New State and Federal Proposals Threaten Free Speech

Socially conservative and far-right lawmakers in the U.S. Congress and legislatures in several Republican-held states have introduced proposals to further target the adult industry and other forms of constitutionally-protected speech, including young adult literature.

At the federal level, Utah Rep. Chris Stewart (R) told local news media in Salt Lake City that he intends to introduce legislation that would try and institute a blanket ban on social media for minors 16 years of age or younger. Stewart, a practicing Mormon, represents the 2nd district.

Citing a broad range of concerns, Stewart presents the bill as a child protection measure to stop minors from viewing inappropriate content or being at risk of mental and behavioral health issues associated with excessive social media use or interacting with criminals online. Critics of the bill have pointed out that while Stewart might have good intentions with his proposal, it whiffs of unconstitutional overreach. The overreach presents potential First Amendment violations and would impose an undue burden on the private companies that own and operate the targeted platforms. Stewart told ABC 4 anchor Glen Mills that he believes his measure will attract support from both sides of the aisle.

Stewart based his prediction of bipartisan support on a Wall Street Journal op-ed by President Joe Biden, a Democrat and critic of big tech like Stewart (but for many different reasons), calling on Congress to clamp down on regulations dealing with the largest tech companies, like Twitter or Meta-owned Facebook.

The likelihood of this bill passing is very slim, even if Stewart is telling the truth about support or interest in the measure from the Biden White House or the Democrat-controlled U.S. Senate. From the position of Congress, Republicans in the House are expected to put forth several measures that intend to restrict free speech that they deem obscene or they disagree with politically and spiritually. Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act of 1996 is expected to face not only a renewed legal battle, with the U.S. Supreme Court set to rule on the current legal interpretation of the law, but a legislative battle as well, with many Republicans (especially Trumpists) wanting the law to be repealed.

Certain state-level proposals are proving to be much more controversial than at the federal level. The LGBTQ Nation outlet recently reported that a newly elected Republican State Rep. Jeanette Ward in Wyoming has introduced House Bill 87 to the state legislature. The intent behind the bill is to remove LGBTQ books authored for young adults from both public schools and libraries across the state, notes the Casper Star-Tribune.

The bill is an attempt to expand Wyoming’s statute criminal definition of “child pornography” to broadly cover “any visual depiction, including any photograph, film, video, picture, cartoon, drawing, computer or computer-generated image or picture, whether or not made or produced by electronic, mechanical or other means, or any other form of [the] depiction of explicit sexual content.”

LGBTQ Nation contributor Molly Sprayregen observed that House Bill 87 would repeal “a law that gives exemptions for those who ‘possess or disseminate obscene material’ for activities related to schools, universities, colleges, museums, and public libraries.”

Critics have also noted that Ward’s proposal is an exercise in censorship and is fueled by right-wing pressure groups, such as the Moms for Liberty, a group that has grown notorious in recent years for publicly threatening and calling for the resignations of elected school board members, public school administrators, superintendents, teachers, librarians, and guidance counselors.

Advocates behind House Bill 87 describe many LGBTQ books as “pornographic”, regardless of any educational or artistic merit they have. One book of note is the critically-acclaimed graphic novel, Gender Queer: A Memoir, by illustrator Maia Kobabe. Critics of House Bill 87, including the American Civil Liberties Union of Wyoming, view that the measure is an attempt to intervene on legally-protected speech and the First Amendment right to read held by public school students.

ACLU of Wyoming also expressed concern over Senate File 117, which is being regarded as Wyoming’s attempt at replicating Florida’s highly controversial “Don’t Say Gay” law. This law, proposed by conservative Wyoming state lawmakers, is titled “Parental Rights in Education,” the same ‘branding’ used in the Florida statute. It would forbid public school teachers and educators in Wyoming from teaching about gender identity and sexual orientation to minors between kindergarten through third grade. Proponents of the bill say the measure isn’t anti-LGBTQ, but is a measure to protect parental rights in education. Critics see it as something more pernicious.

“This is a dangerous bill that wrongfully censors students’ and teachers’ right to free speech,” said Antonio Serrano, advocacy director for the ACLU of Wyoming, in a Jan. 18 statement, speaking of SF 117. “The vague language makes it unclear when standing up for students would mean breaking the law. Wyomingites must not allow the government to suppress First Amendment rights in the classroom without a fight.”

In Arkansas, there are two new proposals that are concerning from a free speech perspective. Local news reports indicate that two Arkansas state senators have put forth a measure requiring government identification and age verification to access an adult website within the state. Similar to the law that was passed in 2022 and went into force in Louisiana on Jan. 1,, Senate Bill 66 would require age verification through a digital wallet, as is the case for Louisiana porn consumers interested in accessing content on websites like Pornhub, MindGeek’s network of sites, xHamster, and others.

Another measure in Lousiana intends to reclassify drag queen performances as an “adult-oriented business” practice, with an addition of further restrictions on age and location. This was done to counter the so-called “drag queen story hours” that Republicans in Arkansas and in much of Trump country have openly criticized as “grooming” and a product of a moral panic alleging that left-wing forces are trying to indoctrinate youth. These notions are in part a product of Q-Anon conspiracy theories and xenophobic, anti-LGBTQ hysteria.

This bill, Senate Bill 43, and Senate Bill 66 have a very strong likelihood of passing in Arkansas. Sarah Huckabee Sanders, the current state governor and controversial press secretary for former President Donald Trump, is likely to sign these bills, given her party’s positions.

The ACLU recently published a dashboard outlining other anti-LGBTQ laws proposed across the United States. The Washington Blade reports that the ACLU is currently tracking at least 124 bills proposed in predominantly Red states. Texas, Virginia, South Carolina, and Missouri currently have over 10 anti-LGBTQ proposals for these respective state legislatures on the legislative calendars.

Man with tape on mouth photo by Sasith Mawananehewa from Pexels