© 2024 Public Radio Tulsa
800 South Tucker Drive
Tulsa, OK 74104
(918) 631-2577

A listener-supported service of The University of Tulsa
classical 88.7 | public radio 89.5
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

State Superintendent Ryan Walters taps far-right media personality for school library committee

Chaya Raichik is behind the X (formerly Twitter) account, LibsofTikTok.
Provided By The Independent Women's Forum
Chaya Raichik is behind the X (formerly Twitter) account, LibsofTikTok.

State Superintendent Ryan Walters announced in a news release Tuesday he was appointing Chaya Raichik to the department’s Library Media Advisory Committee. Raichik is behind the far-right X (formerly Twitter) account, LibsofTikTok.

Raichik already has a history with Oklahoma school libraries.

Last summer, Raichik shared an altered video from a Tulsa Union Public Schools elementary librarian, in which the librarian said she was not finished pushing her “woke agenda.” The video shared by the account left out the caption saying her “radical liberal agenda” was “teaching kids to love books and be kind.”

Walters shared the altered video on his account, and in the weeks that followed, the district received a slew of bomb threats.

Now, Raichik will sit on a state committee evaluating library content. Walters says she is “invaluable as part of my plan to make Oklahoma schools safer for kids and friendly to parents.”

According to the department, the Library Media Advisory Committee’s goal is “removing pornographic or sexualized content” from public school libraries. It is a voluntary board with no paid positions, and all members are appointed by Walters. The department said the committee is made up of parents, current and retired librarians, and English literature teachers.

In an email to StateImpact, Walters said he and Raichik have worked to rid schools of “liberal, woke indoctrinators, union smut peddlers and Epstein Island advocates.” He did not include evidence for these claims.

It is unclear whether Raichik will be living in Oklahoma to serve on the committee.

Beth Wallis holds a journalism degree from the University of Oklahoma. Originally from Tulsa, she also graduated from Oklahoma State University with a bachelor's degree in music education and a master's degree in conducting performance. She was a band director at a public school for five years.