Coronavirus relief funds allocated by the Arizona Department of Education were used to purchase several books depicting gay and transgender characters.
Earlier this year, the department and state Superintendent Kathy Hoffman fully funded a Tempe teacher’s “Learning To Love Reading Again” project, which sought to “build a classroom library full of critically acclaimed and diverse young adult literature.”
Among the books on the teacher’s list were several gay and transgender young adult novels, including The Girls I’ve Been, You Should See Me In A Crown, and Beauty Queens.
The parent activist group Parents Defending Education noted that The Girls I’ve Been “references sexual assault and rape,” while the other books depict various gay and transgender themes.
In a statement on the teacher’s donation page, the Arizona Department of Education said it was “proud to champion the efforts of teachers as we rebuild and recover from the pandemic.”
“From Superintendent Kathy Hoffman and ADE staff we hope this investment emphasizes our appreciation of your tireless work for Arizona’s students,” the department told the teacher. “It is our honor to support you in this way as you give so much of your time and talent to the students of our state.”
The teacher’s project was funded through an Education Department initiative that distributed the $14 million the state received in federal coronavirus relief funds.
In a statement to the Washington Examiner, Nicole Neily, the president of Parents Defending Education, criticized the state for using funds meant to help schools remain open on “highly controversial material.”
“When covid relief funds were being debated by Congress, the American people were told that this money was essential to keep schools open — which most parents assumed meant for air purifiers, masks, and other sanitation,” she said. “To learn that these tax dollars have been diverted to put highly controversial material in schools is insult to injury — particularly as families across the country struggle with the impact of inflation caused by such federal largesse.”
The Washington Examiner reached out to the Arizona Department of Education.
