Libs of TikTok to Advise Oklahoma on School Library Books
Oklahoma's top education official has named Chaya Raichik, who posts online as Libs of TikTok, to an advisory committee for school libraries.
Oklahoma’s State Superintendent of Public Instruction has appointed Chaya Raichik, the anti-LGBTQ activist who founded the Libs of TikTok account, to an advisory committee that will determine what books students will be allowed to access in schools.
Ryan Walters, the state’s top education official, announced that Chaya Raichik — who does not live in Oklahoma — would serve on the Oklahoma State Department of Education’s Library Media Advisory Committee.
The committee determines whether a book violates the provisions outlined in Oklahoma’s Media Program rules, which were adopted last year by the department, with the intent of routing out any materials — including books, teacher manuals, videos, audio recordings, and online or multimedia resources — that could be deemed “sexual” or “age-inappropriate” for minors.
Under the rule, school districts are required to provide a comprehensive, updated list of all books and other materials in school libraries to the department of education, which then reviews the books and demands the removal of any deemed to have “sexual content.”
Raichik is famous for her posts on X targeting the cultural Left, the LGBTQ community and its allies, and educators who promote concepts like diversity, tolerance, or anything that can be branded “woke,” such as talking about racism, cultural identities, or LGBTQ-related content.
Through the Libs of TikTok account, Raichik routinely rails against LGBTQ people or allies for allegedly seeking to “indoctrinate,” “groom,” or “sexualize” children by exposing them to LGBTQ content or allowing children to be in proximity to LGBTQ people, particularly trans and nonbinary individuals or drag queens.
Walters posted a statement on X, praising Raichik’s contributions to the broader culture and for educating parents about the threat that such views pose to their children.
“No one has done more to expose what the radical left is all about than @ChayaRaichik10 and @libsoftiktok. Her’s (sic) is a powerful voice to protect Oklahoma kids from porn in schools and woke indoctrination. I’m proud to have her on our team.“
No one has done more to expose what the radical left is all about than @ChayaRaichik10 and @libsoftiktok. Her's is a powerful voice to protect Oklahoma kids from porn in schools and woke indoctrination.
I'm proud to have her on our team. pic.twitter.com/gYXwgLyNYM
— Superintendent Ryan Walters (@RyanWaltersSupt) January 23, 2024
As State Superintendent of Public Instruction, Walters has carried out a crusade to ban “pornographic material” and “sexualized content” from public school libraries, flagging four books for removal for being “pornographic,” four others for questionable content, and 190 children’s books that contain LGBTQ themes.
He also introduced rules to “out” trans-identifying students to their parents if they request to have their gender identity acknowledged or change their pronouns in school.
Despite Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond issuing an opinion declaring the rules unenforceable because they were not approved by the state legislature first, Oklahoma’s Department of Education has insisted it has the power to enforce such provisions, which are needed to protect children’s innocence and strengthen parental rights.
Walters has said that he wanted the state’s teachers to take “patriotic education” courses offered by Hillsdale College, a conservative Christian institution, so that they can teach their students what he called “true history” to ensure that students were not “taught indoctrination” or “taught this country is an evil place full of bigoted racists,” according to Oklahoma City ABC affiliate KOCO-TV.
Walters has pushed the false narrative that schools are providing litter boxes to students who identify as cats. He has also referred to teachers’ unions as “terrorist organizations.”
Raichik is a real estate agent from Brooklyn and does not live in Oklahoma. Critics claim her posts targeting LGBTQ educators and allies have allegedly led to multiple bomb and death threats against Oklahoma schools.
For example, one school district outside Tulsa received bomb threats on six consecutive days after Walter retweeted a Libs of TikTok video showing an elementary school librarian joking about spreading a “woke agenda” at public school, as reported by NBC News.
One parent whose child attends public school in one of the districts targeted by bomb threats accused Walters of seeking to align himself with Libs of TikTok to raise his public profile and pander to right-wing voters.
“Anything that will get him likes and shares and on Fox News or Newsmax, that’s what he’s going to do,” the parent told The Norman Transcript.
Of Raichik, the mother said it’s obvious that she’s pushing a conservative social agenda.
“I don’t really care what your politics are, but when you start putting things out on the internet that endangers our kids, I have a problem with that,” she said of the bomb threats against schools.
Raichik celebrated her appointment on social media, writing, “WE WILL GET PORN OUT OF SCHOOLS!”
Raichik has claimed she is merely sharing information and can’t control how people respond to her posts. She previously told the Oklahoma Voice, “If you’re going to sexualize kids and introduce really inappropriate subjects in school, I’m going to call it out.”
Support Metro Weekly’s Journalism
These are challenging times for news organizations. And yet it’s crucial we stay active and provide vital resources and information to both our local readers and the world. So won’t you please take a moment and consider supporting Metro Weekly with a membership? For as little as $5 a month, you can help ensure Metro Weekly magazine and MetroWeekly.com remain free, viable resources as we provide the best, most diverse, culturally-resonant LGBTQ coverage in both the D.C. region and around the world. Memberships come with exclusive perks and discounts, your own personal digital delivery of each week’s magazine (and an archive), access to our Member's Lounge when it launches this fall, and exclusive members-only items like Metro Weekly Membership Mugs and Tote Bags! Check out all our membership levels here and please join us today!
