Every fall, millions of parents drop their children off at taxpayer-funded public schools.

Unfortunately, many of these same parents have little or no idea of what is happening to their children once they pass through security into the classroom.

Instead of learning the three R’s, or how to be good citizens, schoolchildren are being taught to reject their parents’ values and to affirm – even celebrate – homosexual behavior.

Radical homosexual activists know that one of the main keys to implementing their agenda is to convert young, impressionable children as early as possible. At a 1999 conference of the Gay, Lesbian, Straight, Educational Network (GLSEN), attendees were told: "The fear of the religious right is that the schools of today will be the governments of tomorrow. And you know, they’re right."

To GLSEN, and other advocates of homosexual behavior, parents and traditional religious values are the main obstacles to achieving their goal of a society that does not just tolerate homosexual behavior, but affirms it as a normal, perhaps even as a preferable life choice.

Remember, it was GLSEN’S "Day of Silence," when the group encouraged students to remain "silent" for an entire day. When asked a question, participating students were told to hand the teacher or administrator a card that read: "Please understand my reasons for not speaking today. I am participating in the Day of Silence, a national youth movement protesting the silence faced by lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people and their allies."

If you tell your child the Day of Silence is a bad use of school time, will your child call you a homophobe? Will the other students taunt your child because his or her parents are homophobes?

GLSEN told children that they should "brainstorm" a list of people "who are likely to stand in your way" of promoting their "cause." In their organizing manual, children are told that they should target teachers, counselors, and administrators that "have denied you their support in the past, or who’ve expressed bias against (lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgendered) people." The list should also include other children, school board members, people in the community and relatives "who have shown intolerance" of homosexuality. The manual concludes: "People who oppose you on your issue are known as, you guessed it, your opponents."

Does GLSEN believe that "relatives" includes mom and dad?

Undeniably, yes. In Silver Lake, Massachusetts, a freshman health text said: "Testing your ability to function sexually and give pleasure to another person may be less threatening in your early teens with people of your own sex…You may come to the conclusion that growing up means rejecting the values of your parents."

In Beverly, Massachusetts, after a week of "Homophobia Week" assemblies, a 14-year-old girl came home and told her father that he was a "homophobe."

Perhaps most alarming was what occurred in Visalia, California, a sleepy Central Valley town, nowhere near the homosexual power centers of San Francisco and Los Angeles. After legal action from GLSEN and the ACLU, the school district agreed to implement so-called "anti-harassment" programs that would be conducted by GLSEN.

The school district agreed it would implement mandatory training for all school staff and high school students to root out any objection to homosexual behavior and the student training would be "peer to peer," meaning that students who do not agree with homosexual behavior will be pressured by their fellow classmates to comply. "Big Brother" is alive and well in Visalia and he is watching you and your kids.

At a GLSEN conference in 1999, homosexual activist Chuck Jones told the audience, "This is war, so plan accordingly" when taking on parents and teachers. If this is "war," then parents and those who have moral objections to homosexual behavior have already lost a number of strategic battles. A 2001 Zogby International poll of high school seniors found that 68 percent said that homosexuals should be able to adopt children and two-thirds thought that same-sex marriage should be allowed.

In addition, more and more teens are experimenting with homosexual behavior, or as one young lady, who "came out" as a lesbian put it: "It [saying you’re bisexual] just says that you’re not yet defined and gives you more freedom. After all, you’ve still got the straight part."

For the most part, the days when the public schools could be trusted to affirm the values of the home or America’s heritage are gone. Concerned parents and those who oppose homosexual behavior must stand up to get into the battle for our children before it’s too late. It is a battle that will not be easy, and may have a number of casualties. But the well being of millions of children and grandchildren will be severely affected if we remain on the sidelines and do nothing.

The mission of the Alliance Defense Fund is to protect and defend traditional family values, religious freedom, and the sanctity of human life.  The Alliance Defense Fund is unique because its role supporting the legal efforts of allied groups.