Children's Books discussion
Banned Books: discussions, lists
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Discussion of censorship, equity, and other concerns.
Spreadsheet of anti-censorship groups in the U.S.https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/...
Plus
NATIONAL LEVEL
Comic Book Legal Defense Fund
For the People: A Leftist Library Project (More details coming soon)
Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE)
Red Wine and Blue
Stop Moms for “Liberty”
ARKANSAS
No Book Bans Coalition (Bentonville)
FLORIDA
Citizens for Truth and Justice in Education (Central FL)
Clay County Reading Alliance
Florida Freedom to Read Project
Foundation 451 (Brevard County)
Volusia Fight for the First
IDAHO
Idaho First Amendment Defense Group
Society of Secret Library Friends
ILLINOIS
Illinois Right to Read
Library_defense
Protect Our Library (Lincolnwood)
INDIANA
Hamilton County Against Censorship (Fishers and Noblesville)
IOWA
Annie’s Foundation (Johnston)
KANSAS
Kansas Against Banned Books
St. Marys Library Alliance (St. Marys)
LOUISIANA
Lafayette Citizens Against Censorship
Livingston Parish Library Alliance
St Tammany Library Alliance
MAINE
Maine Library Association
MASSACHUSETTS
Mass Right to Read
MICHIGAN
MI Right to Read
MISSOURI
Uturn in Education (Nixa)
NEW JERSEY
NJASL/NJLA Regional Response Team
NEW YORK
No Book Bans Coalition (Brooklyn)
PEN America Prison and Justice Writing Program
NORTH CAROLINA
Guilford County
NORTH DAKOTA
North Dakota First Amendment Defense Group
SOUTH CAROLINA
Freedom in Libraries Advocacy Group (FLAG) (Greenville)
Freedom to Read SC
South Carolina Association of School Librarians
TENNESSEE
Right to Read Sumner (Sumner County)
TEXAS
Access Education RRISD (Round Rock)
Children’s Defense Fund of Texas
FREDom Fighters
Galveston County Library Alliance
KISD Equity 4 All (Katy)
Mosaic Community Library (Austin and Travis County)
No Book Bans Coalition (Houston)
Stand Up for Tomball ISD (Tomball)
Texans for the Right to Read
UTAH
Let Utah Read
VIRGINIA
Loudoun4all (Loudoun)
WISCONSIN
No Book Bans Coalition (Sheboygan)
Don’t see an organization near you? Use this guide to build your own local anti-censorship group.
Mod
A Sarasota, Florida bookstore called Shelf Indulgence is raising money for a Book Bus that will feature and sell banned books. Along other f..."
Watch DeSantis send out a trained posse to hunt down those bookmobiles, sigh
Wareham schools (Massachusetts) apparently never had a book challenge policy prior to last month, and now they do. Just in case. I have family there. In Wyoming, the Campbell County Public Library Board will be going over proposed changes to the library’s collection development policy. The suggested revisions were created by a Florida-based attorney affiliated with a national nonprofit organization. […] Liberty Counsel is a nonprofit organization based in Orlando, Florida, that provides free assistance and representation to advance ‘religious freedom, the sanctity of life and the family,’ according to its website.”
That's illegal and expect challenges from First Amendment rights activists.
"The new policies in Cy-Fair Independent School District (Texas) would restrict YA books to only middle and high schoolers, and any books “beyond” the YA designation would require parental permission. " Book Riot asks "What about classics?"
Pinellas School Board (Florida) will reconsider its ban on The Bluest Eye over the summer.
The Faulkner County Library (Arkansas) canceled all of their public programs in anger over a Drag Queen event. The library director pointed out how much complaining about books there is and yet none of the complainers fill out the complaint forms.
https://bookriot.com/anti-censorship-...
In Canada, "Anti-LGBTQ2S+ group ramps up ‘continual harassment’ of B.C. school boardsAction4Canada protested inclusivity guidelines at a Kelowna board meeting last week, after being banned from meetings in Mission
Action4Canada promised in an announcement on its website Wednesday to step up its campaign against B.C. public schools, “since we are having such an effective impact on pushing back against the SOGI 123 resource and the filthy books in our school systems.”
Group founder Tanya Gaw said in a video on Facebook last week that she is coaching followers on presenting at school board meetings and the group would be at the next night’s School District 23 board meeting in Kelowna.
Wilbur Turner, founder of LGBTQ2S+ organization Advocacy Canada, attended the board meeting and filmed three women who accused the school district of “sexual indoctrination” and exposing children to “pornography” at schools.
Five Central Okanagan Board of Education trustees issued a news release defending their school district and criticizing the group, saying they “will not tolerate this abusive behaviour.”
“What their agenda seems to be in B.C. is to attack school boards,” Turner says. “It’s just the continual harassment of the school districts.”
Action4Canada was founded in 2019 and calls itself a “grassroots movement” that is “committed to protecting … FAITH, FAMILY and FREEDOM.” The group sued the Canadian government over vaccine mandates, a civil claim that a B.C. judge dismissed last September and called “bad beyond argument.” A long list of grievances posted on its website includes abortion, critical race theory, 5G technology and what it calls “political Islam.”
It has also organized protests against drag queen storytime events in Kelowna, including one in January.
Its website claims “the LGBTQ” have been hijacked by radical activists who are “attacking the core freedoms and rights of all Canadians,” and that “the UN is involved in this agenda and they are targeting children.” Gaw said in a recent speech that inclusive policies in schools are part of a global agenda to sterilize children and decrease the world’s population.
The group has launched a petition to remove the chair of the Chilliwack school board and initiated numerous email campaigns to school trustees in its ongoing bid to rid B.C. schools of LGBTQ2S+-friendly policies.
“They’re now threatening further action, and I don’t know what that means,” Turner says.
https://xtramagazine.com/power/school...
(Um why 5G? and what on earth is "political Islam?")
In North Carolina, A disagreement over the kinds of books that should be purchased for school libraries has divided the Board of Education.The school board voted Monday to spend more than $1.2 million on new titles for media centers throughout the district, despite opposition from two members. The 6-2 vote followed objections from District 9 representative Benjie Forrest and District 6 representative Worth Forbes, who asked that funds not be used to purchase books that have themes containing sexuality or gender identity for elementary and middle school students.
The book purchases, paid for with Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Funds, are part of a $1.9 million, three-year local initiative known as The Big Library Project. Launched in the 2021-22 school year, the project is designed to ensure that students have a chance to see reflections of themselves in the books they read as well as to provide school library collections with up-to-date nonfiction and curriculum-related texts.
Forrest and Forbes said last month that they had heard from parents who were concerned about some of the new books the school district planned to buy, though neither mentioned specific titles that were the subject of complaint.
Forrest referenced the Parents’ Bill of Rights that had been approved by the North Carolina Senate. Senate Bill 49 contains a provision that prohibits the curriculum in kindergarten through fourth grade from including instruction on gender identity and sexuality.
At this week’s meeting, Forrest said the board should not approve the purchase of books that are in conflict with the Parents’ Bill of Rights. District 7 representative Kelly Weaver and District 8 representative Melinda Fagundus disagreed, saying that the legislation should not be a factor in the board’s decision since it has not been passed by the House.
Forbes said he supports the Parents’ Bill of Rights and believes that many parents are in favor of the legislation as well.
Both District 3 representative James Tripp and District 5 representative Jennifer Hodgson said they believe the policies the school district has put in place are sufficient. District 2 representative Amy Cole, who serves as vice chair of the board, agreed.
“These are not required readings (being discussed),” she said. “This is a library.
“I don’t feel like we should be saying, ‘You can’t read this book,’” Cole said. “I think that’s just going a little too far.”
But Forbes, a former school principal, said boundaries are in the best interest of children. He mentioned, for example, that excessive profanity in books sends a message to students that such speech is acceptable.
“That’s what’s wrong with society today is there are no lines drawn,” Forbes said.
“Do what you want, read what you want, say what you want and there’s no consequences. We’re not looking at lifting children up. We’re not looking at morality anymore.”
District 1 representative Tracy Everette-Lenz said that whether or not material is appropriate for a student to read is subject to interpretation.
A school psychologist in a neighboring district, Everette-Lenz said that she has not seen a relationship between students’ reading choices and behavior problems.
“Never once have I written on a functional behavioral assessment that there was a correlation to reading a book,” she said. “I just don’t see it.”
https://www.reflector.com/standard/ne...
(THANK YOU for talking to the school psychologist! My sister rarely saw kids read a book let alone see books causing kids to have problems).
In Virginia, School board responds to mom’s claim that book in Montgomery County school libraries is "obscene"Flamer
The mother asked the school board for a screening process for books in the library and for a policy to be put in place. Brenda Drake, the Director of Communications and Community Relations for Montgomery County Public Schools provided 10 News with this statement in response to the parents concerns:
“School libraries are curated and maintained by school librarians. They are distinct from classroom instructional materials. Families have the opportunity to challenge and request reconsideration of library materials when they perceive objectionable content. We will follow up with the parent who spoke at last night’s school board meeting to be sure she has the information to avail herself of this process if she chooses.”
Brenda Drake, the Director of Communications and Community Relations for Montgomery County Public Schools
https://www.wsls.com/news/local/2023/...
Laramie County, Wyoming is trying to define their parameters for books they feel are inappropriate.https://www.wyomingnews.com/news/loca...
Mod
Action4Canada protested inclusivity guidelines at a Kelowna board meeting last week, after being banned from me..."
ALL these morons are probably in the closet with their own sexuality and are likely abusing their children. I hope they get arrested and are placed in the general prison population.
Manybooks wrote: "ALL these morons are probably in the closet with their own sexuality and are likely abusing their children. I hope they get arrested and are placed in the general prison population..."Josh Duggar?
I had more stories for you but they haven't come through yet. One was crazy, horrific and absurd at the same time. Let me Google to see if I can get it.
In Mississippi, they passed a draconian law banning books with LGBTQ+ content. At least that's what they intended. They tried to ban digital books from public and school libraries that include “homosexuality” and “lesbianism,” after a majority in the Mississippi House approved an amended version of Senate Bill No. 2346 on Wednesday.The bill prohibits public-school libraries for K-12 students and public libraries that serve adults and children alike from contracting with vendors for “digital or online resources” that violate the State’s pre-existing legal definition of (view spoiler)
Unfortunately for the reading public, the wording was never changed to include protecting minors SO now all books with you know what for all ages are banned. As in they accidentially banned the Bible!
Then, on Wednesday, the Senate passed House Bill 1315, including age-verification requirements for online pr0n, but without the amended S.B. 2346’s bans on materials in public libraries for all ages.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/...
In Montgomery County, VA a parent raised concerns about Flamer.The school board has responded
Brenda Drake, the Director of Communications and Community Relations for Montgomery County Public Schools provided 10 News with this statement in response to the parents concerns:
“School libraries are curated and maintained by school librarians. They are distinct from classroom instructional materials. Families have the opportunity to challenge and request reconsideration of library materials when they perceive objectionable content. We will follow up with the parent who spoke at last night’s school board meeting to be sure she has the information to avail herself of this process if she chooses.”
Brenda Drake, the Director of Communications and Community Relations for Montgomery County Public Schools
https://www.wsls.com/news/local/2023/...
https://www.wsls.com/news/local/2023/...
The Homeschool moms are getting involved in book banning at West Linn-Wilsonville (Oregon) School DistrictA group of parents has been trying to get eight books removed in the West Linn-Wilsonville School District, citing explicit content.
They've since built up a small army to take on the West Linn-Wilsonville School Board, showing up to meetings and reading explicit passages from the books.
That army is part of the Oregon Moms Union. The group was founded during the pandemic by Mackensey Pulliam, wife of Sandy mayor and Oregon Republican gubernatorial candidate Stan Pulliam. KGW spoke to Mackensey Pulliam about the Oregon Moms Union and its goals last year.
Of the eight books that these parents are challenging, six are by or about either people of color or LGBTQ+ people.
However, the West Linn-Wilsonville parents said that it isn't about identity, but explicit content.
Right now, these eight books are up for review. Under school district policy, when a book is challenged, a committee that includes a parent, librarians and other educators and people from the community will evaluate whether the book should stay or go.
https://www.kgw.com/article/news/educ...
Attempt to fast-track book restrictions in Perkiomen Valley (Montgomery County, PA) schools fails in 4-4 voteAttempt to fast-track book restrictions in Perkiomen Valley schools fails in 4-4 vote
School board president presented a policy and sought to have it approved at the next meeting
https://www.pottsmerc.com/2023/03/10/...
I'd like to tell them that the content they object to in Fun Home actually happens. My sister, the school psychologist, said that's one of the only reasons kids used the library at her school. They didn't use it for reading. Just computers and all the stuff these parents think their kids don't know about and don't want their kids doing.
There's a whole page just for news stories on Gov. DeSantis's book ban program in Florida. Essentially, the new law allows ONE parents to complain about any book at any given time and that book will be removed so no one can read it. https://tinyurl.com/Floridanbannedbooks
Other states banning books include Arkansas:"Arkansas lawmakers pass amendment criminalizing the distribution of obscene content keeping [certain types] of literature and media in libraries from getting into the hands of minors and imposing criminal punishment on those who distribute the content.
State Rep. Justin Gonzales, R-District 9, co-sponsor of the bill, said during the meeting that the bill will not determine which books are banned and said the content does not have to be removed from the libraries.
https://tinyurl.com/Arkansasbansbooks
Once again- who decides what constitutes obscene and why do these handful of people care so much what other people's kids read?
Kentucky, too.Same deal with the parental rights in education bill.
"Supporters say it gives parents more rights in school matters and keeps obscene matters out. The bill sponsor says they want to address materials that are very offensive and that which parents may find objectionable and give them the process to address that concern.
It would require a policy for schools and school boards to address that.
However, opponents say it is simply a way to ban books, most notably those that deal with the LGBTQ community.
If a parent were to find something obscene and wanted to appeal that to the principal, the principal would have 10 days to review it.
The House Education Committee passed SB 5 by a vote of 16-4. It now goes to the full House."
https://tinyurl.com/KYparentalrights
And why does the principal get to review it but not the teachers, librarians and school psychologists?
Finally, more food for thought on censoring old books. Ursula K. Le Guin's literary executor, her son, has decided to update some of the language in her books. He explains why and how
"I contacted a disability rights attorney, a youth literature consultant, a racial educator, and some kids. My advisory group leaned toward change but was not in consensus. I genuinely didn’t know what my mother would have decided. But she left me a clue: a note over her desk asking, 'Is it true? Is it necessary or at least useful? Is it compassionate or at least unharmful?'
I like to think that truth and compassion are immutable even as the language we use to express them changes. But cultural constructs of harm are mutable; we frequently revise our definition of what’s harmful to whom, how it is spoken of, and who gets to do the speaking. My mother’s note tipped me toward changing her words. I found substitutes that would retain the original meaning and cadence, and stipulated to the publisher that the new editions would note that the text had been revised.
https://tinyurl.com/UrsulaLeGuinbooks
I personally feel is it LAME, DUMB and STUPID because kids use those words all the time, even us, even though my mom doesn't like them. Queer depends on the context used but I think it is dumbing down society and young people don't understand the original meaning of the word when they see it. If it's used as a slur, then by all means change it unless the book is a work of historical fiction.
i.e "queer" is used in The Wonderful Wizard of Oz 11 times "While she stood looking eagerly at the strange and beautiful sights, she noticed coming toward her a group of the queerest people she had ever seen. "
Twice to describe aspects of the Scarecrow, twice to describe the land of Oz.
Several others could be removed without changing the context of the story.
This one "race" could be deemed offensive as well "There are wild beasts in the woods, and a race of queer men who do not like strangers to cross their country. "
Watch for Oz to land on the edit list next!
Mod
"Arkansas lawmakers pass amendment criminalizing the distribution of obscene content keeping [certain types] of literature and media in libraries from ..."
So basically, if some brainless politician or some parent with sexual hang ups considers something obscene, librarians, teachers etc. are out of luck. And soon, it will also probably be the case that parents who are reasonable and allow their children to read what they want to read could be facing legal consequences if someone, if some busybody objects and complains and considers the reading choices obscene.
Now does this also pertain to adults and adult students at colleges and universities?
Not to adults, just children. The Arkansas law was amended from the original goof. "Obscene content in the hands of minors." Although in the case of Florida, it does seem to apply to public colleges funded by the state and run by the governor's appointed board.Mississippi is the next state to ban library books depicting ‘Homosexuality,’ ‘Lesbianism.'
"Mississippi could ban digital books that state law defines as “sexually oriented,” including books with depictions of “homosexuality” and “lesbianism,” from public and school libraries after a majority in the Mississippi House approved an amended version of Senate Bill No. 2346 on Wednesday.
The bill prohibits public-school libraries for K-12 students and public libraries that serve adults and children alike from contracting with vendors for “digital or online resources” that violate the State’s pre-existing legal definition of “sexually oriented materials.
... the bill’s text additionally defines obscene materials as those without “literary or artistic value.”
....
"
The House previously passed its own bill, House Bill 1341, with most of the same language now in S.B. 2346 on Feb. 2, but that bill died in committee in the Senate on Feb. 28. That bill, whose principal author was House Speaker Philip Gunn, included the same definition of “sexually oriented” materials as the House’s amended S.B. 2346.
Reached for comment after the House finished voting on Wednesday, Rep. Yates explained that, when she and many other lawmakers voted on the earlier bill in February, they thought the overly broad definitions of prohibited sexual material had been removed.
“After it passed, we realized those definitions had not been updated, and we had literally just banned God only knows how many books about how many things, which was not why the majority of us voted yes on that bill,” she said. ...
"“I said I’m pretty sure we just banned the Bible,” she recalled. The problem seemed solved when the bill died in the Senate, only to resurface again when the House Judiciary B Committee’s amendment inserted the same language into Senate Bill 2346."
"On Wednesday, the Senate passed House Bill 1315, including age-verification requirements for online porn, but without the amended S.B. 2346’s bans on materials in public libraries for all ages."
The intent is "to protect minors" however the wording doesn't specifically state minors.
https://tinyurl.com/MSbansLGBTQbooks
Nope. Just nope. Call the ACLU!
Better news...sort of...
"a West Michigan school district quietly removed several controversial books from district libraries without the knowledge of staff who oversee the collections.
It happened on June 30, 2022, at Forest Hills Public Schools, according to a Library Weeding Log.
The log shows an account named “destinyadmin” deleted six books from online collections at the district’s high schools and one of its middle schools.
Of the hundreds of books that were subject to routine “weeding” by library staff in the month of June, only those six bore the entry code destinyadmin.
Superintendent Dan Behm acknowledged Monday an administrator from the district’s office of instruction called him and asked if the books were subject to weeding. He said the books were, so the administrator removed the books.
All six of the books removed have prompted some controversy, and half of them have been listed among the nation’s “most challenged” books, including “Beyond Magenta,” which features essays by transgender teens.
Also removed were the graphic novel version of “The Handmaid’s Tale,” “Looking for Alaska,” “Me and Earl and the Dying Girl,” graphic novel “My friend Dahmer” and “Nineteen Minutes.”
Behm explained the district had been trying to ensure mature content was not available to elementary students, as was alleged by concerned parents at a June school board meeting.
Behm told Target 8 administrators reconfirmed the district’s elementary students do not have access to mature content.
However, he told Target 8 it was during that June review that the office of instruction came upon the six books available to students at the district’s high schools.
“Our materials coordinators (library staff) were off for the summer, and that’s when we noticed a few of these books at that time,” Behm said. “The correct thing at that time would have been to have our materials coordinators look at those for weeding or set them aside for when they came back for the beginning of the year.”
Instead, Behm acknowledged, an administrator within the office of instruction pulled the books after speaking with him.
Behm said the administrator weeded out the six titles, not due to their controversial content, but because students had not shown interest in them, which is a routine cause for removal to make way for other books.
Monday evening, he said he had been unable to find circulation data for those titles.
Behm said he’d been relying on anecdotal research he’d done over the last two years, which showed the books about which parents complained the most were rarely checked out by students.
Whatever their prior checkout history, the six books are once again available to high school students. They are still not available for middle school students.
Behm said media center staff put the books back into circulation amid the district’s effort to update media procedures, a process he said began in January."
https://www.woodtv.com/news/target-8/...
Things remain at a standstill in Columbus, OH area schoolsCOLUMBUS, Ohio (WSYX) — For the second time this school year, books inside Hilliard schools are the topic of discussion during a board of education meeting.
Some parents say there are sexually explicit books that shouldn't be on district shelves. Parents told us they have had meetings with the board but aren't happy with the results.
The district said "no comment" Monday night.
Parents say it has been six months since they brought this up, and they don't feel like anything has been resolved. The board would not answer questions, but a teacher in the district says the board just implemented a compromise.
"I know the district has put a new policy in place for parents to contact the district. There is a form they can fill out now so that any book they don't feel comfortable for their child having access to they can fill out that form," Hilliard elementary teacher Rachael Grim told ABC 6.
Hilliard teachers say a new policy for students to sign out books just started. Parents can search through the library and choose the books they don't want their child to check out."
https://abc6onyourside.com/news/local...
Good news for Al Capone Does My Shirts in Norwin, PA Ffth grade students can read “Al Capone Does My Shirts” after the school board Monday deadlocked on an attempt to ban the book from the students’ supplemental reading curriculum."The controversy over the 2005 novel focused again — as it has the past two months — on the author Gennifer Choldenko’s use of the word “rapists” to describe some of the prisoners, along with an outdated derogatory word for an autistic teenager, a brief description of nudity by the girl and some words the characters use that could have sexual connotations."
https://triblive.com/local/westmorela...
Long rant ahead. I'll put it in spoilers so you can read it if you want. Mild spoilers for the plot of the novel.
(view spoiler)
Midland County Texas Commissioner’s Court public comment session at the Midland County Courthouse brought out varying opinions about policing library books, from those who wanted a Biblical viewpoint applied to those who wanted the government to stay out altogether.The county library already has a policy in place to decide whether or not books violate set standards. Still, some residents believe those standards must be more strictly enforced or changed.
In the end, the Court did not decide on the policy, keeping the book open on how the library decides what is and is not appropriate for children."
https://www.cbs7.com/2023/03/14/midla...
Once again, First Amendment rights apply here and also separation of church and state.
Mod
I guess the book banning ignorants against nudity also make their children bathe fully clothed?
The most disturbing news of the day comes from Greenville, SC Greenville County library committee advances proposal to limit transgender-themed materials
"Despite public outcry both during and after its meeting, the Greenville County Library System's Materials Committee voted Monday to advance a proposal limiting access to transgender-themed materials.
The full board of trustees will vote on the proposal later this month.
The committee debated changing the library system's collections development and maintenance policy, which governs the type of books and materials that are included in the library."
https://tinyurl.com/GreenvillebansTrans
This is a PUBLIC library. Public. They're setting themselves up for lawsuits if they pass this.
Here's an interesting story from Texas from the South by Southwest festival. The festival features a library of banned books. The story is worth reading in full. https://tinyurl.com/SXSWBannedBooksLi...
Manybooks wrote: "I guess the book banning ignorants against nudity also make their children bathe fully clothed?"Yeah I don't get it. Don't they go to the beach, the pool, run around in the sprinkler? Natalie has autism. She didn't understand and had a meltdown. People with autism have sensory issues and do often take off their clothes. They don't like the feel of clothing on their skin. It's hot, itchy, uncomfortable.
Kathryn was right about the petition not getting enough signatures but be wary because they aren't content to stop at ONE library!Community leaders are not too concerned about the Concerned Citizens of Meridian's threats right now. There is high community support as several times when the group has said it will do something and then not done it. For example, a Facebook post shared by a co-founder promised in November to have high-level elected officials at a library board meeting. No one showed up. Members said their next step was to recall the Meridian Library Board, which hasn’t happened.
“They’re an organization that have shown, to me, time and time again, that they’re focusing more on things they are saying and doing very little action,” said Meridian City Councilmember Luke Cavener. “And when action occurs, they’re reliant on so many other people in order for that to happen.”
Naming names:
There are five reported co-founders of the group: Mike Hon, David McLeod, Mike Luis, Jon Eisfelder and Phil Reynolds
Some people who signed the petition also appear more involved than others.
The entity itself is a new chapter of 1776 Sons of Liberty, “an organization formed to oppose the unjust government measures against the constitution of the United States of America.” It appears to be based in Hanford, California, according to its Facebook page.
Of those 27, seven have since signed the petition to dissolve the Meridian Library District, including co-founders McLeod and Eisfelder.
Another two who supported Hon, co-founder Luis and resident Brenda Gilchrist, are known to be associated with the anti-library movement though their signatures were not included in the petition. "
Even so, "he Meridian Library is “fighting for its life,” according to a City Cast Boise podcast title. Library Director Nick Grove appeared on the podcast to talk about what would happen if the petition is successful.
Essentially, the library would be completely dissolved, all assets would be liquidated and if there was a new petition to restart, a library would have to be restarted from scratch.
“The petitioners want to just get rid of leadership,” Grove said on the podcast. “If it dissolves, everything goes away completely.”
Grove said the group has lied before and is trying to spin the move differently.
“We do not serve as the parents,” Grove said. “I talk to my children about what they’re reading, what they plan to read.”
Meridian Library Board of Trustees Chair Megan Larsen said the library stands against censorship."
https://tinyurl.com/IDantilibrary
Also in Idaho, a new library protection bill introduced on ‘obscene’ materials. The House State Affairs Committee introduced a new library bill Tuesday, aimed at protecting children from what some legislators deem inappropriate content.The first bill brought on the subject, HB 139, died in the Education Committee last month. Rep. Jaron Crane, R-Nampa, brought the new bill with some changes.
The bill prohibits librarians from allowing any child to check out obscene materials that are “harmful to minors.” The content may be harmful to minors when “applying contemporary community standards” and are “patently offensive to prevailing standards in the adult community with respect to what is suitable material for minors.”
In this bill, rather than allowing a lawsuit of up to $10,000, a parent could sue a library for $2,500. It also would allow only a parent or guardian to bring the lawsuit, rather than the child.
The bill allows a county prosecutor or the attorney general to request a cause of action for injunctive relief against any school or public library that violated the section. The bill states “this injunction shall be sufficient to prevent the defendant school or public library from violating” the section. Injunctive relief is a court-ordered action, or an order prohibiting an action.
Public libraries would still be allowed to have content with “obscene” material, but they would not be allowed to give it to minor, unless accompanied by a guardian who granted written consent.
The bill must still get a public hearing to move forward."
https://tinyurl.com/IDlibrarybill
Lots more official news:In a late night vote, the Fremont City Nebraska Council reconsidered an amendment to the Keene Memorial Library. The council voted 2-6, striking the policy that allowed parents the option to make a written request for the library to move a book from the children's section to the adult section if they find it offensive.
The policy was put in place last month when the amendment originally passed 7-1 with little fanfare and no public comment.
People filled the Fremont City Council room Tuesday night to offer their opinions — parents saying it should be their choice, and librarians saying it's a research-based decision.
Sex Is a Funny Word: A Book about Bodies, Feelings, and YOU
https://www.ketv.com/article/nebraska...
In Virginia,"A Roanoke County school system media policy revision ... reverses course on a measure implemented last June, which required all new books being added to a library’s catalog be read and a review written by a librarian or teacher before it could be added to a school’s collection.
The policy required two elementary school librarians to read and write a review for each book and one was required at the middle and high school levels.
Last year, a retired librarian for the Roanoke County school system, Beth Via, said the new procedures would put librarians in an unmanageable situation.
Heather Balsley, lead librarian for Roanoke County schools, wrote in a Jan. 2, 2022 email to Michael Riley and Stephanie Hogan, the directors of secondary and elementary instruction: “We feel the other committee members are unaware of how many books that would involve [reading and reviewing] for the high school,” she wrote, referencing non-librarians also on the committee tasked to overhaul the media selection policy.
Balsley also wrote that others were “concerned about the time-intensive nature of this task on our already overworked colleagues, particularly at the secondary level.”
She noted concerns to the administration about a blanket policy of allowing anyone to challenge any book, without some sort of guidelines on what can be challenged, something still in the policy as of Tuesday.
Challenged: When Aidan Became A Brother
all librarians at the elementary, middle or high school levels had to unanimously approve every book before it was added district-wide to the collection at any given level.
While unanimous consensus still remains in effect, the librarians are now once again able to “use reputable, professionally prepared selection aids, such as professional review journals, core collection tools, and conference presentations when selecting media,” according to the school’s website.
Additionally, before a book can be added to the collection, a two-week period of parent review is required, a change that was made last June as well.
Lionberger told The Roanoke Times in a Nov. 16 email that while the number of books added to the school system’s collection remained relatively the same, there was a negative impact on instructional time.
...
Another addition to the policy made earlier this month includes giving parents weekly email updates about what books their children check out, an option they can opt out of if they desire, according to the school’s website."
https://tinyurl.com/roanokecountylibr...
And we bring it all right back to Central York, Pa. which has quietly removed Push violating the school library policy.https://tinyurl.com/CentralYorkquietban
Sadly, many of these concerned citizens have never read a book for pleasure or seem to have read to their children for pure enjoyment. They seem to be under the impression that reading is solely for educational purposes and the school library is solely for education. If that were the case, I would never have darkened the doorstep of my school libraries once in all of my K-12 education!
Mod
Manybooks wrote: "Is it not disgusting but also not all that surprising how the groups most into book banning and other forms of dictatorial overreaching, the groups wanting to take away freedom, consider themselves..."They say they don't want to BAN books and it's OK if parents choose to go and buy those books for their kids but get that filth out of their schools. Then they elect lawmakers who pass bills that ban books.
So James Patterson has an imprint for kids. He has a fantasy series where kids can fly.
"The science fantasy series, published between 2005 and 2012, centers on the adventures of Maximum "Max" Ride and her family, called the Flock, who are winged human-avian hybrids created at a lab called The School."
The Angel ExperimentHe did tons of research on the science behind it. It's been a hit with STEM kids but... someone complained and now the books have been banned in where else? Florida! Martin County School district to be exact. It's been moved to the upper school.
"Resident Julie Marshall, asked for all nine books in the series to be removed because she considered them a young-adult series that "does not belong in elementary school libraries," she wrote in her objection form to the school district."
She hasn't read the books, she's not a trained library professional or educator
Now this is getting his goat because
1)There's no reason given for the objection to his book
2)He spent 40 years funding teacher libraries. His mother was a teacher in Catholic schools. She paid for her own classroom library. But he's been funding independent libraries, hundreds of teacher scholarships.
2)He has a house in the district. He bought his sisters houses. One niece has school age kids and now they're not allowed to have their uncle's books in schools.
3)The last time one of his books was banned it was in Russia.
If this series is not appropriate for children under 12 then no children under 12 should see Marvel movies, he says.
He also says parents need to discuss things with their kids. "What are you reading? What's it about? How do you like it? Oh you're having nightmares? Well maybe we need to put the book away and read something else."
https://tinyurl.com/FLbansJamesPatterson
https://tinyurl.com/JamesPattersonbanned
Elsewhere...In Fremont City, Oklahoma
The good news:
Tuesday night, the Fremont city council voted to remove an amendment in library policy that allowed parents to request children's books be moved to the adult section.
The not so great:
Now some councilmembers say a new oversight policy needs to take its place.
Councilmember Glen Ellis said after doing some research, he noticed library content was unbalanced in the content it provides readers. He thinks an objective party needs to take a closer look at the library's selection.
"There is just enough unbalance of content of books that are coming in, content of books that have been removed, and that's just causing enough of a red flag to me that says we need some oversight here," Ellis said.
He plans to propose an amendment to the library's policy which would create a content review task force. It would be separate from the existing library board.
Ellis said ideally, this task force would be made up of citizens appointed by councilmembers.
The goal is for them to reach a compromise on what content is appropriate at the library, and the outcome may not be something everyone is happy with.
"We take the right, and we get rid of those, and we take the left and get rid of those. At least we can say we have a safe library," he said. "We may not cater to everyone, but because of these books, these people aren't going to be happy and because of [those] books, [those] people aren't going to be happy."
(i.e. a library with NO BOOKS and librarians with no jobs! )
https://www.ketv.com/article/fremont-...
In Perkiomen Valley School District (PA)A Pennsylvania school board is facing strong reactions from parents as it looks to place restrictions on the materials allowed in district libraries.
The Perkiomen Valley School District (PSVD) is weighing a policy that aims to increase oversight when selecting library content. If the policy is passed by the PSVD school board, library recommendations will be made at the district level, as opposed to individual schools.
There will also be a greater emphasis on ensuring approved library books are age-appropriate. Criteria will differ by grade level, however, the policy would prevent any books deemed to have explicit visual or written depictions of [obscene content] to be placed on any PSVD shelves.
The usual arguments ensue.
https://local12.com/news/nation-world...-
Laurie Halse Anderson continues so speak out against book banninghttps://lithub.com/laurie-halse-ander...
and saved the best for last though it could be a lot worse!
Florida is now reviewing social studies textbooks for objectionable "WOKE" content.
"In the last few months, as part of the review process, a small army of state experts, teachers, parents and political activists have combed thousands of pages of text — not only evaluating academic content, but also flagging anything that could hint, for instance, at critical race theory.
A prominent conservative education group, whose members volunteered to review textbooks, objected to a slew of them, accusing publishers of “promoting their bias.” At least two publishers declined to participate altogether.
one publisher created multiple versions of its social studies material, softening or eliminating references to race — even in the story of Rosa Parks — as it sought to gain approval in Florida."
Read the proposed changes in the images in the article!! Holy cow! How exactly do you talk about Rosa Parks without mentioning the color of her skin? She refused to move to the back of the bus? That's going to create a lot of questions. "Why was she told to move? Why didn't she want to move? Why did the police arrest her?"
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/03/16/us...
Funny piece. ChatGPT doesn't believe books should be banned.https://bookriot.com/chatgpt-on-book-...
Add West Linn-Wilsonville school district (Oregon) to the list of special interest mom groups pushing book bans.https://www.kgw.com/article/news/loca...
Also from BookRiot
“The Rev. Nicholas McNeill, a Southern Baptist, said he was angry when he found out his third-grade daughter read a book about Islam Nasreen's Secret School: A True Story from Afghanistan at the Robeson County school [North Carolina] she attends." He's also trying to ban many other books, and the whole education system in general - the EL Education K-8 Language Arts Curriculum, which calls for interactive study and critical thinking; also "Critical Race Theory". He objects to Peter Pan because the discussion centered around gender stereotypes (do girls have to be motherly? NO!)
We have 70 instructional days left,” Williamson said at the meeting. “We cannot spend time trying to defend something that’s not true. It’s not fair to our kids.”
McNeill said he got a religious exemption for his daughter so she will not read “Nasreen’s Secret School,” and he has helped other families do the same. He said he will take his daughter out of the Robeson County district if the school board does not switch to a different curriculum.
https://www.robesonian.com/news/24315...
In Crawford County, Arkansas, last November "Library Board Director Tammi Hamby and her husband Dr. Jeffrey Hamby, a Van Buren family physician, spearheaded a campaign against LBGQT+ books being available through the Crawford County Library System and Grzymala’s book display of LBGQT+ children’s books set up at the Van Buren Public Library in November.
Hamby was appointed to the Crawford County Library Board by Crawford County Judge Chris Keith and named the board chair after Jamie Balkman, former chair, and two other board members resigned after a contentious Quorum Court meeting in December.
https://talkbusiness.net/2023/03/craw...
My parents have a house near a wannabe book banning town. Guildford, CT parents are in an uproar over school library booksFlamer
It's Perfectly Normal: A Book about Changing Bodies, Growing Up, Sex, and Sexual Health
+ adult book
Several parents said they weren’t trying to ban the books but wanted some form of parental notification, saying that films, video games and music have ratings so parents can determine whether the material is appropriate for their child.
“It’s not about banning. The thing is, these books, it’s not your place to give them to my kids, and it’s not my place to give it to anybody else’s kids,” one mother said. “If you want to have them available to children, that’s fine, and if parents want to take them out and show them and go over it with their kids, that’s fine, too.”
“But the parents should be made aware. There’s got to be a way we can communicate and make it accessible but have the parents aware that these books are being given to their children,” she continued.
“Per Board of Education policy, the board recognizes the students’ right to access many different types of materials, and the board is disinclined to remove such access,” Balestracci said, adding that, so far, there have been no requests to remove the books and if there were, the BOE would review the books.
According to school board policy, the final decision on controversial materials rests with the board “after careful examination and discussion of said materials with professional staff,” and parents can request in writing that their student not have access to specific materials."
https://insideinvestigator.org/school...
News from Book RiotIn Greenville, NY parents are challenging
All Boys Aren't Blue
Gender Queer: A Memoir
The police got involved in a ban on Gender Queer: A Memoirin Queensland, Australia.
" after conservative activist Bernard Gaynor, 43, made a complaint to Logan City Council, the book was removed from shelves but remained available to borrow for anyone who requested it.
Gaynor contacted police on Saturday, March 4, lodging official complaints about Gender Queer and four other titles at the library, which he claimed breached the criminal code in relation to (view spoiler)
Until the book was referred by police, the Classification Board confirmed to 9news.com.au it had not classified Gender Queer, nor had it received any requests to review it.
The agency has the power to censor, restrict and ban films, literature and other content.
"Generally publications do not need to be classified before being made available in libraries," a spokesperson said.
"The only publications that are required to be submitted to the Classification Board to be classified are those that would contain content that may be restricted to adults or refused classification."
https://www.9news.com.au/national/mai...
More "right-wing activists" in Ireland seeking to ban books. Cork City Council say they will 'not remove' LGBTQ+ material from libraries after staff harrassed.
This Book is Gay
In Beaufort County, SC, students are upset their books are banned.
In a Beaufort County Board of Education meeting Tuesday night, March 7, marked by an unruly speaker and an unruly audience, the school board once again “concurred” by a vote of 8-3 with its Book Review Committees on its decisions regarding nine books among the 97 books challenged for removal from Beaufort County Schools.
Nineteen Minutes will remain off Beaufort County School District shelves for minimum of five years. It joins It Ends With Us by Colleen Hoover, which was the first book removed from the District in January.
https://yourislandnews.com/boe-again-...
https://www.corkbeo.ie/news/local-new...
The (former) city administrator in Siloam Springs, Arkansas, was the one who removed 11 books from the public library shelves. Citizens aren’t happy!https://hl.nwaonline.com/news/2023/ma...
Lapeer County Prosecutor John Miller (Michigan) wants to prosecute the staff of the public library if they don’t remove Gender Queer from shelves.
(I have that story saved in my notes. Will post it later)
Michigan recently passed an anti-LGBTQ hate law, interestingly enough. Hillsdale Community Library (Michigan) board member Joshua Paladino wants to remove queer books from the public library; there’s now a petition to get him removed. It's not working out for the citizens so far as the board is politically motivated to keep Paladino but not LGBTQ+ books.
https://www.hillsdale.net/story/news/...
Palos Verdes Peninsula Unified School District (California) heard complaints this week after two 5th grade teachers read aloud Too Bright To See — a queer book by a queer author — to their classes.
Brave New World is under fire at South Summit School District in Utah.
Midland County Library (Texas) opened up a hearing on their new collection policies. A great line in there about how courts shouldn’t get to decide what books someone’s kid gets to read. The book Beautiful (Amy Reed) was challenged, too.
Anger over the decision to keep Beyond Magenta in Fallbrook Union High School District (California).
https://bookriot.com/chatgpt-on-book-...
Nowhere Girls by Amy Reed passed the committee tasked with determining its fate in Flagler Schools (Florida). The decision is already being challenged.
Mod
https://www.kgw.com/article/news/loca......"
I guess that pseudo Christian Ryan McNeill is a secret supporter of the Taliban if he wants Nasreen's Secret School banned. Come on, Mr. McNeill move to Afghanistan then embrace your Taliban brethren (actually, Ryann McNeill and others who want Nasreen's Secret School banned, they should ALL be deported to Afghanistan and have their places in the USA taken by Afghani women and girls in danger from the Taliban).
A lot of people challenged Nasreen's Secret School: A True Story from Afghanistan. It has nothing to do with Islam and everything to do with the Taliban banning education for women and girls. Nasreen's parents disappeared because her dad protested and her mom went off to search for her dad. Her grandmother helps her by putting Nasreen in the secret school. It shows what Afghanistan used to be like - the beautiful history and culture of this war-torn land. I loved it and the banners don't even bother to read any of these books. I'm not sure why this dad isn't just home schooling since he's educating the kids at home indoctrinating them with HIS ultra conservative values. Why send them to public school? That doesn't make sense.
Mod
There is some good news this week, at least.The Hate U Give has been returned to shelves at the lending library in Jackson, Mississippi. (Note: Author is from Ms.)
On Monday, MCIR questioned commission officials about officials barring Mississippians from checking out Thomas’ novel from the lending library in Jackson. (Each copy was marked “To Be Reviewed”.) By Wednesday, all copies and the movie adaptation were available, except for an annotated version as part of the Mississippi Reads project. (Ebony Lumumba, associate professor of English and chair of the English department at Jackson State University, wrote the annotated version.)
Tracy Carr, deputy director for library services at the commission, clarified on Friday that “The Hate U Give” is so popular, both in the lending library and in Book Club in a Box, sets of books that the the commission mails to school libraries, that all copies had to be repaired or replaced. Lumumba’s annotations went missing, and are being reinserted in a copy of Thomas’ novel. The new copies are back on the commission’s shelves: “we featured “The Hate U Give” The Hate U Give in our Briefly Noted project,” Carr added.
Thomas, who is speaking at Mississippi’s first Banned Book Festival on March 25 in conversation with Ebony Lumumba, called the barring of her book “disappointing, especially in a country where people should have the right to read whatever they want to read. And it’s even more disappointing in a state such as Mississippi, which needs to learn from its past to understand its present.”
https://mississippitoday.org/2023/03/...
Manybooks wrote: "I was watching Fox News at a restaurant today (not my choice but the owner likes to watch Fox News), and I found it RIDICULOUS that the fact that the educational system is in crisis in the USA was ..."Consider the source and yes I've heard those same excuses from everyone else in the right-wing conspiracy camp. The book issue actually started earlier. It's been an ongoing concern off and on but picked up speed just before the pandemic and certainly accelerated during the online school period. Not even the right-wing conspiracy theorist in my extended family complained about what books his granddaughter and stepdaughter are reading in school and they've read some of the challenged books.
Lots going on this week. If you support first amendment rights and don't think librarians should go to jail for doing their jobs, then Every Library has a petition to sign."Sign the petition against any legislation that would criminalize libraries, education, and museums by removing long-standing defense from prosecution exemptions under obscenity laws.
Why is this important?
A number of states are introducing proposed laws that would allow for civil and criminal prosecution of librarians if a community member disliked the content of a book on the shelf.
However, award-winning authors like Margaret Atwood, F. Scott Fitzgerald, and James Joyce have been caught in the crosshairs of ‘obscenity’ challenges. Groups like Moms for Liberty have gone after books about Seahorses for being obscene as well as books about Johnny Appleseed and Hurricanes.
Even Winnie-the-Pooh was called into question for not wearing pants.
That means librarians could go to jail over Winnie-The-Pooh."
https://www.fightforthefirst.org/peti...
Gender Queer: A Memoir book concerns discussed at Lapeer, Michigan County public library board meetingLibrary director, most community members support book’s presence
The book is kept in the adult section of the library.
"Library Director Amy Churchill said Gender Queer was purchased last year after a patron requested it is added to the collection. It’s been checked out ever since and has a waiting list of readers.
The county prosecutor raised concerns about a book in the public library’s collection. (view spoiler)
While many community members support the library keeping the book, others in attendance sided with Miller, with one arguing that the community would ensure the millage doesn’t get renewed if those working in the library don’t resign."
"Churchill defends the book and its place in the library’s collection. She said it’s her job to provide a wide range of diverse materials that appeal to all audiences.
“I would stand behind every single book in our collection the same way I stand behind Gender Queer,” said Churchill.
Churchill said they’d received one formal request to reconsider the book, the only such request received in the library’s history. The reconsideration request process gives Churchill time to consider the request and respond, and then the petitioner can appeal the decision to the library board.
Churchill said the prosecutor’s opinion would have no bearing on her decision.
“His opinion, either personally or from a prosecutor’s stance on this book being in the collection, isn’t relevant to my decision-making process, and it will not weigh into my decision-making process,” Churchill said."
https://www.clickondetroit.com/news/l...
https://www.clickondetroit.com/news/l...
Riiihgghhttt like children not of legal age never engage in sexual acts. Ever.
The prosecutor
Children's Books
Books mentioned in this topic
Out of the Blue (other topics)The Princess in Black and the Prince in Pink (other topics)
My Rainbow (other topics)
Butt or Face? Volume 3: Super Gross Butts (other topics)
The Day the Books Disappeared (other topics)
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Authors mentioned in this topic
Jodi Picoult (other topics)Sarah J. Maas (other topics)
Ellen Hopkins (other topics)
Jodi Picoult (other topics)
Scott Stuart (other topics)
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A bill the Louisiana legislature will consider this session seeks to restrict minors' access to certain library materials.
In his recent Protecting Innocence Report, Attorney General Jeff Landry specifically targets sexual content that he says is too easy for children to access. That report led to lawmakers filing a bill that would put controls on library cards for minors.
Landry said the goal is to keep sexually explicit materials out of hands of kids while encouraging librarians to promote healthy viewpoints. However, critics of the bill throughout the state and in Shreveport say it's a solution in search of a problem
"Shreve Memorial Library has no interest in governing anyone's children," Executive Director John Tuggle said during a Caddo Commission work session Monday.
Tuggle says most of the changed proposed by the attorney general already exist. For example, Tuggle says there are already age restricted library cards and ways that parents can filter E-content.
He says the library system works to appropriately label books by age, but ultimately parents are responsible for their children and what they read. Tuggle believes this new legislation borders on censorship and if it passes, it could take rights away from parents.
"We want maintain parental rights and not ask a government agency such as the library to actually play censor. So, if that one piece of legislation were to pass, you'd be asking librarians to make decisions for the parents and we are against that. We prefer to reserve those rights for the parents," said Tuggle.
Tuggle said it's possible the legislation could negatively impact the service provided by the state's library system.
"This piece of legislation, if interpreted incorrectly, could actually have libraries discriminating against certain marginalized groups and we would want to avoid that," he said.
https://www.ktbs.com/community/direct...
.