Texas Governor Abbott signs law authorizing school library censorship

In the latest of a series of anti-democratic attacks by Texas officials, on June 12 Republican Governor Greg Abbott signed into law a bill that bans public school libraries from purchasing books or other materials deemed to be “sexually explicit.” The law, hypocritically titled the READER Act, requires book vendors to assign ratings to books regarding the presence or depiction of sex.

Abbott has touted the bill as part of his right-wing campaign to bolster his so-called “Parental Bill of Rights,” a euphemism for a host of measures to undermine public schools and the democratic rights of educators and students.