In a blatant attempt to nationalize divisive culture wars, the GOP-controlled House is scheduled to vote this week on the Parents Bill of Rights Act (H.R. 5).
The bill would undermine local control, a bedrock principle of U.S. public education. It would also facilitate censorship and book bans, with the federal government cast as a national school board that dictates what students can learn and read.
Until recently, literary classics were the main target. According to the American Library Association, the top five targeted books of all time (in order) are To Kill a Mockingbird, The Catcher in the Rye, The Grapes of Wrath, 1984, and Brave New World.
Now, the most targeted books are by and about Black and LGBTQ people. A perennial favorite is The Bluest Eye by Nobel laureate Toni Morrison. Set in the 1940s, it describes the traumatic life of a young, Black girl and her longing for a traditional symbol of beauty: blue eyes.
Making the Parents Bill of Rights Act the first education measure on the House floor says a lot about its supporters and their priorities. They aim to further political goals—not student learning.
Some Republicans in the House want to undermine local control, insert the federal government as a national school board, and facilitate censorship and books bans.
