Judd Legum

Judd Legum @JuddLegum

10. In September 2019, a parent emailed Northview High School principal Michael Sherrill objecting to Baggett's classroom conduct. The email stated that Baggett "has expressed her utter distaste for homosexuals to her students." https://t.co/gILImgB9gJ — PolitiTweet.org

Judd Legum @JuddLegum

9. The student targeted by Baggett's commentary later confirmed the story and said that Baggett made similar comments to her directly. According to the former student, Baggett "told me I was only gay because I hadn't found the right man." https://t.co/5GRITopELI — PolitiTweet.org

Judd Legum @JuddLegum

8. For example, Baggett allegedly told a 10th-grade student that her sister, who had a girlfriend, was "faking being a lesbian for attention" because "nobody's born that way." — PolitiTweet.org

Judd Legum @JuddLegum

7. Last month, Popular Information reported that former and current students accused Baggett of being openly homophobic in class. https://t.co/fZGNFPY1mx — PolitiTweet.org

Judd Legum @JuddLegum

6. Baggett also said she was concerned "a second grader would read this book, and that idea would pop into the second grader's mind… that these are two people of the same sex that love each other." https://t.co/0bAI79Rbed — PolitiTweet.org

Judd Legum @JuddLegum

5. In a December 2022 interview with Popular Information, Baggett said she objected to And Tango Makes Three because it exposes students to "alternate sexual ideologies" and contains "sexual innuendo." https://t.co/TbkOgBNaRc — PolitiTweet.org

Judd Legum @JuddLegum

4. The Escambia County school board sided with Baggett and banned the book, rejecting the unanimous recommendation of a committee comprised of teachers, administrators, librarians, parents, and community members https://t.co/gILImgB9gJ — PolitiTweet.org

Judd Legum @JuddLegum

3. In a challenge form submitted to the school district last August, Baggett said the book promoted the "LGBTQ agenda using penguins." Baggett said she believes the purpose of the book is "indoctrination" and that it was inappropriate for all grade levels. https://t.co/C2YihfQpP5 — PolitiTweet.org

Judd Legum @JuddLegum

2. One of the books banned by the Escambia County school board is And Tango Makes Three. The book is the true story of two male Penguins who build a nest together and raise an adopted child, Tango. There is no sexual content in the book. https://t.co/KrxgH5ZrMN — PolitiTweet.org

Judd Legum @JuddLegum

1. The school board in Escambia County, Florida just banned three books from public schools at the request of Vicki Baggett, a high school English teacher accused by numerous students of being openly racist and homophobic in class https://t.co/w0MSDWUNAr — PolitiTweet.org

Judd Legum @JuddLegum

Overall, according to @DuvalSchools, just 6,000 of the district’s 1.6 million books are currently available to students. — PolitiTweet.org

Judd Legum @JuddLegum

Hey Peter: FYI, the video was not bullshit. I have reported out this story and @DuvalSchools confirmed that the empty shelves in the video used to contain the entire fiction section of the library, which was boxed up in response to the new laws. https://t.co/ppvyQSe5g6 — PolitiTweet.org

Judd Legum @JuddLegum

RT @FLFreedomRead: “Pierce confirmed that the empty shelves in Covey’s video once housed “the fiction titles,” but those titles were remove… — PolitiTweet.org

Judd Legum @JuddLegum

RT @JuddLegum: BREAKING The school board in Escambia County, Florida just voted to BAN AND TANGO MAKES THREE, the true story of two male P… — PolitiTweet.org

Judd Legum @JuddLegum

14. If you value the FACTS about what's happening in Florida and elsewhere, please don't rely on an algorithm controlled by a right-wing billionaire. Subscribe to Popular Information and get the facts directly to your inbox. It's free to sign up. https://t.co/TfpCItdVSo — PolitiTweet.org

Judd Legum @JuddLegum

@mom_nori These aren't my numbers. They come from Duval County. If you don't think they are accurate, take it up with Duval County. — PolitiTweet.org

Judd Legum @JuddLegum

13. Special shoutout to the "Twitter Blue" trolls in my mentions who insisted the shelves Covey filed were only empty because the library was being remodeled. Impressive ability to just make stuff up. I'm looking forward to your next fever dream. https://t.co/ppvyQSe5g6 — PolitiTweet.org

Judd Legum @JuddLegum

12. The text of these laws apply to classroom instruction, not library books. But the Florida Department of Education refuses to say whether the laws apply to library books or not Counties, especially those aligned with DeSantis, are reading the laws expansively — PolitiTweet.org

Judd Legum @JuddLegum

11. Further, media specialists in Duval are also reviewing every title for compliance with the "Don't Say Gay" law and the Stop WOKE law, two ambiguous statutes limiting discussion of around race and sexual identity — PolitiTweet.org

Judd Legum @JuddLegum

10. That is false. In Duval County the supervisor of media specialists personally reviewed The Best Man -- an innocuous book with no sexual content but two LGBTQ characters -- and deemed it "pornography" You can read the review yourself https://t.co/CYllff9374 https://t.co/XDRlEH0fb9 — PolitiTweet.org

Judd Legum @JuddLegum

@mtaibbi If a source repeatedly provides to you an incomplete and misleading narrative, like the one on Angus King, don't you have an obligation to figure out the accurate story before publishing? — PolitiTweet.org

Judd Legum @JuddLegum

9. The "fake narrative" was being pushed by DeSantis, who claimed the vetting process for books is easy and the only books that need to be removed are ones that "99% of people realize [are] wrong" https://t.co/GfN7gcYi48 — PolitiTweet.org

Judd Legum @JuddLegum

8. It should be noted that Covey was not fired for promoting a FAKE NARRATIVE He was fired for telling the truth about the availability of books in Duval County Public Schools https://t.co/ppvyQSe5g6 — PolitiTweet.org

Judd Legum @JuddLegum

7. DeSantis made his comments on February 14. On February 15, Covey received a 45-second phone call saying he was terminated. The staffing company that placed him said he violated the social media and cell phone policy. This is the only documentation Covey has received. https://t.co/nI0eJR6VbP — PolitiTweet.org

Judd Legum @JuddLegum

6. Brian Covey posted the video of the empty shelves at Mandarin Middle School on January 27. The admins at the school knew about it and said nothing to him. Until three weeks later, when DESANTIS ACCUSED COVEY OF PROMOTING A "FAKE NARRATIVE" Covey was fired the next day — PolitiTweet.org

Judd Legum @JuddLegum

5. Thus far, Duval County's 54 certified media specialists have reviewed and approved 6,000 books. That means 99.725% OF THE BOOKS IN THE DUVAL COUNTY SCHOOL SYSTEM REMAIN INACCESSIBLE TO STUDENTS — PolitiTweet.org

Judd Legum @JuddLegum

4. Across Duval County, Florida, there are 54 media specialists who are now responsible for reviewing 1.6 MILLION books If they approve the wrong book it could cost them their job -- or even result in a third-degree felony charge https://t.co/ppvyQSe5g6 — PolitiTweet.org

Judd Legum @JuddLegum

@DuvalSchools @RonDeSantisFL 3. @DuvalSchools says the books will be restored following a review by a certified media specialist, as now required by law The only problem: Mandarin Middle School like most schools in the county, doesn't have a media specialist — PolitiTweet.org

Judd Legum @JuddLegum

.@DuvalSchools told https://t.co/JhoV1QDaTS that the empty shelves filmed by Covey used to contain fiction titles in the school's library. All of those books were REMOVED following the passage of laws championed by @RonDeSantisFL https://t.co/ppvyQSe5g6 — PolitiTweet.org

Judd Legum @JuddLegum

UPDATE: Brian Covey, a full-time substitute teacher in Duval County, Florida, was FIRED for posting a video of empty bookshelves. This is the REAL STORY about why those shelves were empty and why Covey was let go https://t.co/fjpYiehwgJ — PolitiTweet.org