All,

Thank you so much for taking part in the email call to action last week. We heard from members of the House Criminal Justice Committee that they did indeed receive our emails, but they have received a TON for the other side. They said the best strategy NOW is: INDIVIDUAL AND PERSONAL EMAILS AND CONNECTIONS. To that end, our ask of you this time is more than clicking a link to send emails. This will take more time, but it will have a HUGE impact. If you saw the subcommittee meeting yesterday in which School Librarians were placed in the same category as pedophiles and accused with creating an entire generation of Ted Bundy-esque people, then you're as fired up as I am about this issue and won't mind the extra time it takes to voice your opinion.

What do I need you to do?

Take a look at THIS SPREADSHEET.

These are the members of the House Criminal Justice Committee who will hear HB 1944. You can grab their emails and phone numbers to contact them. I have highlighted the "Cities in the District" column. IF YOU LIVE AND/OR WORK IN ONE OF THESE CITIES OR COUNTIES, PLEASE USE YOUR INFLUENCE!!!! Talk to your library board, county commissioners, city council/aldermen, school board. You KNOW you have connections in your local municipality because you're WORKING in your local municipality. SOMEONE coming to your library or connected to you has ties to these reps. FIND THAT LIBRARY POSITIVE CONNECTION AND USE THEIR INFLUENCE! This is literally what they mean when they say "all politics is local." So, get that Chamber of Commerce employee who's the first cousin of the best friend's wife who brings her daughter to summer reading to speak to the rep. (or something like that)

In 2020, we had a grandmother who was a devoted library user call her grandson, who was a State Senator and demand to know why he was messing with the libraries. In 1920, a mother's telegram from Knoxville to her son in the Legislature swayed the deciding vote on the ratification of the 19th Amendment.

FIND THOSE CONNECTIONS AND USE THEM, y'all! I know I'm using all CAPS a lot here, but I am trying to express the urgency of the situation. We are up against a minority of people, but they are so organized and vocal, they are making headway. The consequences of their actions will devastate all libraries, not just school libraries, if they win these battles.

NEXT WEEK,on Wednesday, March 2, if you can make it to the Cordell Hull building in Nashville at 9:00am for the Criminal Justice Subcommittee meeting to hear HB 1944, WE NEED YOU there! We want to fill the place with pro-library people.

PLEASE don't shrug this off and think someone else will take action on your behalf. I am not exaggerating when I say it's going to take all of us working together to defeat this legislation. Please. tell them to vote No on HB1944. Tell them to trust the processes already in place at the local level. Tell them that HB1944 is a government overreach of local authority. Tell them that School libraries are not providing obscene materials to children! Tell them that school districts will be faced with first amendment violation litigation. Just tell them, and get others to tell them.

Please take action.

In solidarity,

Sharon Kay Edwards