Proposed bills for the upcoming legislative sessions that are being dubbed as “Tennessee’s 2024 Slate of Hate” by the Tennessee Equality Project (TEP) include the banning of Pride and Black Lives Matter flags, and potential bans on LGBTQ+ content on the internet.
As the legislative session is set to begin on January 9, 2024, advocacy groups such as TEP are staying vigilant as proposed bills make their way to the forefront.
According to the Tennessee General Assembly, HB 1605, filed by Rep. Gino Bulso (R-Brentwood), would prohibit “LEAs and public charter schools from displaying in public school flags other than the official United States flag and the official Tennessee state flag.”
“This bill would have an impact on the flying of Pride and Black Lives Matter flags at school and many other flags as well,” said TEP.
In an Instagram post regarding the proposed “Slate of Hate,” users questioned whether this would also include the Confederate flag or flags of other countries used for geographical purposes.
“So you’re saying if I’m a Spanish teacher, I can’t display the flags of all the Spanish speaking countries of the world?” asked user @Joynicole12. “Recognizing flags, countries on a map, and knowing capitals are required by our standards.”
The other piece of legislation on the “Slate of Hate” is HB 1614, filed by Rep. Patsy Hazlewood (R-Signal Mountain), would enact the “Protect Tennessee Minors Act.”
“The “Protect Tennessee Minors Act”; requires an individual or commercial entity that publishes or distributes in this state a website that contains a substantial portion of material harmful to minors perform reasonable age-verification methods to verify the age of individuals attempting to access the material; specifies that a violation of age-verification or data retention requirements is a Class C felony,” the bill summary reads.
A similar bill in Mississippi, Senate Bill 2346, went into effect in July of this year, and currently provides “liability for any entity that distributes on the internet without age verification.”
TEP said that while they are unsure of how “material harmful to minors is defined,” they have concerns that “it could include all LGBTQ content.”
What the Tennessee General Assembly has defined as “harmful to minors” in past legislative sessions has been criticized by groups such as the American Civil Liberties Union of Tennessee (ACLU-TN).
Regarding the proposed ban on drag shows earlier this year, ACLU-TN said “the legal definition of ‘harmful to minors’ in Tennessee is very narrow and only covers extreme sexual or violent content with no artistic value.”
TEP plans to update the “Slate of Hate” as more bills become available. The group is currently hosting postcard parties against “discriminatory legislation,” and is gearing up for their “Advancing Equality Day on the Hill” on February 13th.
