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North Carolina lawmaker presses school officials on explicit books

North Carolina State Rep. Brenden Jones grills Chapel Hill-Carrboro school district officials on books he says aren't in compliance with Parents' Bill of Rights state law. (video courtesy: Rep. Brenden H. Jones)

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A North Carolina school district faced pressure from Republican lawmakers on Wednesday at a heated oversight hearing, where legislators threw LGBTQ children's books and accused school officials of openly violating parts of a new parental rights law that requires parents be notified about gender identity changes and LGBTQ-themed curriculum for young children.

Officials with Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools appeared before the North Carolina House Select Committee on Oversight and Reform to testify about their compliance with the Parents’ Bill of Rights, Senate Bill 49.

SB 49, passed in August 2023, bars instruction on sexual orientation and gender identity from kindergarten through fourth grade in public schools, requires schools to notify parents about health services, well-being changes and any requested changes to a child’s name or pronouns, and gives parents the right to review materials and opt in or out of sex-related instruction.

In written testimony submitted ahead of the hearing, School Board Chair George Griffin and Superintendent Rodney Trice said the district "has always been, and continues to be, in compliance with the law." However, lawmakers pressed school officials on past comments from Griffin in January 2024 calling the bill "discriminatory" and suggesting the board did not need to follow it entirely, according to WRAL.

Griffin also wrote in a February 2024 email to staff that the district had adopted the new law as policy but intentionally left out sections dealing with classroom instruction on gender identity and the parental-notification requirement for name or pronoun changes, the outlet reported.

Officials with North Carolina's Chapel Hill–Carrboro City Schools faced a grilling Wednesday at a hearing over their compliance with the state's Parents' Bill of Rights. (Dawn Baumgartner Vaughan/The News & Observer/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)

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State House Majority Leader Brenden Jones, R-Columbus, confronted the officials at the hearing.

"You’re here today because you chose to wage war against the law," Jones said. "You chose to deceive the public, and now you’re here because you got caught."

"This wasn’t passive resistance," he added. "It was a coordinated middle finger to this legislature and every parent in your district."

During the hearing, Jones held up several books he said were being promoted by the district on its website, including "Santa’s Husband," which tells the "true story of Mr. and Mr. Claus" and features "a Black Santa, his White husband and their life at the North Pole." Jones said the book had been promoted as a "top pick" for elementary students.

He also read from the book, "These Are My Eyes, This Is My Nose, This Is My Vulva, These Are My Toes," including a passage saying "some boys have a penis but not all boys do," as well as a line advising children, "Always use your manners, ‘May I ask what I can call you?’"

Republican state Rep. Brenden H. Jones of North Carolina. (Robert Willett/The News & Observer/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)

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Jones further questioned officials about "It Isn’t Rude to Be Nude," which he said is rated for very young children and features cartoon drawings of nude adults. He claimed these titles were recommended in the district’s elementary resources.

"Do you think it’s appropriate for 4-year-olds to be exposed to naked men and women and soft porn?" Jones asked Trice during the hearing.

Trice replied that such material would not be appropriate, but said he did not know whether the books were actually recommended by the district.?

Throughout the hearing, Trice and Griffin maintained that the district was complying with state law. Griffin apologized for any confusion caused by his earlier comments and said the provisions the board initially held back in February were later adopted after administrators were instructed to develop detailed procedures and employee guidance, WRAL reported.

North Carolina Republicans accused a school district of violating the state's Parents' Bill of Rights with LGBTQ material for young students. (ANGELA WEISS/AFP via Getty Images)

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A spokesperson for Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools denied claims that the books Jones referenced were offered in schools or listed as recommended reading.

"Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools is committed to parental involvement in everything we do," the district spokesperson told Fox News Digital. "We believe it’s essential that staff, families and students work together to achieve the best outcomes in our schools. We appreciated the opportunity to answer questions and clarify any misunderstandings. As our testimony demonstrated, CHCCS is in compliance with the law."

Jones pushed back on the district's statement.

"The School District’s attempts to conceal the filth they’re peddling to children just further goes to show how egregious their actions are," he told Fox News Digital. "Rather than admit fault, they spent this morning trying to dodge backlash, spinning the narrative after they got caught violating the same laws they bragged about breaking earlier this year. Their website has a recommended reading section found under their LGBTQ Elementary Resources page that directly links kids to a resource that not only includes, but recommends the filth we called them to answer for. That fact is undisputed. If Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools is so ashamed of the books they’re recommending to children, they should just own up to it and take down the links."

His office provided an October screenshot showing a link to "LGBTQIA+ Resources In Our District" on the district's website under its "Equity and Engagement" section. The link on that page appears to have been removed, but the page is still hosted elsewhere on the school district’s site.

On that page for "Elementary Resources", the district lists recommended third-party resources for elementary school students. The books "Santa's Husband," "It Isn’t Rude to Be Nude," and "These Are My Eyes, This Is My Nose, This Is My Vulva, These Are My Toes" were linked under the district’s "Book lists" section.

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