After a Florida parent complained that the Bible was too controversial for school libraries, the Broward County School District voted unanimously to keep the religious text on their shelves.
The complaint, raised by local atheist activist Chaz Stevens, argued that the Bible contained sensitive and controversial material, such as references to sexual and violent content, and therefore should not be accessible to students. However, the Superintendent’s Review Committee, formed in compliance with a state law allowing parents to challenge books, voted on Wednesday to keep the Bible in school libraries.
The Bible, which is already allowed to be studied in Florida schools through a secular program, faced opposition from Stevens to highlight what he saw as the hypocrisy of conservative activists, specifically the group Moms for Liberty. This parental rights group, present at the school board meeting, has frequently challenged sexually explicit books in school libraries. However, they defended the Bible, stating that it does not violate any state laws and is actually quite tame compared to other books in the district.
A win for common sense.
Haven’t seen that happen in a long time.Florida school district unanimously votes to keep Bible in libraries after atheist complainthttps://t.co/tj6iGYHtUk
— lasermama (@lasermama1) December 11, 2023
Corie Pinero, the Broward County chapter leader for Moms for Liberty, argued that the Bible was not graphic and had cultural and literary value in teaching students about world studies. Retired district librarian Elaine Aaron, who serves on the committee, also expressed her support for keeping the Bible in school libraries, stating that it was relevant and important for students to study alongside other religious texts like the Torah and Quran.
Despite the committee’s unanimous decision to keep the Bible on shelves, Stevens plans to continue fighting against it before the entire school board. He argues that the Bible contains casual references to sensitive topics such as rape, bestiality, cannibalism, and slavery, and questions the cultural and literary value of teaching these themes to young children.
Stevens, who sent a request to ban the Bible to 62 superintendents in Florida in April 2022, is not the only parent to challenge the religious text. In 2022, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed a law that empowers parents to challenge books they deem inappropriate in school libraries or on reading lists in classrooms. This law has faced legal challenges, with Florida’s Attorney General Ashley Moody arguing that public schools have the right to remove books they find inappropriate for children.
However, the Bible is not only facing challenges in Florida. In the spring, a parent in Utah complained that the Bible contained inappropriate and pornographic material, which led to a school district committee review.
In the end, the Broward County School District defended their decision to keep the Bible in school libraries, stating that it was important for students to have access to a variety of materials to make their own decisions. The Bible will continue to be available for students to study, alongside other religious texts, in accordance with the state law.
