by Mia Hernandez
A district-wide library book policy has parents accusing a Wyoming school board of failing to stop the “sexualization” of their kids, according to ABC13 News.
Laramie County School District No. 1 (LCSD) has given parents the option to opt their kids out of particular LCSD library books by filling out a form asking them the reasoning for the request. During the school board of trustees meeting on June 5, the school board was criticized for how it handled library resources, causing parents to call for a change in the library book policy.
“I fill out your opt-out forms every single year and it’s a joke. … They don’t get followed at all,” said Patricia McCoy, a mother of four LCSD students, at the meeting.
Parents alleged that some “sexually explicit” novels are available in LCSD libraries during the meeting. They said that the material is inappropriate and is causing the children to be “sexualized and indoctrinated.” Forty-one students have opt-out forms in use, according to ABC13, but some parents are saying that the practice hasn’t done much to “protect” their children.
“I would like to remind everybody on the board that these are not your children, this is not your decision to decide what our children are exposed to. We are the ones that support them on a daily basis, have cherished them and taken care of them. … My beliefs do not have to align with everybody else in the room, they have to align with my home,” said LCSD mom Lorraine Wilcox to the school board.
Many parents are requesting that LCSD switch to a “opt-in” policy. Parental permission would be required before an LCSD student could check out any library books under this policy.
The school board gave no indication in the meeting that it would alter the existing policy. Instead, the board members opted for different strategies, namely redefining the district’s definition of “sexually explicit.” The district’s new proposed definition is that “sexually explicit content” includes materials that are “depict or describe sexual conduct in a pervasively vulgar manner.”
Some LCSD leadership members said they believe the switch would cause parents to work closer with the district while others felt the adjustment would cause more challenges. Those in opposition said that an “opt-in” approach would limit kids’ control over what they read and would give parents the authority to make decisions for children in the district as a whole, rather than individually as the “opt-out” approach allowed.
The Daily Caller News Foundation reached out to LCSD for comment and was told no decision or update was made on the “opt-in” policy.
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Mia Hernandez is a reporter at Daily Caller News Foundation.
