By eliminating and limiting books on gender fluidity, Lamar Consolidated ISD has followed other school districts in Texas in updating its regulations for educational materials. In Tuesday’s vote, the district’s trustees voted 5-1 to eliminate any items in elementary, middle, and junior high libraries that are “adopting, supporting, or promoting gender fluidity.” According to ABC13, high school libraries will restrict access to these publications and require parental consent before students may use them.
According to the same source, board president Zach Lambert stated that the policy is intended to define boundaries and that the adjustments are intended to “align” and “strengthen” the policy with Texas’ House Bill 900. Although gender identity materials are not directly mentioned in the bill, the district understands it to refer to books that are considered “sexually explicit” or “inappropriate.”
A similar prohibition on publications about gender fluidity is also being considered by Katy ISD, another district in the Houston region. According to Houston Public Media, this comes after a 2023 rule that prohibited workers from talking to pupils about gender issues and sparked a federal civil rights inquiry.
Reactions to the Lamar CISD policy changes have been conflicting. The lone vote against the amendments came from Trustee Kay Danziger, who voiced concerns that the policy may restrict conversations about non-traditional families. She underlined how crucial it is to teach about the diversity of families. The chair of the regulation Committee, Jacci Hotzel, stressed that the goal of the regulation is to restrict conversations about gender identity rather than family structure.
The regulations’ targeting and marginalization of trans and non-binary students is a worry echoed by other advocacy groups, according to Katy Pride president Amanda Rose. President Victor Perez and the school board of Katy ISD say that the policy respects parental authority while assisting teachers in navigating gender-related concerns, despite the criticism.
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