It is illegal for any minor under the age of eighteen to wander on a public street or any other public place in the city between eleven p.m. on the immediately following day, unless the minor is accompanied by his or her parent, guardian or an adult person who has legal or control. First, there are no public curfews to instruct when children or anyone else should sleep. It also does not mean that it must be absolutely in your house and cannot be in your own yard.
Nor does it mean that parents cannot allow organized activities between their children and their children's friends. Yes, the government has every right to impose a curfew. Curfews can be set as a general ordinance and can be set temporarily if something has been happening in the city that causes a public safety problem. A general ordinance curfew is generally reasonable, requiring children to be off the street by 10 or 11 at night, depending on the community.
Again, this has nothing to do with bedtime. Previous ordinances may be established if, for example, serial killings, kidnappings, rape or other violent crimes occur. They are usually temporary until the police manage to eliminate the problem. The government has every right to make these kinds of decisions.
Telling a child that he cannot go out at dusk is a parental decision and NOT a micromanagement. I've heard that many children use this term to describe their parents' rules. Micromanagement is not allowing your child to wash dishes. Micromanagement is to stand on their shoulders and tell them exactly how to wash each fork, spoon, pot and pan, how to dry them and where to store them.
I'll assume that this is a summer activity that doesn't take place often on school nights. That said, such organized activity is not a violation of the curfew because it is being supervised by adults to some extent and is not carried out in public. Luke says that while those words seemed like a slap in the face, this was the exact reason he drove here from Modesto to participate.