In a signal to school officials statewide, Texas lawmakers sent a letter commending Granbury Independent School District for “courageous leadership” in addressing sexually explicit books found in their local campus libraries. They also encouraged district officials to “stand firm” against intimidation from left-wing activists.
Granbury ISD recently removed eight books from school library shelves, after reviewing more than 100 library books to see if they contained “written or visual material that depicts explicit sexual acts or overtly sexual content.”
Tuesday’s letter to Granbury ISD Superintendent Jeremy Glenn and the district’s elected school board members was co-signed by 19 Republican state legislators led by State Rep. Matt Krause (R–Haslet).
Krause heads the House General Investigating Committee, which initiated an inquiry last October into a long list of school books that potentially run afoul of obscenity standards or new rules passed by the Legislature barring critical race theory-based instruction.
In November, Gov. Greg Abbott directed state agencies to issue new guidelines for keeping “pornography or other inappropriate content” out of school libraries.
“Abbott said that students should not have access to vulgar or pornographic materials in school, and our district totally agrees with that,” Glenn commented during a school board meeting in January.
Video of that meeting went viral, attracting media attention and threats from left-wing groups opposed to removing any books, including the ACLU.
“As you know, these standard tactics are used across the country to bully and intimidate local elected officials,” the lawmakers’ letter said. “We encourage you to stand firm in the face of frivolous complaints, social media intimidation, and personal attacks.”
“Dr. Glenn and his district’s efforts have drawn the ire of the ACLU and other groups, and we wanted him to know he had a lot of support in the district and around the state,” Krause posted online.
Granbury ISD’s actions are in line with what many Texas school districts are doing in response to Abbott’s directives and concerns raised by local parents.
The lawmakers’ letter may serve as encouragement to other school officials around the state, as well.
Lawmakers signed onto the letter include State Reps. Matt Krause (Haslet), Briscoe Cain (Deer Park), Ken King (Canadian), Glenn Rogers (Mineral Wells), Reggie Smith (Van Alstyne), Jared Patterson (Frisco), Sam Harless (Houston), Mayes Middleton (Wallisville), Scott Sanford (McKinney), John Smithee (Amarillo), Shelby Slawson (Stephenville), Cole Hefner (Mt. Pleasant), Tom Oliverson (Cypress), Matt Shaheen (Plano), Phil Stephenson (Wharton), Tony Tinderholt (Arlington), Steve Toth (The Woodlands), and Cody Vasut (Angleton), as well as State Sen. Drew Springer (Muenster).
