Ryan Walters names Libs of TikTok creator to Oklahoma school library panel – Arkansas Advocate

OKLAHOMA CITY — An out-of-state conservative running the far-right-wing social media account Libs of TikTok will sit on an Oklahoma committee reviewing school library content.

State Superintendent Ryan Walters announced on Tuesday he named Chaya Raichik to a Library Media Advisory Committee at the Oklahoma State Department of Education.

Over the past year, Walters and the Oklahoma State Board of Education passed new rules that prohibit pornographic material and sexualized content from school libraries. Violating the rules could result in an accreditation downgrade for a district.

The Library Media Advisory Committee reviews books in question to give recommendations on whether they contain banned content.

The volunteer committee is made up of parents, current or retired librarians, and English literature teachers, according to the state Education Department. And now it will add Raichik, a Brooklyn real estate agent who became a major voice in conservative social media channels.

She celebrated her committee appointment in a Tuesday social media post in all capital letters: “WE WILL GET PORN OUT OF SCHOOLS!”

Her account is known for calling out “pornographic” content in schools and for making anti-LGBTQ+ posts. Two Oklahoma school districts received bomb threats after being highlighted on Libs of TikTok.

“If you’re going to sexualize kids and introduce really inappropriate subjects in school, I’m going to call it out,” Raichik previously told Oklahoma Voice.

Walters has shared Libs of TikTok posts multiple times and met with Raichik in September. He said she has a “much-needed and powerful voice” and referred to her social media presence as a “tremendous platform that will benefit Oklahoma students and their families.”

“Chaya is on the front lines showing the world exactly what the radical left is all about — lowering standards, porn in schools, and pushing woke indoctrination on our kids,” Walters said in a statement. “Because of her work, families across the country know just what is going on in schools around the country. Her unique perspective is invaluable as part of my plan to make Oklahoma schools safer for kids and friendly to parents.”

Union Public Schools faced several days of bomb threats in August after Libs of TikTok shared a video from a district librarian, who satirically posted about pushing a “woke agenda.”

Libs of TikTok left out context from the video — a caption where the librarian stated her “woke agenda” was to teach children to love books and be kind. Walters shared the Libs of TikTok post on his own social media, stating “Woke ideology is real and I am here to stop it.”

The bomb threats against the Tulsa district stoked outrage throughout the state and prompted state lawmakers, both Republican and Democrat, to urge elected officials to tone down political rhetoric around education.

An Education Department spokesperson, Dan Isett, said Raichik isn’t responsible for the threats.

“The people who post bomb threats are the people who post bomb threats,” Isett said.

It was only a few weeks later that Walters and Raichik raised the alarm about another Oklahoma school district — Western Heights Public Schools.

They complained an elementary principal in the southwest Oklahoma City district performed as a drag queen in his spare time. Raichik also drew attention to a possession of child pornography charge the principal had faced two decades earlier.

That charge had been dropped and expunged from the principal’s record.

The episode put Western Heights and the principal at the center of a national firestorm, as Walters called for him to be fired while speaking on Fox News’ prime-time broadcast. The district also received a bomb threat, but Oklahoma City police determined it wasn’t credible.

Both Walters and Raichik have vocally opposed transgender people and their presence in schools.

The state superintendent also targeted books with LGBTQ+ themes. He said graphic novels like “Gender Queer” by Maia Kobabe and “Flamer” by Mike Curato contain explicit sexual images and shouldn’t be available to students.

His administration called for 190 books centering LGBTQ+ perspectives to be reviewed. The titles came from the American Library Association’s Rainbow Book List.

School library content also appears to be a concern among the state Legislature. Two bills on the topic have been filed for consideration in the coming legislative session.

Senate Bill 1208 from Sen. Warren Hamilton, R-McCurtain, would prohibit pornographic content in school libraries and would require all school districts to submit a list of their library materials to the state Department of Education.

SB 1888 from Sen. Rob Standridge, R-Norman, would ban books on the study of sex, sexual lifestyles or sexual activity and books that are “predominantly sexual in nature” from public schools.

This story was originally published by the Oklahoma Voice, which is a part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Oklahoma Voice maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Janelle Stecklein for questions: [email protected]. Follow Oklahoma Voice on Facebook and Twitter.