Senate Bill 401 was proposed in response to controversy that erupted in January after a teacher put a sex education poster on a classroom door at a Shawnee Mission middle school in Johnson County. The poster, entitled “How do people express their sexual feelings?,” featured a list of 17 behaviors ranging from holding hands to sexual intercourse. A parent complained, the poster was removed, and the sex education program was suspended pending a review of the instructional materials.
SB 401 would remove an exemption in current law that protects materials that are part of “an approved course or program of instruction.” As a result, teachers may be held accountable for accidental exposure to materials deemed offensive or even for the use of traditionally accepted educational materials — such as Shakespeare’s plays, classical art and sculpture, and literature — if someone in the community decides the content is offensive.
Advocates for the bill argue that a clause defining offensive material as anything a “reasonable person would find that the material or performance lacks serious literary, scientific, educational, artistic or political value for minors” would protect most educational materials
Kind of a scary bill for Kansas Educators. With this type of language an accidental showing of “offensive material” (which has a different meaning for each individual) could happen at a field trip to even the state capitol that has a bare breasted woman in a piece of art in the rotunda.
Thanks to Comic Book Legal Defense Fund for keeping an eye on this and Betsy Gomez for the article. When more information is released I’ll post it.
