#tennesssee

John Russell at LGBTQ Nation:

A Republican-backed law has led to the removal of hundreds of books from school libraries in one Tennessee county — including a title by children’s author Dr. Seuss. Dr. Seuss’s 1974 children’s book Wacky Wednesday is among more than 400 titles that have been banned from school libraries in Wilson Country, Tennessee following changes made to the state’s 2022 “Age Appropriate Materials Act” earlier this year, local ABC affiliate WKRN reported. On July 1, ahead of the start of the 2024-2025 school year, the Republican-backed H.B. 843 went into effect. The bill, proposed by state Rep. Susan Lynn (R), amended the 2022 law to require schools to remove all material that “contains nudity, or descriptions or depictions of sexual excitement, sexual conduct, excess violence, or sadomasochistic abuse…is not appropriate for the age or maturity level of a student in any of the grades kindergarten through twelve…or is patently offensive…or appeals to the prurient interest.”

While Lynn told WKRN in August that “the goal of this law is to keep sexually explicit materials out of the hands of minors,” the outlet notes that critics have said H.B. 843 is so vague that the Bible could be banned from schools. The law has already led one Wilson County high school to shut down its library.

[...] The removal of Wacky Wednesday from Wilson Country school libraries under the Republican-backed law comes more than three years after right-wing pundits blamed the “woke left” for “canceling” Dr. Seuss. Republicans and conservative outlets painted the children’s book author, who died in 1991, as a victim of so-called “cancel culture” after Dr. Seuss Enterprises announced in March 2021 that it would stop publishing six of his books because they contained racist depictions of characters of color. The company described the books as portraying “people in ways that are hurtful and wrong,” and said in a statement at the time that “Ceasing sales of these books is only part of our commitment and our broader plan to ensure Dr. Seuss Enterprises’s catalog represents and supports all communities and families.” While the decision to stop publishing the six books was made by Dr. Seuss Enterprises, right-wing outlets like Fox News mischaracterized it as a book ban.

Remember when the right-wing media had a hissyfit about 6 Dr. Seuss books being taken out of circulation back in 2021 due to racist depictions of people of color?

Walter Einenkel at Daily Kos:

Gov. Bill Lee of Tennessee told reporters Thursday that he plans to sign Republican-driven legislation that will let teachers carry guns in classrooms.  "What's important to me is that we give districts tools," Lee said of the bill that is predicated on the deranged theory that more guns in schools will somehow create less gun violence.  “That’s what we want more than anything is to add an additional tool, an additional option, for our kids to be as safe as possible in schools.” Passed by the state House on Tuesday, Senate Bill 1325 allows teachers to carry concealed firearms in districts that choose the option and clear it with local law enforcement agencies. This is the latest attempt by members of the GOP-controlled Tennessee Legislature to pretend they are listening to increasing calls from their constituents to do something about gun violence.  Opponents of introducing more guns into schools question how arming teachers with very minimal training is going to stop potential mass shooters from easily purchasing guns, among many other concerns.