Religious-right House members to public schools: Ban these books or lose your funding

I want to call your attention to a bill in the U.S. House that would severely restrict the books that are available to students in public schools, either in the classroom or in school libraries. I don’t know whether there’s a serious chance of its being enacted into law, but it’s bad news, and it needs to be quashed at the earliest opportunity.

The proposal, H.R. 7661, is called the Stop the Sexualization of Children Act. It would “prohibit the use of funds provided … to develop, implement, facilitate, host, or promote any program or activity for, or to provide or promote literature or other materials to, children under the age of 18 that includes sexually oriented material, and for other purposes.” It’s cosponsored by 22 House members, all Republicans.

The bill was reported out on March 17 by the House Committee on Education and Workforce, which means that, at least in theory, it could come to the floor for a vote at any time. The news has been spreading slowly. I found out about it because a newsletter called AI School Librarians reported on it May 12, and my wife — a school library teacher — forwarded it to me.

How dangerous is this bill? Ian Schwab, an official with the free-speech organization PEN America, one of more than 100 groups that oppose the measure, describes the threat this way:

The House Education Committee’s decision to pass HR 7661 out of committee is an affront to local control of schools and another attempt to censor education by DC politicians. This bill devalues contemporary works, treats kindergartners the same way as high schoolers, and simultaneously dehumanizes and erases the trans community from public education. Books about trans people, books that discuss sexual assault and consent, books that cover painful moments in American history as well as contemporary classics will undoubtedly face censorship under this bill. If this bill receives a vote from the full House of Representatives, we urge all members to vote no.

Gay and Lesbian Advocates and Defenders adds: “The proposed bill targets LGBTQ-inclusive books, using the threat of defunding to intimidate public schools and libraries into removing titles; and has already advanced out of committee.”

The lead sponsor of the bill, Rep. Mary Miller, R-Ill., has previously advocated for legislation that would require “In God We Trust” to be posted at federal buildings and is a member of something called the “Shariah-Free America Caucus,” which the Committee on American-Islamic Relations has called “an attempt to undermine the constitutional rights and religious freedom of millions of Americans and promote harmful misinformation about Islam.”

H.R. 7661 claims to exempt classic works of art and literature from the proposed book ban, drawing on “Great Books of the Western World” as designated by the Encyclopedia Britannica; “Classics Every Middle Schooler Should Read,” by Thomas Purifoy Jr.; and “Classics Every High Schooler Should Read,” by Mary Pierson Purifoy.

The Purifoy lists, though, are published by Compass Classroom, a Christian-right home-schooling resource that espouses “biblical inerrancy.” The books themselves are solid but firmly grounded in the Western canon and Christianity. Needless to say, you won’t find any resources for LGBTQ teens.

Could H.R. 7661 pass the House? Maybe. But it seems almost certain to die in the Senate, where it would have to overcome a Democratic filibuster. Yet this is closer to being something we need to worry about than is comfortable. With Donald Trump ever ready to placate his Christian-nationalist base, it’s a virtual certainty that he would sign it if it somehow passed both branches of Congress.

So even if your House member is a Democrat, it might be a good idea to contact their office. You want to make sure they’re not hors de combat on the day that this monstrous piece of legislation comes up for a vote.