By Jeff Cleghorn- Georgia Record
October 8, 2024
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Part 1 of 3
A new Cobb County parents’ group is opposed to books about children having sex being in schools
(Marietta, Georgia) – A group called Citizens Taking a Stand Against Pornography in Schools held a press conference on September 19, 2024, before the start of the monthly Cobb County School Board meeting.
“Last night, on camera, our county saw over 40 parents, students, men, women, gay, straight, of faith and not, defend Cobb’s children. We’re supporting a Board that is removing porn from schools and calling out those who support the sexual exploitation of children,” said Citizens Taking a Stand leaders, Rev. Francisco Vega and Arielle Kurtz, in a press release the following day.
The group is supporting Cobb County Board of Education School Superintendent Chris Ragsdale’s controversial decisions to remove books containing age-inappropriate sexual content.
Over the past year, Cobb County has removed 26 such books. School Board members’ views about Ragsdale’s decision to remove the books broke along party lines.
Democrat board members Becky Saylor and Tre Hutchins have been the most vocal in support of children accessing to the disputed books. Saylor has called for the School Superintendent to be stripped of authority to remove books.
During a September 2023 school board meeting, Mr. Hutchins defiantly displayed a copy of the book, “Flamer,” while arguing to keep all the books regardless of their child-sexual content.
“Flamer,” by Mike Curato, contains descriptions and cartoonish illustrations of sex between children. “Okay, who wants my hot wiener? … Oh, yeah, baby, slide it right into my buns,” at page 23, is one of several examples highlighted by Citizens Taking a Stand.
The City of Marietta Schools Board of Education has similarly removed 25 books from its school libraries and media centers because of “sexually explicit content.”
One of the books is “All Boys Aren’t Blue” by George M. Johnson. The book contains several sections with descriptions of graphic sexual behavior between children. “I put some lube on and got him up on his knees …,” at page 159.
Another of the books, “Me, Earl, and the Dying Girl,” by Jesse Andrews, on page 60 appears to describe pedophilia between “Earl” and “Papa Gaines.”
Question: “Papa Gaines never sat you down, said, Son, one day you’re going to have to eat the p.....”
Earl: “No. But he did teach me how to eat a b.........”
“If you promote these books, you are supporting pornography for underaged children. Read the real words and look at the pictures for yourselves at www.booksinschools.com,” says the Citizens Taking a Stand press release.
“We want our children taught and while there were 40 of us at the Board meeting last night, there are thousands of us across the county. We won’t be silent anymore.”
The www.booksinschools.com website contains 16 of the removed books with detailed explanations of why the group believes the books are age inappropriate.
The group also released several videos on its YouTube channel (4) Political Videos Ga - YouTube containing the testimonies of press conference speakers, including parents and others - like Gays Against Groomers - raising alarm.
Gays Against Groomers is a new nationwide organization “fighting back from inside the community against the sexualization, indoctrination and medicalization of children happening under the guise of “LGBTQIA+.”
Parents have pointed out the content of some of the books is so sexually explicit that it could not be broadcast or read aloud on television.
In several instances around the country, those testifying before local school boards by reading passages from “banned books” have been asked – by school board members – to stop.
Some of the speakers were heckled by approximately 25 people supporting the books, including from the Cobb Community Care Coalition and the Human Rights Campaign.
The Cobb Community Care Coalition is “a group of parents, students, & community members” supporting “antiracism,” “social justice,” and “intersectionality.” They displayed signs saying, “Read banned books” and set up tables displaying many of the books.
The Human Rights Campaign is a national LGBTQ+ group in Washington, DC, with $75 million in annual revenue. In 2022, HRC celebrated “HRC & Drag Queen Story Hour Celebrate Banned Books Week”.
HRC’s Georgia State Director, transgender activist Bentley Hudgins, was in attendance. Hudgins stated in a February 2024 WABE radio interview, “This isn’t about the books. This isn’t about the kids. This is a concerted, well-funded effort to completely remove LGBTQ+ people from public life.”
Citizens Taking a Stand disagrees.
“The argument that this is somehow fighting against LGBTQ rights or orientation is a lie,” Rev. Francisco Vega stated during his press conference remarks. He said the books promote “sexual exploitation of innocent children,” arguing they “soft peddle” rape culture, sexual violence, and pedophilia.
Activists never make clear the connection between LGBTQ+ people living happy lives and their desire to “queer the norms” on everything related to sex and sexuality. Yet, LGBTQ+ activism insists the latter is necessary for the former.
Many gay men and lesbians around Georgia, however, report already living happy lives, without the need to reorder society as the Human Rights Campaign proposes.
Mother of three Arielle Kurtz described those supporting the books about sexual behavior between children as “some grossly misguided residents” who, instead of working towards a “common sense solution,” created “a political and social fight in our community.”
Ms. Kurtz encouraged Cobb County parents to visit www.booksinschool.com and see for themselves.
Three Cobb Democrat political candidates joined CCCC and HRC in supporting the books: Andrew Cole (running for school board post 7); Michael Garza (running for HD 46); and Gabriel Sanchez (running for HD 42).
Incumbent Republican Cobb school board members Randy Scamihorn and Brad Wheeler spoke at the press conference in support of Superintendent Ragsdale‘s decision to safeguard children from the books’ child-sex and other sexual content.
The Cobb County School District is the second largest public school system in Georgia and the 23rd largest in the United States.
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Sixth generation Georgian, Army vet, and lawyer, Jeff Cleghorn became a gay rights advocate in 1993. He worked on the staff of the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network, in Washington, DC, from 1997 through 2003, and served on SLDN's Board from 2007 through 2013. Cleghorn also served on the Boards of Lambda Legal and Georgia Equality, and is a past president of Georgia's Stonewall Bar Association. He now speaks out against transqueer ideology and its harms to children.
