LGBTQIA Council

We are Kentucky

Jennifer Bell

SCOTUS Just Opened the Door to Religious Censorship in Classrooms — Now What?

Legislation, Newsletter, Spectrum Kentucky

Today, the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) ruled that parents can opt their children out of public school classes if the curriculum conflicts with their religious beliefs. Specifically, they targeted books featuring LGBTQ+ characters in classrooms.

As the daughter of an English teacher, I can’t help but ask—where do we draw that line?

For instance, entire blogs rate Shakespeare’s characters by “gayness.” Academic debates have long surrounded the relationship between Achilles and Patroclus in The Iliad. Therefore, are we banning Homer now? Is Shakespeare too “controversial” to teach? This seems relatively objective for an educational ruling. Who gets to decide what is and isn’t “gay”? How many queer-coded characters get quietly erased in the process?

Let’s be honest: this isn’t about protecting children—it’s about controlling narratives. Why is it only now a problem when Christianity feels challenged? What about every other religion that’s had to tolerate curriculum clashes for decades?

We’ve already seen what happens when censorship wins—libraries gutted, book bans spreading, teachers walking on eggshells. Learning means expanding your worldview, not living in an echo chamber of the same thoughts and ideas. If we don’t learn as a society, how can we ever expect to grow?

While homophobes debate over what’s gay and what is not (the irony), I am going to double down.

📚 Want to help me get more queer books into more hands?

Let’s organize. Email me at [email protected], and let’s start building a reading list, a book drive, a banned book brigade, and little gay libraries—whatever it takes. Invite your friends. Pull your community in. Let’s make sure every kid who needs these stories can access them.

Because if they’re going to try to erase us from the curriculum, we’ll just write ourselves back in.

P.S. Can all the atheists in Texas opt their kids out now that schools are required to post the Ten Commandments? Asking for a secular friend.

Read a scholarly analysis of Achilles and Patroclus

Read NPR’s coverage of the SCOTUS opt-out decision

By Jenn Bell, Vice Chair of the LGBTQIA+ Council for Kentucky Democrats

The Kentucky Democratic Party Must Stand Together

Kentucky Spectrum

I attended a town hall with Congressman Morgan McGarvey at Central High School in Louisville yesterday. The room was full of other Kentucky Democratic Party members, and the energy was intense. People were angry. Frustrated. Tired of feeling powerless. Some attendees even called on McGarvey to take drastic action, such as getting arrested while demanding more from their elected officials. As the frustration continued, I kept wondering—why were Democrats turning their anger on each other?

Congressman Morgan McGarvey takes questions from engaged voters at a packed town hall in Louisville. Events like this are crucial for strengthening the Kentucky Democratic Party and ensuring every voice is heard. Change starts with us—through organizing, community building, and collective action. #MorganMcGarvey #KentuckyDemocrats #PoliticalActivism

Again and again, people asked, “How do we change the Kentucky Democratic Party?” The answer is simple: WE ARE THE PARTY. Every registered Democrat is a part of it. Change starts with us.

Yes, the challenges we face are real but finger-pointing at people in our own party won’t fix them. Organizing will. If we want a stronger Kentucky Democratic Party, we must build it. If we want better leadership, we must step up. We must work together. That’s exactly what the LGBTQIA Council for Kentucky Democrats is doing—creating a movement built on action, not just frustration.

The LGBTQIA community has long been at the forefront of progressive movements, and now more than ever, we need to lead by example. It means building coalitions, supporting candidates who fight for our values, and refusing to back down in the face of adversity. But action is what turns frustration into progress. Now is the time to channel our energy into meaningful change and build the future we want to see.

Take Action:

  • Join the LGBTQIA Council for Kentucky Democrats and become part of the movement. Sign up here.
  • Follow leaders like Morgan McGarvey and engage in policy discussions.
  • Attend town halls, rallies, and meetings to make your voice heard.
  • Support progressive candidates who fight for our values.
  • Donate to help us continue this fight. Contribute today.

The path forward is collective action. The power is in our hands. We are Kentucky.

Jennifer Bell