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Cherry Creek schools threatened over false claims about LGBTQ+ books in libraries

Cherry Creek School District said it received a bomb threat last week after Libs of TikTok accused them of providing pornographic books to elementary-age children.

DENVER — Cherry Creek School District said they received a bomb threat last Friday, after a far-right social media account with millions of followers accused them of providing pornographic books to elementary school kids.

In an email to parents, Superintendent Christopher Smith wrote that it was bombarded with hundreds of emails and calls from a majority of out of state people regarding the initial claim about books in its libraries. 

The account that posted the accusation, Libs of TikTok, has a history of targeting LGBTQ+ people. It started circulating the claim that Cherry Creek schools were providing pornographic books to elementary school students on X, formerly known as Twitter.

Credit: 9NEWS

The claim was picked up by the Colorado Parent Advocacy Network, a conservative parents-rights group promoted by former Republican senate candidate and talk radio host Deborah Flora. It was then amplified by former Republican gubernatorial candidate Heidi Ganahl.

Credit: 9NEWS

According to the district, the anonymous bomb threat was against three elementary schools and two administrative buildings. It also said Arapahoe County deputies determined the threats weren't credible.

Cherry Creek said despite the uproar, no one has filed an official request to ban any of the books. If anyone did take action, the district added that none of the titles being discussed are available in any elementary school libraries.

Smith emphasized the district's position on supporting LGBTQ+ students, writing, "I will not tolerate threats made to our community or abusive language or insults directed toward our teachers and staff members who genuinely care about our students and work tirelessly every day to inspire them to learn and grow. I will not tolerate harassment or attacks against our LGBTQ+ community. The attacks from last week were driven by hate and have no place in our schools."

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