1. United States
2. Fla.
3. Letter

I am writing to urge you to oppose H.R. 7661, the "Stop the Sexualization of Children Act." While its title sounds like child protection, a closer reading reveals something far more troubling: a federal framework for restricting everyday Americans' access to books and information. This legislation depends on most people never reading past the headline. The bill's name invokes the safety of children, something every American cares deeply about. But the actual text tells a different story. It would prohibit federal education funds from supporting any materials deemed "sexually oriented," a term so vaguely defined that it explicitly includes content related to "gender dysphoria or transgenderism." That is not a definition of sexual content. That is a definition of people and their stories. This bill also harms the most vulnerable students most. Not children with parents who can buy books privately, but kids who rely entirely on their school or public library. Removing books doesn't eliminate questions. It eliminates the feeling of being seen. The American Library Association has been clear: library materials are selected by trained professionals who understand child development and age appropriateness. Parents already have the right to guide their own child's reading. What H.R. 7661 does is replace that individual family freedom with a broad, government-imposed restriction, the very opposite of the parental rights its supporters claim to champion. Censorship also doesn't stop at its first target. We have watched this pattern at the state and local level for years. Vague language introduced under the banner of protecting children is applied first to LGBTQ+ books, then to books about race, then to any literature that reflects a diverse America. History tells us it rarely stops there. I urge you to see this bill for what it is: not a shield for children, but a tool for controlling information. A free society depends on a free exchange of ideas, including ideas that make some people uncomfortable. That discomfort is not danger. It is democracy. Please oppose H.R. 7661 and stand firmly for the freedom to read.