Chesco Lawmaker Proposes Law To Protect Students' Rights To Read

CHESTER COUNTY, PA —A Chester County state lawmaker has introduced a “Freedom To Read” bill he hopes will protect the First Amendment rights of students to read library books in the wake of an increase in challenges of library books across the state.

Rep. Paul Friel said many school districts in Pennsylvania are struggling under a heightened sense of cultural polarization, often centered around the nature of books and other educational resources in schools.

The bill is in the House education committee.

He said this shift has placed another burden on strained school districts, diverting time, energy, and finances away from the educational needs of students.

“One of the complicating factors in this situation is that two things are true at once,” Friel said. “Parents, of course, have the right to excuse their child from accessing books they feel violate their beliefs. But students, in general, have the right to access the widest possible range of age-appropriate books and resources available to them.”

Friel represents East Coventry, East Nantmeal, East Pikeland, East Vincent, North Coventry, South Coventry, Warwick and West Nantmeal townships and the boroughs of Elverson, Phoenixville and Spring City.

In Chester County, a parent in the Great Valley School District filed a federal lawsuit requesting the court to order that sexually explicit books be removed from the school library.

The parent said some books are obscene and should be removed. In February, the parent voluntarily dismissed the complaint.

Other school districts in Pennsylvania have adopted policies banning sexualized content in books.

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 1982 that a school board may only remove a book if it’s deemed educationally unsound.
The ruling states that is unconstitutional to ban books in order to "prescribe what shall be orthodox in politics, nationalism, religion, or other matters of opinion.”

The proposed legislation would provide an appeal process for instances where a book is under question because of its educational value or age appropriateness.

It would place the responsibility for reviewing the book with a regional committee of instructional experts, comprised of qualified local teachers, librarians, principals, and administrators.

“We know that among the stressors contributing to our teacher shortage crisis – low pay, high-stakes testing, and stifling bureaucracy, for example – is the politicization of schools,” Friel said. “When our educators feel they’ve lost the ability to do the job they set out to do, it’s time for us to look at how we can course correct and better support their ability to educate our young people.”