Nash, Tennessee (AP) – Tennessee Republicans passed legislation Wednesday that will focus more on which books are placed in school public libraries, minutes after a House sponsor said all inappropriate materials should be burned. that book.
This event is just one of several proposals presented this year in the state of Tennessee designed to impose more control and transparency on public school libraries amid growing national challenges and bans on books. School librarians have been the target of disgust at Republican lawmakers who promote materials for children, especially those related to racism and LGBTQ issues.
Republican Congressman Jerry Sexton of Bean Station amended a last -minute school bill that gave the State Textbook Commission – made up of politically elected members – a veto over where books would remain on school library shelves. . Schools must provide the committee with a list of their library materials.
Democratic Congressman John Ray Clemens, of Nashville, asked Sexton what he would do with books he deemed inappropriate.
“Will you take them out on the street?” Burn them? “Where are they going?” Clemons asked.
“I don’t know, but I’ll burn them,” Sexton said on the floor.
He later changed what he said on the floor, mentioning that he was not a member of the textbook commission and he did not expect to burn any books.
Sexton did this earlier this year. Librarians Affected During the Legislative Hearing, which included the testimony of some who said there was no evidence, educators tried to “decorate” children with sexually explicit material found in libraries.
“I don’t appreciate what’s going on in our libraries, what’s being put in front of our kids, and you’re ashamed to put it out there,” Sexton said at the time.
Democrat Gloria Johnson of Knoxville said the law, which targets libraries, is “going in a dangerous direction in Tennessee.”
In this debate, librarians argued that schools already have a policy for parents and teachers to review school library books. They emphasize the need for better resources and possibly adding a public library coordinator to promote statewide literacy and education, something the General Assembly endorsed this year.
The Republican-majority House passed the bill with a 66-26 vote, but the time for the 2022 legislative session is running out. The GOP, which is controlled by the GOP, has released a separate version that will instruct the Textbooks Commission to provide schools with library guidance.
The book ban came to the fore in Tennessee’s national attention shortly after the McMain County Rural School Council unanimously approved the removal of the Pulitzer Prize-winning graphic Holocaust novel from the party’s resume. Meanwhile, in Williamson County, an affluent region south of Nashville, school board members decided to remove Walk Two Moons, a book about an American Indian girl looking for her mother, after her parents complained .
Republican Governor Bill Lee also intensified the debate, targeting school libraries earlier this year and introduced legislation he believes will ensure students use “aged” content. The bill, which Lim has signed since then, obliges school libraries to publish their content online and regularly review their policies to ensure the materials are “age-appropriate” and “ suitable ”for children accessing them.
Source: Huffpost
