Don't let West Virginia legislators censor history!

West Virginia Senators have already passed a controversial new bill, and they don’t want you to notice. SB 498, the Educational Gag Order bill, bans West Virginia schools and universities from teaching the complete history of America. Now this censorship bill is headed to the WV House, and it could be moving to the Governor’s desk as soon as next week. Simply put, politicians are trying to inject culture war politics into the classroom.

Tell the West Virginia House to VOTE NO on the Educational Gag Order bill when it comes on the House floor, because all students—no matter their color, background, or zip code-–deserve an age-appropriate education rooted in facts.

With less than 5 days left in the West Virginia legislative session, we have to make our voices heard loud and fast so this bill doesn’t become law. Because of political maneuvering, NO parents, students, or teachers were allowed to testify against this controversial bill in the Senate. We believe the House will also try to rush the Educational Gag Order bill through their chamber.

If we don’t stop this bill, West Virginia will make banning history the law of the land.

If passed, the Educational Gag Order bill leads us down a slippery slope. If we ban teaching slavery, will we also ban teaching our children about Martin Luther King Jr. and Abraham Lincoln?

The Educational Gag Order bill also bans teaching that individuals should feel “discomfort, guilt, anguish, or any other form of psychological distress” due to their race or sex. In practice, this means teachers will simply skip talking about certain parts of history to not risk breaking the law––and our kids will lose out. This is censorship, and it is un-American.

The Educational Gag Order bill ensures that our children will be unprepared to think critically and independently when confronted with the challenges of the real world.


The reality is that politicized education decision-making is wrong and gives politicians—not parents or teachers—the power to decide what our kids learn.

Please add your voice and sign our petition: Tell the West Virginia Legislature to VOTE NO on Educational Gag Orders and allow schools and universities to teach ALL of history—not just the parts that politicians want your children to learn.