ABSTRACT
A long history of public debate concerning the balance of State and familial interests in child-rearing marks United State political culture. The Parental Rights and Responsibilities Act (PRRA) was introduced on June 28, 1995 by Republican Congressmen Largent and Parker. The PRRA is part of the growing parental backlash against schools and other governmental agencies brought on by the Christian Right. The trope of short adults circulates as a critique of a series of legal decisions that purportedly grant children rights. One effect of children's rights is to displace parental authority. The trope of substituted judgment involves the claim that governmental bureaucracies and professional agencies, such as schools, child protection agencies, psychological testing agencies, and university professors are substituting their judgment for that of parents in matters pertaining to the child's health, education, and welfare. The affective defence of parental judgment in opposition to expert judgment points to how the new conservatism is articulating judgment to a neo-liberal political agenda.
