Texas school board votes to remove “controversial” topics—including vaccines—from textbooks

Last week, a school board in Cypress, Texas, voted to remove a list of “controversial” topics from textbooks. Banned topics include vaccines, human development, climate and conservation, and diversity and culture. The decision gained widespread attention across social media platforms, with some social media users expressing support for the school board’s decision and others speaking out against it. One user wrote, “If adults in the suburbs don’t want vaccines, we should just let them live at risk of contracting the diseases. As long as tax payers don’t pay their medical bills.” 

Recommendation: Some social media posts about the school board’s decision are promoting false claims about vaccine safety and undermining the importance of herd immunity. This may discourage patients from getting recommended vaccines for themselves and for their children. Messaging may emphasize that recommended vaccines are safe for adults and children and protect people from serious, preventable illnesses. Experts attribute recent outbreaks of vaccine-preventable diseases to a decline in vaccination rates, which jeopardizes herd immunity. Ensuring that all children and adults receive recommended vaccines is our best protection against disease outbreaks. Learn more about recommended vaccines from the CDC.