School Moms: Parent Activism, Partisan Politics, and the Battle for Public Education

by Laura Pappano

An on-the-ground look at the rise of parent activism in response to the far-right attacks on public school education

For well over a century, public schools have been a non-partisan gathering place and vital center of civic life in America--but something has changed. In School Moms, journalist Laura Pappano explores the on-the-ground story of how public schools across the country have become ground zero in a cultural and political war as the far-right have made efforts to seek power over school boards.

Pappano argues that the rise of parent activism is actually the culmination of efforts that began in the 1990s after campaigns to stop sex education largely fizzled. Recent efforts to make public schools more responsive and inclusive, as well as the pandemic, have offered openings the far-right have been waiting for to organize and sway parents, who are frustrated and exhausted by remote learning, objections by teacher’s unions, and shifting directives from school leaders. Groups like Moms for Liberty and Parents Defending Education are organizing against revised history curricula they have dubbed as "CRT," banning books, pressing for "Don't Say Gay" laws, and asserting "parental rights" to gain control over the review of classroom materials. On the other side, progressive groups like Support Our Schools and Red, Wine & Blue are mobilizing parents to counter such moves.

Combining on-the-ground reporting with research and expert interviews, School Moms will take a hard look at where these battles are happening, what is at stake, and why it matters for the future of our schools.

Genres: Nonfiction, Education, Politics, Parenting, Audiobook

232 pages, Hardcover

Published January 30, 2024

Reviews

[Traci Thomas · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is interesting as a look at the right wing political mechanism that is attacking schools. I wish the book wasn't so focused on white parents. There are "School Moms" who are Black, queer, urban, disabled, Latina, etc. and this book ignores them and their activism for white suburban swing state mom. The book felt extremely narrow because of the narrow focus. A richer book would have the right wing and progressive approaches to show a more holistic version of what is happening in schools in America.

[Sarah Miller · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to Beacon Press for an advanced copy on Edelweiss+. As someone who does intellectual freedom work, reads a lot, has two kids in public school, and is an active “school mom”, this book checked a lot of boxes for me. Pappano’s education reporting background and expertise really shows. She centers librarians, administrators and teachers as well as the parents (mostly moms) who are involved in the current culture wars around books and education. The fact that she clearly pinpoints the targeting of public education by extremists is a breath of fresh air. She doesn’t act like there are valid reasons for what is going on or accept the framing that the extremists use. Which is, unfortunately, rare. I learned a lot and appreciated the variety of stories from schools and districts around the country.

I think my only quibbles are that I wish there was more engagement with the ideas and quotes from her subjects and that the good educational experiences she talks about in the epilogue were more integrated into the rest of the book.

Overall, I really appreciated this work and would recommend it for anyone hoping to look deeper into the effect parents and parents groups have, do, and will have on public education.

[Ari Damoulakis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ok so I hope my friends in America will read this book, and be boosted by it to be motivated to vote in this important election.
Ok, the sad fact is, even if trump loses, I unfortunately think the culture war and the manipulative far-right is far from over.
This book also explains exactly why the far-right are not just wrong, but mostly ‘evil’ hypocrites.

[Sasha · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is so well-researched and explains the uprise of conservative far-right parents in education. I devoured this book with its court cases and school board election results. One of my favorite parts was the narrative of Andrew Maraniss, a New York Times bestselling author, who cited the Bible, Ezekiel 23:20-21:"20 There she lusted after her lovers, whose genitals were like those of donkeys and whose emission was like that of horses. 21 So you longed for the lewdness of your youth, when in Egypt your bosom was caressed and your young breasts fondled.[a]" (49). (I am pretty sure no book in my classroom library is that interesting.) Pappano points out that we are dealing with a changing school population, "in 1986, 70.4% of US public school systems were white. By 1995, that percentage had dropped to 64.8 percent and by 2020, whites were 46 percent, less than half of the public school population. The white population is projected to fall further, to 43 percent, by 2030, according to the National Center for Education Statistics" (117) With these changing school population, it is more important now to embrace diversity and make all students feel comfortable and safe in school.

[Jennie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Full review: When I saw this in the new releases on the library website, I put it on hold immediately. And I ended up reading most of this book in multiple school pick-up lines, which seems rather apt.

This book is a deep dive into the history of the far-right/religious movement and how it latched on to school boards. There were many times I wanted to scream in rage and frustration at the underhanded and distorted reality that movement embraces, much how I feel when reading comments online on the local news posts.

There was a lot of background information, which is useful to have a full understanding of the politicization of school boards.

The one thing that I wanted was more diverse “school moms” at the forefront of the text. Maybe it was beyond the main scope of the book’s intention, but it was noticeably missing to me.


Initial thoughts: A better review to come, but this is a well-written and researched book that I highly recommend. I do wish it had more diverse perspectives in the interviews, especially the parents.

[Kacie McGoldrick · Rating 4 out of 5]

An important and timely read. 5 stars on the material alone. It’s a 4 star read overall for me based upon the organization of the material. The chapters seemed disjointed and relied heavily on one another (I.e., people connected in multiple chapters without referencing that they’d already been discussed). This was definitely done on purpose, as each could be read as their own academic “paper” but as a whole it made it challenging to orient myself.

[Crystal · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5

[Sheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Thoughtful Read

This book, while obviously biased (the author admits as much), is really well researched and brings to light the issues facing public education, specifically what is happening through school boards across our country.

[Gretchen Hohmeyer · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think this book is a good, if narrow, look at what is happening in the public school system right now. Her accounts are centered on predominantly white families in suburban areas. While this may be because that's where a lot of this commotion is happening, it still felt like a very narrow window into the subject. The book is written well and Pappano clearly has a deep love for the public school system along with her years of reporting. However, as someone who closely follows this issue--as a current educator and former librarian--I don't necessarily know what this book told me about the various sides of the arguments that I haven't read in the news. It's an excellent, short, look at individual but specific examples that would be a good starting point for someone looking to educate themselves more on current events.

[Stacie · Rating 5 out of 5]

"The debate that is occurring across the country is not actually about education and schooling. The current tug-of-war is not rooted in a passion for the success of all children. It is not about the skills and knowledge students need to become contributing adults and citizens. Neither is it about differing beliefs in how we raise our own children and instill in them the moral and social values that make them good people and make us proud parents. Rather, this debate is about the hijacking of public education by a far-right Christian movement."

[Kim Nyborg · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Democracy demands participation."
This book really shines a light on everything that's going wrong with school boards & why we have such a hard time getting and keeping good teachers right now.
Well researched & full of facts and good sources.
The book really focuses on mostly white, suburban areas - we know these problems also exist along with a slew of others in urban and more diverse areas however the rural, white areas use the fear of those 'others' to get on the board and make unnecessary changes that take away from learning about others.

[Natalie · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is a disjointed attempt to reconcile issues within schools today and identify the “far right” as the sole antagonists. It tries to draw a line between “CRT” branded curriculum changes, LGBT (emphasis on T) issues, pandemic era anti-mask campaigns, and an influx in interest, money and attention to board of education elections. The book fails to recognize legitimate concerns of parents, instead dismissing them as far-right crusaders or as dark-money puppets. By failing to air legitimate concerns and approach these issues with humility, it loses credibility and its message is diluted. One particular passage early in the LGBT chapter stood out to me, in which a school moves biology classes to pre-pubescent children online because a boy who identifies as a girl wants to attend the sex-segregated class for girls. The emphasis is placed on the comfort of the trans child, not the needs of the 10-15 pre-pubescent girls who are losing an opportunity to learn about their bodies and ask intimate questions about the changes they’re experiencing. Why would a biologically male child need to be in there at all? Regardless of his identity, he does not have the biology of a female body. He is both an unnecessary and distracting presence in the girl’s instruction, and missing the instruction relevant to his own body. Instead, the constant pandering to transgender children and placing their desires over the needs of the rest of the kids continues on. I’m a “suburban mom,” and far from “far-right.” The science on transgenderism is not settled (one need only to look at recent studies coming out of Finland, England, and elsewhere), and books such as these that attempt to act as if it is so only hurt their message. There are many thorny issues yet to be decided in the realm of sex-based rights, that are relevant to the parents at a local level (see Loudon County VA sexual assaults by a trans identified biological male, their bathroom policy that allowed him into female spaces, and subsequent transfer of the aggressor resulting in a second SA), that won’t be silenced with accusations of transphobia. We must consider the needs of all children, not just those with this particular issue. That is what many of these parents are fighting for. This book fell flat.

[K. · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a decent tour of the culture war issues that have been hitting schools and libraries for the last few years.

If you follow news reporting closely on these subjects, this book may not add to your understanding, but it provides a good introduction and summary for the uninitiated. I want to praise the author for an even handed, thorough look at censorship in libraries. As a public librarian this topic has occupied a lot of my attention recently, and Pappano did the subject justice.

In the last section the author quotes someone saying that cultivating a pervasive atmosphere of fear and uncertainty, to encourage self censorship on the part of teachers and librarians, is actually the point of all this nonsense. But I don’t think the author hits this point hard enough in her earlier analysis. The vagueness of legislation is *meant* to get educators to anticipate what the government will and won't approve of, so they don't have to put in much effort, or be on record as being outright homophobic or racist. Censorship is so much more effective and insidious with this kind of plausible deniability built in.

This book also strengthened my perception that all these battles over the souls of children are proxy wars for what we wish adults would do. We don't have the power to take away adults’ freedoms, or more rarely we have a moral objection to it, so kids become a testing ground and incubator for ideologies.

Interesting and timely book, but nothing groundbreaking. 3 / 5 stars.

[Alex Gruenenfelder · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is based on a simple premise amidst the modern educational culture wars: "We have crossed a line, and people who have worked in and around education can feel it." Although it occasionally touches on anti-charter school and anti-reform talking points, I appreciated the book's overall focus on the history of the far-right and Christian right in modern school board politics, which I found highly detailed and well-researched.

Despite all of its strengths, however, this is an increasingly Democratic education essay as it advances. Complete with dubious pandemic era scientific studies and negative descriptions of critical race theory trainings that she supports, it can feel like the author is struggling to satisfy the base that she knows will make up her readership, even as she authors a well-written study. In this sense, it can feel lecturing and does at times drag on. However, I still overall found the book to be well done and highly recommend it to liberals who are looking for an exploration of such a controversial contemporary topic.

[JJ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Audible Version:
Narrator: Great!
1.2x speed

I thought this was a well researched book and I learned a lot of things about the long term & recent history of our schools, school boards, extremist takeover attempts, and how easily people have been brainwashed into these groups.

In my opinion this is primarily a history/documentation book about how we got to where we are today in 2024, this is not however, a book with a strong GUIDE to action.

It certainly explains things to look out for and lightweight calls to action by encouraging school board and voting involvement.

Would love to see the epilogue expanded on in a follow up website or guide to action with contact info, resources and plans of action that can be duplicated.

[Jen · Rating 5 out of 5]

A well-researched look at the extreme right-wing efforts to take over and politicize school boards in order to inject extremism into school curriculums. Pappano looks at districts around the country as well as groups that are attempting to combat the extremists’ efforts. She illustrates how dark money-funded groups like Moms for Liberty take advantage of voters lack of attention for down-ballot races like school board, reminding the readers that all elections matter. Pappano’s extensive experience in the education realm shows through in her understanding of the subject, the damage that’s being done, and the potential for even more dire outcomes. All votes should pick up this book.

[Melody · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well researched- although as many books like this tend to do, there is some repetition as some of the information may have appeared in other publications or writings and was put in to the book. I'm not surprised by any of it as I am a public school librarian, but it's still infuriating. I wish more people in the moderate middle would read this and be less apathetic in their voting participation in smaller local elections. Pappano does show the regret many have when they fail to turn up to vote and right wing extremists take power. I kind of want to be like, "duh, what did you think would happen?"

[Rolf · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting analysis of contemporary conservative activism around public schools--it begins with a focus on Moms for Liberty, but expands to look at a number of recent controversies, such as book bans, school board elections, and the like.

While I agree with all of the analysis here, I feel honestly that the level of writing and rigor is stronger in two other books I’ve read recently on the same topic: Cara Fitzpatrick’s The Death of Public School and Mike Hixenbaugh’s They Came for the Schools. That said, this is still a solid contribution to the contemporary conversation on public education in the U.S.

[Shelby McCarty · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5* This book was really interesting, and Pappano does a great job of constructing a narrative storytelling. Because much of the reporting she shares is in Texas, it felt extra familiar as I’ve tried to loosely follow this movement in our neighbor state - looking for what to look for.
3.5 stars because I think it would have been valuable to broaden the scope and stories shared. It focuses on primarily white suburban districts and mothers, leaving out a large group of people who are equally fighting against the organized takeover of public schools.

[Sabrina · Rating 2 out of 5]

There is a lot to like about this book even though i am rating it low. The topic and history behind this book is extremely important. For me the scope of the book was a little too narrow and extremely one-sided (which was sort of the point i think) Though i strongly believe in the message of the book i didn’t enjoy the way it was delivered, and found myself burnt out and mentally exhausted hearing the stories of parents, students and educators that are currently living these situations, likely that feeling stems from already hearing so much of these stories in the news and social media.

[Shay Leszinske · Rating 3 out of 5]

A terrifying account on what is happening in our schools today. Hopefully with this coming to light in more communities, public outcry will change the outcome. A must read for parents and non parents alike! I received this book through Goodreads.

[Sarah Tibesar · Rating 5 out of 5]

Super interesting and well-researched perspective on the politicization of public schools. I had the pleasure of meeting this author while traveling and based on how smart she is and the experiences she’s had throughout her career I knew the book would be worth reading, and I was not disappointed.

[alyssia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good book! There wasn’t much in here I didn’t know as a public school teacher in a red state (featured in the book), but it was still a good read. I would have loved to see the author compare what, if any, of these grassroots efforts happen on the left and/or a direct call to action for the left.

[Dinah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very nice review of the phenomenon but disorganized and really lacking centrality. Read more like a series of short essays in the space several of which overlapped, making for a confusing read.

[d.f · Rating 4 out of 5]

Audiobook. A little disjointed but worth the read. Great anecdotal story telling.

[Hillary Copsey · Rating 3 out of 5]

A comprehensive look at the ways partisan politics has infiltrated local schools. If you've been following the news, you likely won't be surprised by anything in this book.

[Maxli Catenby · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good look overall, though limited by the author's appeals to apoliticality

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Must read for parents and teachers concerned about the impact of fringe groups, false narratives, and partisan politics on public schools. *With references to Williamson Co, TN.

[Jaclyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5⭐️

A good starting point if you’re new to the subject, but not much new info if you’ve been following. Too many specific players and quotes for my preference.

[The Geeky Bibliophile · Rating 4 out of 5]

Review to come.