.bsky.social @firstfocus.bsky.social for illustrating where U.S. policy must go to cultivate true well-being for pregnant people, young children, and families, based on the evidence in our recent report at @policylabchop.bsky.social.

The Evidence Is Not Neutral: Two Competing Paths for America’s Mothers and Babies open.substack.com/pub/bruceles...

The Evolving Impact of Medicaid Expansion on Suicide Mortality: Demographic and Method-Specific Effects - American Journal of Preventive Medicine www.ajpmonline.org/article/S074...

The Child Tax Credit went from $2,000 to $2,200, which did not cover inflation since 2017 and was less than half of the $5,000 JD Vance promised on the campaign. Over 19 million children do not qualify for full credit because their parents make too little. Truly not something for the brag book.

The ‘SAVE America Act’ Threatens Children’s Representation open.substack.com/pub/bruceles... Children would be harmed as well by this bill pending in the U.S. Senate.

@bluebird4us.bsky.social @mrsdeborahlynn.bsky.social @coko.bsky.social @ltwlauren.bsky.social @whatifisaidit.bsky.social @thewelshtaffy24.bsky.social @rebelb1ue.bsky.social @mlipsitt.bsky.social @boldsea.bsky.social @dpfrazier22.bsky.social @frankiemillie10.bsky.social @softtail65.bsky.social

This is all of us. Every single word. www.tiktok.com/t/ZP89cSB5D/

Be Careful What You Ask For: The Parental Rights Trap and the Cost to Children open.substack.com/pub/bruceles... Professor Nila Bala proposes a far better path forward for children and families than what the parental rights movement is promoting.

Great deep dive expanding on the article from amazing advocate for children @brucelesley.bsky.social brucelesley.substack.com/p/when-paren...

"Every [argument], every [theory], every [proposal] about 'parental rights' must be measured against this reality: children are being abused physically and sexually, some are dying, and the systems meant to protect them are already failing." ~ @brucelesley.bsky.social

When "Parental Rights" Become a Shield for Child Abuse open.substack.com/pub/bruceles...

The feds child care cuts will hurt Minnesota kids • Minnesota Reformer minnesotareformer.com/2026/02/06/t...

TIME magazine just released its new cover focused on Minneapolis, calling it “The Siege of an American City.” More than 3,000 federal agents have been deployed in the city in what’s being described as the largest immigration enforcement operation in U.S. history. Absolutely outrageous.

The cost of just one year of the Trump administration to children and their futures is shocking and astounding if incalculable.

Organized Abandonment and the Measles Crisis: A Policy Disaster open.substack.com/pub/bruceles...

What the Crackdown Has Done to Minneapolis Children - NY Times www.nytimes.com/2026/02/04/u...

Congress Should Not Re-Impose Child Poverty on DC’s Babies and Children brucelesley.substack.com/p/congress-s...

Education Department firings cost over $28 million, report says : NPR www.npr.org/2026/02/02/n...

‘These kids are invisible’: Child abuse deaths spur clash over homeschool regulation • Stateline stateline.org/2026/01/29/t...

Stop saying underage women. They are children.

There Is Shockingly Good News Coming Out of Texas open.substack.com/pub/bruceles...

South Carolina: Major Measles Outbreak! Thanks, RFK JR.! dianeravitch.net/2026/01/30/s... via @dianeravitch

Fund Children, Not ICE open.substack.com/pub/bruceles...

Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner brings the energy. www.tiktok.com/t/ZP85RpHVa/

Babies and families need action, not rhetoric. Vice President Vance, Babies Need Deeds and Not Words open.substack.com/pub/bruceles...

It Is Unconscionable That Our Government Is Choosing to Harm Children Like Liam open.substack.com/pub/bruceles... The story begins with Liam Ramos, but it is also about the harm, the trauma, and the fear that are impacting children all across the country.

Children as Collateral Damage open.substack.com/pub/bruceles... I read the Heritage Foundation's 164-page on family policy so you don't have to. SPOILER: It is just about as bad as you probably imagine.

The Columbia Heights MN School District is facing a severe crisis after four children were abducted by ICE in a single day. Among them is a five-year-old who was used as bait to lure individuals out of their homes in the area.

Unconscionable. They terrorized a 5 year old child. It takes a special kind of evil to think that this is acceptable. www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...

🚨HOLY CRAP. An ICE whistleblower just revealed a secret memo authorizing ICE officers to break into homes without a judicial warrant, which DHS's own legal training materials say is unconstitutional! ICE then hid the memo from the public, passing it along by word of mouth and private conversation.

Children should never, ever, ever be used as “bait” to entrap parents. I am furious and heartbroken. If you are too, call your Rep right now: (202) 224-3121 A staffer will answer - be brief, say you want your Rep to vote NO on DHS funding bill. It’s ok if your voice shakes. 💔 Please make the call.

We just saw this, and it’s a good idea for businesses to post. Private businesses are allowed to set dress and conduct rules. Requiring no full face coverings has long been standard for safety and loss prevention reasons, and it is within a business’s rights to refuse entry or service.

Trump Administration Destroys the Systems that Support and Protect America’s Children | janresseger janresseger.wordpress.com/2026/01/15/t...

Trump Administration Destroys the Systems that Support and Protect America’s Children janresseger.wordpress.com/2026/01/15/t... by Jan Resseger

Sinclair Lewis - It Can’t Happen Here He wrote this in 1935.