State AG asks schools to adopt resolution to prohibit drag shows

Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey has asked the Missouri School Boards’ Association to urge its members to adopt a resolution pledging to inform parents about instruction and programs relating to “human sexuality” and give them the chance to opt out.

In his letter to the MSBA, Bailey said Missouri law requires instruction in human sexuality to be “appropriate to the age of the students” and requires districts to inform parents of the basic content of the instruction and their right to remove their student from instruction.

Bailey also included a model resolution that he asked the MSBA to encourage its members to adopt.

“It reaffirms the commitment of Missouri’s schools to advance our shared goal of protecting our children,” Bailey wrote. “It is my sincerest hope that MSBA will stand with me in this fight to protect Missouri children, promote adherence to Missouri law, and ensure parents are fully informed about human sexuality instruction in Missouri schools.”

Bailey pointed to recent events in which Columbia Public School middle school students went to an “event that featured a drag show performance” which he called “inherently sexualized performances.”

In January, some CPS students attended the Columbia Values Diversity breakfast which included a performance by Nclusion+, though in a Jan. 22 letter, CPS Superintendent Brian Yearwood said any characterization of that performance as “having a ‘sexual nature’” was false.

The attorney general’s resolution says, “Issues of sexual orientation, gender identity and gender expression are inextricably intertwined with human sexuality,” and the resolution makes specific reference to drag performances. The resolution states the district will not allow students to participate in programs or instruction unless it complies with the statute requiring content be age appropriate and that the district communicate with parents about the content and their ability to opt out.

Media contacts at MSBA did not respond to requests for comment.

The Jefferson City School District and Blair Oaks School District are members of MSBA. Jefferson City declined to comment for this story. Blair Oaks said it uses MSBA’S services for hiring searches, board member training and professional development, but uses Missouri Consultants for Education policies, and any policy that the district would consider would have to be discussed by the board.