A bipartisan bill that passed last year has led to the Missouri Legislature pushing to defund public libraries. News Team 7 will be breaking this tumultuous tale down to answer questions the public may have.
First, we will inform you about what Senate Bill 775 is along with an introduction to the two issues that have arisen from its being enacted, including lawsuits and library funding.
What is Senate Bill 775?
Senate Bill 775 is a multi-part bill that modifies Missouri Law with a focus on strengthening sexual assault laws for children and adults. The bill has 19 main portions.
The bill was sponsored by Senator Holly Thompson Rehder (R-Bollinger) and co-sponsor Senator Jill Schupp (D-St. Louis). The bill was based on a joint state task force created to study and propose protections for assault victims, according to Rep. David Evans who was on the task force.
What part of the bill is causing the book ban?
Section 566.550 of the bill is causing the current controversy. This section was tacked onto the bill by Sen. Rick Brattin (R-Harrisonville). Section 566.550 makes it a Class A misdemeanor, with punishments of up to one year in jail and/or a $2,000 fine, for providing what the bill calls explicit sexual material to a student. Sen. Brattin added this section to, quote “Protect children from pornographic materials.”
Direct wording of the bill:
A person commits the offense of providing explicit sexual material to a student if such person is affiliated with a public or private elementary or secondary school in an official capacity and, knowing of its content and character, such person provides, assigns, supplies, distributes, loans, or coerces acceptance of or the approval of the providing of explicit sexual material to a student or possesses with the purpose of providing, assigning, supplying, distributing, loaning, or coercing acceptance of or the approval of the providing of explicit sexual material to a student.
The offense of providing explicit sexual material to a student is a class A misdemeanor.
As used in this section, the following terms shall mean:
(1)”Explicit sexual material”, any pictorial, three dimensional, or visual depiction, including any photography, film, video, picture, or computer-generated image, showing human masturbation, deviate sexual intercourse as defined in section 566.010, sexual intercourse, direct physical stimulation of genitals, sadomasochistic abuse, or emphasizing the depiction of postpubertal human genitals; provided, however, that works of art, when taken as a whole, that have serious artistic significance, or works of anthropological significance, or materials used in science courses, including but not limited to materials used in biology, anatomy, physiology, and sexual education classes shall not be deemed to be within the foregoing definition;
(2) “Person affiliated with a public or private elementary or secondary school in an official capacity”, an administrator, teacher, librarian, media center personnel, substitute teacher, teacher’s assistant, student teacher, law enforcement officer, school board member, school bus driver, guidance counselor, coach, guest lecturer, guest speaker, or other nonschool employee who is invited to present information to students by a teacher, administrator, or other school employee. Such term shall not include a student enrolled in the elementary or secondary school.
What has happened since the bill has gone into effect?
Since the bill has gone into effect, Missouri school libraries have pulled over 300 books from shelves, with more under investigation. Many of the books include comic books and graphic novels, as well as books on art, how-to-draw, the Holocaust, LGBT+, world conflicts, The Children’s Bible, and others according to a Pen America article.
The American Civil Liberties Union of Missouri (ACLU), the Missouri Association of School Librarians, and the Missouri Library Association challenged the bill in court in February, arguing that this section of the bill violates the students’ First Amendment rights and forces librarians to chose between that and prosecution.
In retaliation of the lawsuit the following month, the Republican chair of the Missouri House Budget Committee has decided to pull all state funding from libraries in Missouri.
