Image Credit: Knox County Schools
Tennessee Conservative News [By Paula Gomes] –
A June 4th vote on a resolution brought to the Knox County Board of Education pushes back on the state’s Age-Appropriate Materials Act.
The narrow 5 to 4 vote in favor of the measure asks the Tennessee General Assembly to reform the state law which was passed in 2022 and amended two years later to more clearly give guidance regarding what constitutes objectionable material.
The law, as it currently stands, forbids school districts from allowing materials that contain nudity or that describe or depict sexual activity, including sexual excitement, sexual conduct, sadomasochistic abuse, or excess violence. The law also requires school boards to establish procedures for the review of all materials in school libraries.
Introduced by board member Anne Templeton, the resolution asks legislators to allow books to be considered as a whole rather than banning them for a section containing depictions of excessive violence or sexual conduct. The resolution also petitions for the materials review period to be extended to 90 days from its current 60 days and to distinguish between grade levels so that a book that would be removed from an elementary school could be allowed at higher grade levels.
Two board members who voted against the resolution, Betsy Henderson and Stephen Triplett, agreed with parts of the measure but voted no for fear that the law could wind up watered down.
Knox County Schools removed the book “Roots” by Alex Haley last month, a move which was met with intense criticism from the community and others all across the United States.
Haley made his home in East Tennessee in his later years, donating his personal papers which included drafts of “Roots” to the University of Tennessee.
The book was one of 124 titles removed from the district. Superintendent Jon Rysewyk opted to reinstate the novel two weeks after its removal after consulting with legal experts who he said came to differing conclusions on how to apply state law to the book in question.
The district’s committee of three administrators evaluates books on a regular basis but reviews only specific passages instead of the work as a whole. A previous review of an excerpt of “Roots” kept the book on library shelves.
School boards can submit proposals for resolutions that support revising laws from June through September. These resolutions will be discussed later this year at the Tennessee School Board Association’s convention in November.
The Knox County Board of Education will also review the resolution before it creates its list of annual priorities that will be sent with the Knoxville delegation next year.
