Today, the Legal Defense Fund (LDF) and Tyler Bailey of Bailey Law Firm, LLC filed a federal civil rights lawsuit on behalf of the South Carolina State Conference of the NAACP, South Carolina educators, students, and author Dr. Ibram X. Kendi (pictured) to challenge South Carolina Budget Proviso 1.79’s censorship of certain subject matter concerning racial inequalities and Black history and culture in K-12 public classrooms. South Carolina is one of more than 20 states that have adopted laws and policies to restrict discussions around race and gender inequalities in the classroom.
In the lawsuit, the plaintiffs assert that South Carolina Budget Proviso 1.79 is racially discriminatory and severely restricts teachers and staff from sharing information and knowledge about the history and experiences of Black people in South Carolina schools. Budget Proviso 1.79 restricts the use of state funding for the instruction, training, or use of pedagogical tools on topics related to racial and gender inequalities. Identical versions of the proviso have been reauthorized through the state budgeting process for the past four fiscal cycles, with version 1.79 taking effect last year. The proviso has led to the restriction of accurate, comprehensive education on race-related issues for South Carolina students, including the state-wide removal of the course code for Advanced Placement African American Studies and the censorship of books by Black authors.
“The State’s Budget Proviso 1.79 is a grave disservice to South Carolina students—an egregious attempt to erase the history, heritage, and lived experiences of Black communities from classrooms, despite their overwhelming role in shaping the very fabric of our state,” said plaintiff President Brenda Murphy of the South Carolina State Conference of the NAACP. “Let’s be clear: political attempts to distort history and truth only perpetuate ignorance, division, and hate. This censorship measure poses a significant, chilling threat to comprehensive education for all students at a time where the teaching of cultural understanding and inclusivity in our classrooms is needed more than ever. We stand firmly against the State’s censorship and are committed to ensuring that public education in our state provides the quality, breadth, and depth that students deserve.”
Dr. Kendi agreed, saying: “It is my duty to join this lawsuit as a voracious reader who believes in the freedom to read, as an antiracist author who believes we should all be learning about the history of racism not banning books about it, and as a historian who has documented when South Carolina enslavers and segregationists banned books about abolition and civil rights."