State-level legislation and executive orders this year shifted from censoring racial issues in classrooms and instead focused on censoring LGBTQ+ issues, according to a new report from PEN America. At the same time, this significant shift also created an increased resistance to these unpopular laws and policies.
The free-expression nonprofit PEN America has been tracking what it describes as “educational gag orders” since 2021. While such bills introduced in 2021 and 2022 focused on limiting how issues of race and racism could be taught in classrooms, in 2023, conservative lawmakers and advocates turned their attention to banning discussions of sexual orientation and gender identity in K–12 classrooms.
The anti-LGBTQ+ group’s candidates lost big in at least four states.
“It appears that America’s would-be censors now see proposals to restrict conversations about sexual orientation and gender identity as more of a winning political issue than efforts to restrict discussions of race and racism,” the report stated. “Leveraging that presumed support, [conservatives] have attempted to enact sweeping restrictions on what school-age children can read and learn.”
PEN America documented 110 state-level bills introduced during the 2023 legislative sessions that it defined as educational gag orders. Only 10 became law, while four other restrictions on education were imposed via executive orders or state or system regulations. Of those 110 bills, 39 specifically targeted how public school teachers could discuss LGBTQ+ issues (five of those also applied to private schools).
According to the report, about three-quarters of those anti-LGBTQ+ bills were modeled on Florida’s infamous “Parental Rights in Education Act,” commonly known as the “Don’t Say Gay” law.
These restrictions resulted not only in the marginalization of LGBTQ+ students and students with LGBTQ+ family members, they have also had a devastating impact on public education more broadly, forcing teachers to self-censor and contributing to teacher shortages across the country, the report added.
“If teachers are afraid to make any mention of race or LGBTQ+ identities in the classroom, if they are afraid to answer student questions, if quality educators are leaving and cannot be replaced, students are the ones who suffer most,” PEN America’s report stated.
While efforts to impose educational censorship are expected to continue into 2024, the report also offers reason for hope in the form of increased resistance to such legislation. According to PEN America, at least 13 different lawsuits challenging educational gag orders are currently pending, and political resistance has also grown.
“Over the last three years — and especially in the past twelve months — an increasing number of national groups have begun dedicating significant resources to combat educational censorship,” according to the report. “Simultaneously, a network of state-centric groups — many of them founded by parents, community members, and educators themselves — has emerged to take the fight directly to the local school board or state legislature.”
As PEN America notes, growing public opposition to educational censorship targeting issues of race and LGBTQ+ identity could ultimately make such legislation less attractive to conservative lawmakers.
This is what passes for elected leader of the people status on the right. Can not be bothered to have staff look up stuff to see if it is true before rushing off to attack others she doesn’t like. She is rude, crude, socially unacceptable, and stupid. So yes, she fits right in with the people who vote for her. Hugs. Scottie
Francis Chung/POLITICO via AP Images.
Controversial Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) received a brutal reply on Monday night after she posted a childish and off-color attack on one of her Democratic colleagues.
“Wow this is coming from the same guy who is well known to lay his suit jacket on the actual bathroom floor while spending a lot of time in the stall of the first floor bathroom of the Capitol,” Greene wrote on X in response to a viral clip of Rep. Jim McGovern (D-MA).
“Eww. That’s probably when he comes up with all this,” Greene added with a poop emoji.
Wow this is coming from the same guy who is well known to lay his suit jacket on the actual bathroom floor while spending a lot of time in the stall of the first floor bathroom of the Capitol.
Greene’s middle school jab came in response to a clip of McGovern saying in a committee meeting, “The clowns are running the circus. We’re wasting time on Marjorie Taylor Greene because she wants to impeach someone. Don’t get me started on her absurd censure resolution of Congresswoman Omar that she introduced because she doesn’t know how to use google translate.” The clip was shared online by the account Acyn, which regularly shares key moments from C-SPAN and cable news.
McGovern hit back at Greene, writing, “No idea what you’re talking about… what are you doing in the men’s bathroom aren’t you late for a klan meeting?”
No idea what you’re talking about… what are you doing in the men’s bathroom aren’t you late for a klan meeting? https://t.co/G9SkNa2GQa
Greene has long been known for controversial rhetoric, which has included dropping expletives on fellow Republicans like Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO) and spreading baseless conspiracy theories like that the Las Vegas mass shooting was a false flag operation.
Read the full article. McGovern was mocking Republicans for attacking Rep. Ilhan Omar over a comment about Somalia that was later shown to have been mistranslated by the cult, probably on purpose.
Totally agree. While his reply is scathing and scratches an itch, our politics have become beyond dabased. And I’m not buying any juvenile “well, she stared it” nonsense. It’s all just awful and sad.
And we love it! We love the sideshow / freak show element of it. I don’t believe, in my heart of hearts, we want a functioning society anymore. We just want spin-art, cotton candy, tractor pulls and fireworks. That’s why we can’t get enough news about a puke like Donald Trump. We used to be a nation. Now we’re a dunk tank.
McGovern hit back at Greene, writing, “No idea what you’re talking about… what are you doing in the men’s bathroom aren’t you late for a klan meeting?”
From the linked article, here is what the class would teach. “…class and school wide presentations showcasing the achievements and recognizing the rich and diverse traditions, histories, and innumerable contributions of the Black communities.” So we are catering to the parents that don’t want kids to know that gay / trans people exist, now we are catering to the racist parents that don’t want black history and achievements taught. Well the first one, don’t say gay increases harassment / attacks on gay and trans kids, the second does the same for black kids, it increases the racism they have to deal with. Some more quotes from the article.
But Gallon said he is concerned about the unintended consequences this may have on children whose parents choose not to have them attend. “Something feels very off here, and the fact that the school needs to cover themselves against the state feels even worse,” said Peeling. Florida International University Professor Marvin Dunn, who is an expert in African-American history, said this will create a generation of people who are miseducated when it comes Black history.
“When parents become involved in making that decision, keeping some kids out, some kids in, you have unequal learning,” said Dunn.
Here is the entire goal of the right, DeathSantis, and maga.
“The intent of the DeSantis attack on education is to make schools more cautious, to make teachers more cautious about what they teach, and it’s working,” he said. “It’s not about banning books necessarily, it’s about banning ideas.”
Hugs. Scottie
Miami School Asks Parents To Sign Permission Slips Allowing Children To Learn About Black History Month
February marks Black History Month, an important topic being taught at South Florida schools, but now parents at IPrep Academy are being asked to sign off on whether they want their children to participate in some of the educational events.
“I was shocked,” said concerned parent Jill Peeling, who said she thought she may have misunderstood the document. “I’m concerned. I’m concerned as a citizen.” Miami-Dade School Board Member Steve Gallon said it all has to do with getting parental consent when individuals come on campus.
“This is a policy that’s an extension of a new state board rule,” said Gallon. It’s a policy that was just enacted last year in November, an extension of the Parental Bill Of Rights.
Read the full article. Those of here will know the Parental Bill of Rights by its more accurate name, “Don’t Say Gay.” To which we can add, “Don’t Say Black.” Last year the Miami-Dade School Board banned any recognition of LGBTQ History Month.
I am so glad I am not a parent and live in Florida.
These A-Holes are setting these kids up to fail when they get jobs in the real world because I can tell you my company won’t put up with discrimination.
A good friend sent this to me about a month ago.I think it came from a “reader poll” in his local paper, but I’m not sure. I can’t vouch for its accuracy, but I wasn’t surprised when I saw it. Friend is an MIT math grad who doesn’t traffic in conspiracy theories or create memes, so I give it some credence. He sent it with the comment “what a great country we live in”.
Fuckers. Why not turn this around and make the white supremacists sign OPT OUT slips so they can keep turning their own kids into good little klansmen, rather than trying to do it to everyone’s kids?
These are some of the disadvantages of leaving Black history* to a particular month — it becomes a set of optional activities, rather than facts and concepts to be learned.
*The history of African descendants in America is really the history of America, inextricable from the history of white America.
let’s be honest, what this is really about. Racism, bigotry, and misogyny. What do diversity programs do? Diversity programs promote acceptance of non-white non-straight non-cis people in the workforce and work to open the work force to those people. Yes it is so that work places become more accepting of those who are different from white straight cis men.
Which means people against diversity and inclusion are simply trying to promote a white straight cis male only in schools, higher education, and the white collar workers in the US, which means upper level income management positions. Notice these same people don’t seem to mind that the lower income labor positions are filled by the very people that the diversity inclusion programs are designed to lift up to better jobs and education. Weird that. Hugs. Scottie
Quotes from the linked article.
Under the Utah bill, universities and government would not be allowed to have offices dedicated to promoting diversity. They also could not require employees to submit statements of commitment to DEI.
The chamber’s six Democrats voted against it. Among them was Sen. Luz Escamilla, who cited statistics showing much lower college enrollment rates for Native American, Hispanic and Hawaiian/Pacific Islander students compared to white students.
The board that oversees Iowa’s public universities in November directed schools to eliminate staff positions focused on diversity, equity and inclusion. In December, the board overseeing Wisconsin’s university system agreed to shift dozens of DEI positions to instead focus on “student success” and freeze hiring for DEI staff in exchange for lawmakers releasing state funding for pay raises and campus construction projects.
Like last year, this year’s bills have a heavy focus on higher education. But Republicans also are sponsoring bills seeking to limit DEI in K-12 schools, state government, state contracting and pension investments. Some bills also would bar financial institutions from discriminating against those who refuse to participate in DEI programs.
Utah’s legislature became the latest in the U.S. to pass a bill Friday prohibiting diversity training, hiring and inclusion programs at universities and in state government. The bill that cleared the state House and Senate by wide margins now heads to Utah Gov. Spencer Cox, a Republican who has said he is likely to sign such a bill into law.
I can assure you, after this legislative session, it will not be happening in the state of Utah, these diversity statements that you have to sign to get hired,” Cox said in a Dec. 20 news conference. Such initiatives are “awful, bordering on evil,” he added.
Under the Utah bill, universities and government would not be allowed to have offices dedicated to promoting diversity. Last year, Republican-led Florida and Texas were first to enact broad-based laws banning diversity, equity and inclusion efforts in higher education.
Utah’s legislature is the latest in the U.S. to pass a bill prohibiting diversity training, hiring and inclusion programs at universities and in state government. https://t.co/pFksk34jh3
I just hate this. Why is it “evil” to try to treat others like you would want to be treated? Why is it evil to try to open up our society to give others the same opportunities that were hoarded by white people since before the founding of this nation? The “Golden Rule” of the Christianity they claim to follow is right in line with this, yet they call it “evil.” I guess the only positive here is that they’ve stopped hiding their racism. Now we know just who the problem really is.
Two years ago right wing propagandists had to be crafty when pushing this agenda. They had to use terms like Critical Race Theory to make these programs seem evil. Now they don’t have to hide it anymore. They can openly challenge the ideas of diversity, equity and inclusion. They’ve convinced people that these ideas are the real racism. Their messaging has been extremely effective and now they are getting their laws passed. This is what fascism looks like.
CisHet white conservatives are terrified of losing their position of supremacy. They’ll do whatever they can to keep everyone else down to maintain the status quo.
And the foreign students, who pay the most money, will go elsewhere. I hope the Utah students who are left to make up that money enjoy their larger student loans…
The SLC Redevelopment Agency is a for profit business unit of City government. I have sat on the Advisory Panel for several years. DEI is mentioned in the charter and governing documents in mission statements and strategies. I don’t see this changing and there is very little that the legislature can do about it. The only way this city will grow and prosper is to make sure all of it grows and prospers. It means that investments in less well to do neighborhoods will create a path toward generational wealth, lift populations out of poverty and build a tax base.
I don’t understand how GOPers can’t understand that a rising tide raises all the ships in the harbor.
City government has been openly at odds with the LDS owned state legislature for decades. As the blue stain has grown, the faithful have become alarmed. They are losing their cherished Deseret to inbound migration and young people leaving the church. Only 42% of residents identify as LDS, the church would have you believe that number is over 70%. They lie to us but they also lie to themselves.
Millennials and Gen Z LDS seem to be following the same national pattern that other organized religions are facing. They are just doing it a bit later than their contemporaries. Much of this is due to family pressure and the complete isolation that happens when a young person leaves the church. Often they lose everything. That’s why we see more LDS youth breaking away in their mid 20s. Here’s a good piece from the SLC Trib. Enjoy.
They have also passed a bathroom bill for government buildings which will require trans people use the bathroom of the gender assigned at birth until “fully transitioned” and changed on ID.
How and who will police this is unknown. It sounds like a violation of people’s medical privacy on its face.
Yes, those diversity statements are evil. The nerve of being forced to act Christ-like. The horror of following the Golden Rule must be stomped out in the name of Murican Freedumb. Fucking Nazi trash.
is this what a civilized nation does? Other advanced countries have done away with the death penalty. It is proven not to be a deterrent for others committing crime, it is often carried out on the wrong people, and it is the state sanctioning murder done in the most painful way. It is revenge and vengeance only. Also, with so many overdose deaths, why not give him an overdose of fentanyl or morphine? Too humane? Hugs. Scottie
Alabama Death Row inmate Kenneth Eugene Smith on Thursday night became the first prisoner to die using a new untested method of execution in the United States—suffocation by nitrogen gas. The 58-year-old was executed at William C. Holman Correctional Facility in Atmore. In announcing the execution had been carried out, Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey stated: “I pray that Elizabeth Sennett’s family can receive closure after all these years dealing with that great loss.”
Smith and his spiritual advisor, the Rev. Jeff Hood, had issued this joint statement prior to the execution: “The eyes of the world are on this impending moral apocalypse. Our prayer is that people will not turn their heads. We simply cannot normalize the suffocation of each other.” Hood said he has witnessed five lethal injection executions over the past year or so. “Lethal injection is preferable every single day,” over nitrogen, he said. “What we saw was minutes of someone struggling for his life,” he said.
Officials said Kenneth Eugene Smith, 58, was pronounced dead at 8:25 p.m. at an Alabama prison after breathing pure nitrogen gas through a face mask to cause oxygen deprivation.
The execution took about 22 minutes from the time between the opening and closing of the curtains to the viewing room. Smith appeared to remain conscious for several minutes.
For at least two minutes, he appeared to shake and writhe on the gurney, sometimes pulling against the restraints. That was followed by several minutes of heavy breathing, until breathing was no longer perceptible.
#USA: UN Human Rights Chief @volker_turk deeply regrets the execution of Kenneth Eugene Smith in Alabama despite serious concerns this novel & untested method of suffocation by nitrogen gas may amount to torture, or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment. pic.twitter.com/NPfjXwyOmh
Alabama has executed a man who was hired by a church minister to assassinate his wife. Using an untried execution method that took 22 minutes for him to die. This is why fundamentalist Christians should never be in charge of anything. pic.twitter.com/Tj3C2amgs5
What’s disturbing to me is that there are people out there who are not satisfied that he is being put to death. They also anticipate and crave his suffering.
They were bound and determined to kill him. This was extra cruel. DOn’t tell me they couldn’t find enough Fentanyl floating around Alabama to use instead. Just make him go to sleep. Probably too peaceful for them. It’s like they wanted him to go through all of the extra suffering.
Use my code LEEJA to get 20% off for all consumer plans: https://joindeleteme.com/Leeja | Christmas swatting targeted the homes of Marjorie Taylor Greene, Jack Smith, and others. Election workers are quitting in droves because of ongoing threats to their safety. More and more people are willing to embrace violence to get their way. And this all has dire consequences for democracy.
This is known as the foot in the door bill / law. Once this gets passed, then the next year a bill / law is introduced to add more right wing groups. Notice parents are not to be notified and from what I read students can not opt out, which totally wipes out parents rights. Think on it, any parent can keep an entire school from reading a book with LGBTQIA characters, but no parent can keep their child from right wing indoctrination in public schools. Just mull over what groups the new approved list might include? The local mega / hate church? The RNC? All military branches, which I think most schools allow but students need permission from parents, that permission no longer required. However written into the law is not available to other groups, such as left leaning or science groups. No Satanic Temple for science stuff, no equality groups, no pro abortion groups, no other religion but the “good” one Christianity, right? By law, only right wing indoctrination 1950s society groups may have this right to brainwash kids without the parents being told. Let the public reeducation camps begin with public schools. They will wipe all that progressive modern acceptance and tolerance shit out for good, right? Hugs. Scottie
The House Choice and Innovation Subcommittee is advancing a bill that would give some groups certain rights in K-12 schools.
Rep. Wyman Duggan’s bill (HB 1317) would allow representatives of so-called “patriotic organizations” time to meet with students and distribute recruitment materials, with schools providing designated time for these groups to pitch their attendees.
The bill also clarifies that certain groups can use school buildings even after the instructional day is over, and stipulates that other groups don’t have the legal right to “equal time.”
Where are the Cubans who scream about the dangers of Castro and forced government stuff at on this? Oh wait, they’re fine if it’s people they like doing it. Biggest bunch of hypocrites around.
Heney I live in the hood with them.. Its fuck biden flags and bumper stickers all over the place . The show their hatred for freedom and the constitution everytime they scream for trump
Nations – and the citizens that come from them – who have never tasted a history of being a democratic republic really don’t understand how it’s done. I think we’ve got plenty of migration around the world now to recognize that.
Sadly, we’re witnessing how easy it is for even a nation like ours – WITH said history – to easily lose it once history is no longer considered an important topic in classrooms. No wonder MAGAts hate an educated population.
Castro’s revolution was against the semi-fascist regime of Fulgencio Bautista (who eventually took refuge in exile with Franco!). The original people who fled Castro were allied with / members of / happy under a semi-fascist regime.
It is entirely on brand for them to support Trump.
Yep. Let’s see – Catholic Priest Altar Boy Appreciation Society – check! Hitler youth – check, check! Baptist Attractive Young Male Interns International Pimpery – check, check, checkity-check!
The Girl Scouts are on the conservative S-list. They don’t kick out lesbians and trans girls. They teach girls skills that help them become successful as independent women holding good jobs. They may teach health that includes accurate information about their genitalia and those of men.
I will not be surprised to see the FL legislature and governor coming up with a State of Florida designation of “patriotic and national organizations” to include many favored groups.
The bill also clarifies that certain groups can use school buildings even after the instructional day is over, and stipulates that other groups don’t have the legal right to “equal time.”
I like when they include clearly unconstitutional poisoned pills into their legislation.
Children can’t read or do arithmetic, don’t understand civics, but let’s take time out of the day and do this and sing the National Anthem. What fucking morons.
The bill also clarifies that certain groups can use school buildings even after the instructional day is over, and stipulates that other groups don’t have the legal right to “equal time.”
The way Gay-Straight Alliances (GSAs) won the right to meet in schools is through the federal Equal Access Act (EAA) of 1984. Any school that permits non-curriculum related student groups must provide equal access to all student groups, and that includes equal access for GSAs. I’m no lawyer, but I wonder if this law can be used in this way.
Photo: Shutterstock
Scottie's Playtime 