A north Texas school board is reportedly trying to silence one of its conservative board members who is working to remove sexually explicit books from student libraries.
McKinney Independent School District board members voted 6-1 last May to censure trustee Chad Green claiming he violated board policies and its operating protocol when he participated in a rally calling for the removal of obscene books from McKinney ISD libraries and testified before lawmakers about it.
Green is siding with parents who do not want to give students access to sexually explicit books.
“That was The Bluest Eye, a very disgusting book,” he told the Texas House Committee on Public Education. “Our superintendent, you can go watch the video, proudly said, ‘hey, we’ve only exposed 75 kids to these books and so I guess we’re serial, serial child abusers under that rule.'”
It took the district nearly a year and a half to remove that book from its shelves.
He also told lawmakers that a drag queen reading hour happened in two of the district’s elementary schools and alleged that kids were advertising their sexuality by wearing furry costumes, CBS reports.
“When you get to McKinney schools it’s all about what your sexuality is and this is being promoted by adults,” Green stated.
Green’s testimony infuriated certain parents and the rest of the board members.
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McKinney ISD parent Susan Holdrich filed a complaint with the board and called for him to be removed or censured.
Board President Amy Dankel proposed a resolution last year pushing Greene to resign, Texas Scorecard reports.
But non-profit legal group Pacific Justice Institute (PJI) is coming to Green’s defense arguing he has every right to speak against the sexualization of minors.
In an open-door meeting on August 1st, PJI addressed claims that Green presented “blatant misrepresentations” and “unsubstantiated rumors” when he testified in support of House Bill 900 – a bill that would restrict “Explicit and Adult-Designated Educational Resources” in public school libraries.
“You may disagree with the content of his speech and actions, but as an individual, he has the right to speak those opinions, and as an elected member of this board, he has a duty to do his job,” said PJI attorney Emily Cook. “There is no permissible basis for censure.”
She also noted Green testified before the committee as a private citizen relaying information about drag queen story hours and the district’s focus on student’s sexuality conveyed to him by other parents in the school district.
According to Texas Scorecard, Green ran on the platform of giving parents a voice in the district board meetings.
But many believe he is coming under fire for it.
“I can’t believe this witch hunt has gone this far,” McKinney resident Mike Giles told the outlet.
“It appeared clear that this entire procedure was tailored to serve as a circular firing squad aimed at the lone trustee who has constantly stood up against the sexualization of children within MISD,” McKinney activist Roger Wheelock told Texas Scorecard.
Cook said the board seemed more focused on “trying to punish Mr. Green for airing dirty laundry of the school district” than on determining whether parents’ concerns are warranted.
Others are applauding him “for standing tall and defending his Christian values, for not accepting the status quo, and for standing to protect the innocent.”
Dankel says the board’s vote to censure is merely symbolic as the board has no authority to remove an elected board member.
“The hypersexualized material provided by this board and administrators to minors is truly the issue,” Green told Texas Scorecard. “These grievances are designed to punish me for testifying on HB 900 and informing parents of the policies that are created without a formal public vote.”
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