In the News-Leader article about the June 20 Nixa school board meeting, a picture showed an unidentified woman wearing a “Moms for Liberty” T-shirt. This organization is a leading proponent of banning books under the guise of parental rights and was recently named an anti-government extremist group by the Southern Poverty Law Center. They have quoted Adolf Hitler in a newsletter as justification for their activities.
Not identified as a member of the MFL, Nixa’s mother, Mary Hernandez De Carl, called for the books to be banned. He said: “Restricting access to books has nothing to do with a person’s political party, religious beliefs or sexual orientation and everything to do with preventing Nixa schools from being indoctrinated with mind-blowing propaganda.” He also claimed, without evidence, that it was the fault of “activist teachers and librarians.”
Give Ms. Hernandez De Carl credit for researching her talking points and using the appropriate buzzwords: “indoctrinated,” “woke,” “propaganda,” “activist.”
His comments are inaccurate at best, if not deliberate misrepresentation.
The issue of removing books from the library—and let’s be honest and call it what it is: banning—has everything to do with political party, religious beliefs, and sexual orientation/sexuality.
There is only one major political party, the Republicans, that calls for banning books from both schools and public libraries. Only in Republican-dominated states are legislatures imposing restrictions on libraries, as is being done in Missouri, where access to books is being criminalized.
And it is a particular religious belief, predominantly evangelicalism, characterized by an aversion to sexuality and sexual orientation, especially gender dysphoria, that is behind denying students and library users the right to read what they choose
Another spurious claim by Ms. Hernandez De Carl is that banning books is about “protecting children” (code for censorship when referring to books). If he was serious about protecting children, he would be working to get guns off our streets, not books from a library. She would fight for stricter domestic violence laws. She would advocate for comprehensive, fact-based sex education in our schools and readily available contraception (to protect the many high school students who are sexually active).
Mrs. Hernández De Carl also stated that the school library has books that “reduce the value of a person.” Most of the challenged books contain characters and situations that minority and LGBTQ students can relate to. Students see themselves, and their own experiences and problems, in these books. He must learn that what lowers a person’s worth is to deny or denigrate their existence.
The teachers and librarians under attack are not “activists.” They are professionals dedicated to serving all students, straight or LGBTQ, and helping them develop their potential.
The best way to protect our children, which Moms for Liberty, concerned parents of the Ozarks (and the Republican Party and evangelicals) say they want, is not through censorship and banning books, but by validating all students and making sure they are supported regardless. of identity
Gene Davison lives in Springfield.
