Texas Public School District Bans Bible In Libraries

A Texas public school district superintendent informed parents that the Bible was removed from the district’s libraries because it violated a state House bill requiring library books to be expunged if they contained “sexually explicit material.”

HB 900, the READER Act (Restricting Explicit and Adult Designated Educational Resources), was passed by the 88th Texas Legislature, signed into law by Republican Governor Greg Abbott, and implemented on September 1, 2023. It states, “a library material vendor must perform a contextual analysis of the material to determine whether the material describes, depicts, or portrays sexual conduct in a way that is patently offensive.”

Canyon Independent School District Superintendent Darryl Flusche wrote an email to parents earlier this week in which he stated:

House Bill 900, which passed during the last legislative session, establishes library standards that restrict content in school libraries. … This standard for library content prohibits books that have one instance of sexual content as described above. Therefore, HB900 doesn’t allow numerous books, including the full text of the Bible, to be available in the school library.

“There are 30 titles available in the Canyon Junior High library that are Bible stories or portions of the Bible,” he pointed out. “Additionally, if any student would like to have a Bible, we have strong connections with local churches that are happy to donate a Bible upon request. We are more than willing to assist a student who would like access to a Bible by arranging this from one of our partnering churches.”

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On December 9, one concerned mother with two children in the school district stated that it “seems absurd to me that the Good Book was thrown out with the bad books. … In a day when we are needing security guards and bulletproof windows and doors, I think having the Word of God available to our children cannot only be preventative to violence, but also provide comfort and a sense of security in a chaotic world.”

“It just makes sense to have the Word of God in our school library,” she continued. “After all, it is the book of wisdom. It is the bestselling book of all time; it is historically accurate, scientifically sound, and most importantly, life-changing.”