Welcome to the New SC Legislative Session

Featuring: censorship and anti-LGBTQ+ legislation.

As South Carolina’s new legislative session begins, a lot of stupid bills have already been pre-filed. For example, on January 9, the House is devoting one of its first committee meetings to discussing a bill once again targeting transgender youth. One of the salient features of the bill for those of us following education policy is that it requires school staff to out transgender students to their parents.

Of course, in an ideal world, all parents would know everything that was going on with their kids, and there would never be a disconnect between what teachers and parents know. In the real world, most reports of child abuse and neglect come from the schools. This is such a widely-understood phenomenon that it became a centerpiece of many arguments to physically “reopen” schools in the early days of the pandemic.

Unfortunately, although most parents and guardians are supportive of their children, LGBTQ+ students face more dangers at home— including violence and abandonment— than thei…