TEP Chair Christopher Sanders
By kicking the bills, HB0821 and HB0812, sponsored by Rep. Stacey Campfield (R-Knoxville) to the House K-12 General Subcommittee, the house group consigned them to an uncertain fate, at least for now. While a vote to defeat them would have been preferred, this move is seen as a positive, said Chris Sanders, chair of the Tennessee Equality Project (TEP), which has been mounting an online campaign to stop the bills in advance of today’s committee meeting.
“They’re basically not moving now, so that’s good news,” Sanders said. “By moving them to the senate, the house has decided not to act on the issue and that’s a victory.”
As written, the bills would strip the state Department of Education and local education officials of the authority to choose curriculum. Of particular concern to TEP members was HB0821, which would ban the teaching of furnishing of materials on any sexuality other than heterosexuality in grades K-8.
As of Jan. 27, more than 325 people had contacted members of the house subcommittee to express their opinion on the bills, a move facilitated by contact information and access to legislators provided at TEP’s web site and through blast e-mails in recent days. That kind of response made a difference, Sanders said.
“We had a lot of people make sure they were heard on this, and this was the result,” he said. “This may not look like much, but this is a very good outcome for us.”
