Breaking down Tennessee’s book-banning bills with WPLN’s Blaise Gainey

Three of the most controversial bills in front of the Tennessee legislature this session aim to challenge what can be included in public school curriculum and which books can be found on the shelves of school libraries.

These bills are:

• HB 2154/SB 2407: Gives parents and guardians the ability to see what’s in a school library so they can judge the material’s age-appropriateness.
• HB 1944: Books and materials deemed “obscene” or pornographic can be removed from school libraries. The bill allows school boards and libraries to be hit with criminal charges if obscene material is made available to students.
• HB 0800: Textbooks and other teaching material cannot “promote, normalize, support, or address” LGBT+ issues.

WPLN News political reporter Blaise Gainey joined This Is Nashville host Khalil Ekulona in studio on Thursday to break down what the bills are about, what concerns teachers and librarians have about them, and how likely it is that they’ll become law.

“The political motivation (of these bills) has very little to do, I believe, with what’s being taught in schools and more so about being able to campaign and say that they are protecting your children from obscene, harmful and pornographic material,” said Gainey.