Children's Books discussion
Banned Books: discussions, lists
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Discussion of censorship, equity, and other concerns.
In Cobb County Georgia where the teacher was fired for reading My Shadow Is Purple, they NOW have a list of banned books:Cobb County school district removes 'inappropriate' books from libraries:
Flamer
Me and Earl and the Dying Girl
"We removed the books immediately, are in an ongoing investigation, and are committed to ensuring our students are taught with content in line with Georgia standards, Board policy and the Law," a district spokesperson's email read.
A former Cobb County teacher and now-president of the Cobb County Association of Educators Jeff Hubbard told 11Alive educators have been contacting him around the clock for the last several days about the email.
“They literally feel like they’re in limbo right now," he said. "'What if I say something wrong? What if I do something wrong? What if I hand something out that somebody feels some way about?'"
He said it's been a rocky couple of days for some educators and that Monday's announcement has only heightened anxieties.
“Our teachers are scared. Our media specialists are scared," Hubbard described. "They’re literally throwing away hundreds of dollars worth of books and supplemental materials from their classroom because if just one parent comes up with a complaint – they can be in danger of losing their jobs."
Some teachers have taken to social media to post anonymously about their concerns in the days after fifth-grade teacher was fired.
Cobb County Board of Education member Leroy Tre' Hutchins apologized to teachers after receiving dozens of messages about fears over how the teaching climate is changing.
"I think we have found ourselves in a place where we're demonizing the profession," he said. "We do not pay educators what they deserve, what they need to live. And so this is just another stumbling block, another roadblock to helping us get educators in the pipeline to continue meeting the needs of our students."
District officials have argued that firing Rinderle was a way to keep the classroom a neutral place, however, opponents worry it could have long-term detrimental impacts.
“If we have to censor ourselves as professionals – what message does that send to everyone else? Are we going back in history?" Hubbard questioned.
https://www.11alive.com/article/news/...
Crazy times in Fort Worth, Texas. Anyone who doesn't follow the Constitution and laws of this country should be banned, not books.https://www.wfaa.com/article/news/edu...
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The Fort Worth Independent School District last week confirmed they were closing their libraries until Aug. 25 "so catalogs can be inventoried."
The library closures drew attention ahead of a law that goes into effect Sept. 1 that calls for any "sexually explicit" books to be removed from shelves. Any "sexually relevant" books under the law will be put through a ratings system before they are made available to students.
The library issue wasn't on the Fort Worth district's board agenda Tuesday night, but it was top of mind for plenty of speakers from the public.
"To those who label us as book banners, let me be clear, we are not for banning books. We’re for protecting children," said Kenya Alu during the open session in which community members are allowed to speak.
"Please don't let a few cynical political groups remove access [to books]," said Kristine Boyd, who opposed removing books from shelves.
Other parents raised concerns about the timing of the libraries being closed, as school began last week.
"Couldn't it have been done earlier in August?" Marsha West asked. "It sends a message that reading is not important. Open the school libraries and put children first."
The meeting turned tense when one speaker, identified as a man named Mike, called one of the books in question "Satanism." As he began reading from the book, the board questioned if what he was reading was going to be vulgar, which would be a violation of the public speaking rules.
The man kept reading from the book, so two officers stepped in and removed him from the podium. The meeting continued without incident.
While 128 libraries were closed for a full inventory, a separate process was also underway: more than 100 titles were being transferred from campus libraries for further review.
https://www.wfaa.com/article/news/edu...
Law enforcement escorted a man out of a local school board meeting in North Texas after he read from a book banned by the district earlier this summer. The clash comes as public school districts across Texas—including several in the Houston area—move to exclude titles deemed "obscene" in increasing numbers.
According to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram's Lina Ruiz, authorities removed Mike Cee from a Fort Worth Independent School District board meeting Tuesday evening, after he started reading from the book Flamer during public comment. A "semi-autobiographical graphic novel," Curato's book tells the story of a member of a Boy Scouts troop bullied for his mannerisms considered stereotypical of gay men. Per the Star-Telegram's Ruiz, Fort Worth ISD had removed the book from the district's elementary and middle schools earlier this summer.
Officials told Cee he would be cut off if he read any excerpts from the book considered inappropriate during his public comments. Before doing exactly that, Cee told board members and meeting attendees that "Satan rules the world. Satan speaks through some of you, could be some of these board members, could be some of the audience. God has given us free will to do the right thing," per the Star-Telegram's Ruiz.
Controversial far-right media account Libs of TikTok posted video of the encounter on the social media site "X" (fka Twitter)
Cee then launched into an excerpt from Flamer, after which authorities escorted him out of the building. The disruption forced the board to recess as other attendees protested law enforcement removing Cee from the building entirely, instead of just booting him from the meeting room, Ruiz reported.
https://www.chron.com/news/houston-te...
Hamilton East (Indiana) Public Library Board to discuss ‘The Fault in Our Stars’ during Thursday’s meetingThey moved it to the adult section because (view spoiler)
Earlier this month, the Noblesville School Board voted to replace Hamilton East Public Library Board President Laura Alerding in a 3-2 vote. The board voted to replace Alerding with Bill Kenley, an English teacher at Noblesville Schools, to serve as the school board’s appointment to the Hamilton East Public Library Board of Trustees.
Alerding is expected to participate in Thursday’s meeting, with her remaining in the role until Saturday. According to previous reports, while Alerding was one of the members who voted to approve the policy in December, she later said Green’s novel should be moved back to the young adult section of the library.
https://fox59.com/indiana-news/hamilt...
In a surprising turn of events, Conservative group joins opposition to Florida’s new book challenge rulehttps://www.politico.com/news/2023/08...
Florida approved a new rule Wednesday giving parents the power to bring in a special magistrate to hear local disputes over book challenges — but the idea faced heavy criticism from opponents, including one conservative group, that disagree with how the state is carrying out the policy pushed by GOP leaders like Gov. Ron DeSantis.
Under the new rule, this special magistrate is expected to determine if a school district followed state law in considering a book objection from a parent. The policy specifically states that the magistrate, likely an administrative law judge, does not have the authority to remove a material or limit student access to any.
But that stance was too weak for some opponents, including the Florida Citizens Alliance, a socially conservative advocacy group that supported the law change yet asked the board to put off a vote on the policy.
“As it stands now, in our opinion, zero parents will be able to use this rule,” Keith Flaugh, co-founder and CEO of the group, told the Board of Education.
Other critics, such as the Southern Poverty Law Center Action Fund, claim the rule favors some parents by only allowing appeals for books that school boards voted against removing as opposed to allowing parents to challenge decisions to remove books. Opponents equated the policy to book banning, alleging that it will continue to allow residents to challenge dozens of texts, leading districts to remove, even if only temporarily, books like “And Tango Makes Three” about two male penguins who raised a baby penguin, works by William Shakespeare or even titles about MLB legend Roberto Clemente.
“But parents like us, who don’t get to use the special magistrate process, we were the ones that got access back to Tango, Clemente and Shakespeare, and we had to use the media to let them know because we did not have this recourse,” Stephana Ferrell, co-founder of the Florida Freedom to Read Project, told the board Wednesday.
The Board of Education, however, defended the policy shift, claiming that it focuses specifically on whether school districts have rules for book challenges as required by state law and if local officials are following them. The request for a special magistrate can be made strictly by a parent or guardian and only after seeking to first resolve the dispute with the local school board. Once a magistrate hears a case, the state Board of Education would make the final determination.
In Penn. After rejecting a request to ban books, one Chester County school district now hears an appeal
The Oxford Area School District finds itself in a similar situation as other school systems in the region, facing coordinated efforts to remove materials from libraries and curricula.
The school board voted to override the advisory committee's decision on all titles except
The Hate U Give
The Perks of Being a Wallflower
will be removed from the library while
The Bluest Eye
Lucky
will be moved to a restricted section.
The school board of the Oxford Area School District will gather on Tuesday evening to discuss four books, and whether they belong on the shelves of Oxford Area High School.
The books are "The Bluest Eye," Toni Morrison's debut 1970 novel; "The Perks of Being a Wallflower" by Stephen Chbosky; "Lucky" by Alice Sebold; and "The Hate U Give" by Angie Thomas. All four books were the subject of a complaint that the school district reviewed earlier this year, resulting in an advisory committee's vote to keep them in the high school's library.
At the school board's last meeting on Aug. 8, video of which has circulated on Facebook, at least one board member argued that all four books were "indecent" or "profane" and should be removed or require parental consent to check out. In the public comment period that followed, a local pastor questioned why it wasn't easier to remove books from the school library and a woman accused school district officials of "sexually abusing" her grandchildren by carrying the titles. Several parents countered with support for the books.
In an email, school board president Joseph E. Tighe said the disputed books were currently available "in very limited quantities" and that he did not know who initiated the original complaint.
The 12-person advisory committee — the members of which included librarians, teachers, a principal in the school district, a PTA member and a board of education employee — voted against removing the books from the school by substantial margins.
https://www.phillyvoice.com/book-bans...
Internal emails show Moms for Liberty plans to ban books in Floridahttps://www.tallahassee.com/story/new...
Florida schools got hundreds of book complaints — mostly from 2 people
Of the roughly 1,100 complaints recorded in Florida since July 2022, more than 700 came from two counties — Escambia in the western Panhandle and Clay near Jacksonville. Together the two districts make up less than 3% of the state’s total public school enrollment.
About 600 of the complaints came from two people — a Clay County dad and a Pensacola high school teacher.
Bruce Friedman, a 57-year-old New York City transplant, is responsible for more than 400 complaints received by the Clay County school district. He told Fox News that his interest in education stems from the “considerable harm” done to his now-15-year-old son while attending New York’s public schools.
He founded the Florida chapter of No Left Turn in Education, which opposes “progressive indoctrination” in schools, after watching a segment about the group on Tucker Carlson’s show.
Since then, Friedman said he has spent hundreds of hours combing through a database of more than 5,000 titles scoured from the internet and filing complaints for those he finds objectionable. He declined to be interviewed for this story.
Many of Friedman’s written complaints provide little more explanation than “Protect Children!” and “Damaged Souls!” Some of his filed complaints appear to be direct photocopies with only the title and authors changed, the Times found.
“We have probably spent more resources on Bruce than anyone else in the history of the school district,” said Roger Dailey, Clay County’s assistant superintendent of curriculum and instruction. He said Friedman contacts the district nearly every day.
“I’ve had weeks totally hijacked by this book thing,” said Dailey, who personally reviews each of the complaints received by the school district — a task that typically takes 10 to 15 hours per week.
More staffing would help, but the budget is tight and few would want the job anyway, Dailey said. Whatever his decision on a book complaint, he said he’s branded as either a “jack-booted censor” or an enabler who put the “bad book back on the shelf.”
“It’s not a responsibility I feel comfortable delegating,” he said.
Dailey conceded that Friedman has found objectively problematic books, clearly in violation of state law. As a parent of three, he said he often gets where Friedman is coming from.
The district removed 181 titles as of June 30, including “Watchmen” Alan Moore’s 1986 graphic novel depicting often ultraviolent and morally ambiguous superheroes.
But recent complaints have gotten harder to comprehend, Dailey said. Friedman filed one against the children’s picture book “Arthur,” complaining that it depicted a game of “spin the bottle.”
Book challenges like that “undermine Bruce’s credibility,” Dailey said. “It makes you wonder what would satisfy someone who takes umbrage with those titles.”
Most frustrating to Dailey is that removing even clearly inappropriate books addresses a problem that doesn’t exist. Most parents have zero interest in the subject, he said.
“The circulation of these books for high school kids is essentially zero,” he said. “I wish we had a problem of kids reading so many books that they’re coming across problematic subjects. And it breaks my heart to say that.”
In Escambia County, flanked on the north and west by Alabama, Pensacola high school teacher Vicki Baggett has submitted at least 178 complaints, accounting for 80% of those reported by the district.
Some of Baggett’s complaints include some “pretty adult stuff,” said Pensacola Methodist pastor Rick Branch, a frequent school board attendee who supports library access. It’s worth discussing which books should be reserved for older students, he said, but many of Baggett’s complaints amount to vague allegations of “indoctrination.”
The mostly white and working-class county in the stretch of coast locals call “Floribama” is deeply religious and very conservative, Branch said. But Baggett is still an extreme minority, he added, garnering more annoyance than approval among even the county’s most traditional-values Republicans.
Baggett’s supporters equate books like “Tango” with putting Playboy magazines in elementary schools, Branch said. “I think they are completely misunderstanding what the issue is, maybe intentionally.”
On each of her 178 complaints, Baggett indicated she had read “the material in its entirety.” But the Times found that language in many of the complaints appears to be pulled from reviews published by [Moms for Liberty site Book Looks].
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While most districts received no book complaints during the 12 months starting in July 2022, there are other ways to make books disappear.
Administrators and school boards across the state reported selectively “weeding” controversial titles from libraries, citing lack of circulation or poor condition of the books.
The Lake County schools system received only one objection, but district officials “administratively removed” 22 books in the past year, according to spokesperson Sherri Owens.
In Flagler County, at least nine titles were weeded before receiving a complaint, records show. The district did not provide a full list of books removed and did not give a reason for those decisions.
In March, St. Lucie Superintendent Jon Prince pulled the graphic novel “Gender Queer” by Maia Kobabe after Gov. Ron DeSantis criticized the book in a news conference.
School districts are overly cautious when facing ambiguous directives from the state, said Jonathan Friedman, director of free expression and education programs at the free-speech organization PEN America.
Rather than trusting librarians and media specialists, he said, many counties have given way to a vocal minority, effectively banning books without expert input and with little transparency or accountability.
Without guidance and clarification from state lawmakers, districts will remain in deadlock. And Escambia County isn’t the only district that halted their deliberations in the face of an overwhelming volume of complaints.
In Jefferson County, all school media are closed until the district can inventory the catalog, said Superintendent Eydie Triquet. Santa Rosa County quarantined all books that received a complaint, according to the district’s website.
Hillsborough County has received only two formal complaints: “This Book is Gay” by Juno Dawson, which the school board voted to remove from middle schools in March, and “Being a Girl” by Hayley Long, which they kept. That excludes dozens of informal complaints submitted by the group Citizens Defending Freedom in Hillsborough.
Despite the group’s claims that the district had “quarantined” controversial books, the district’s policy is to keep books available until the board makes a ruling, district spokesperson Tanya Arja said.
As complaints pile up and districts remain in deadlock, specialists like Michelle White have had enough.
White, who left her job as Escambia County’s media service coordinator in June, said the lack of guidance and school boards’ constant overruling of specialist recommendations made her work at the district untenable.
One of her last recommendations to the board was to cover library shelves with black paper until specialists could review the more than 100,000 titles in the district’s 49 schools. When students arrived for the first day of class earlier this month, the libraries were closed.
Update on Fishers and Hamilton East (Ind.) and it is not so greatBooks that have already been moved out of the teen section, such as “The Fault in Our Stars” or the non-fiction book “Attucks!” — the true story of an Indiana all-black high school basketball team that won the state championship in 1955 — will remain in the adult section for the time being, however, as the matter of relocating books that have already been moved was tabled.
https://fox59.com/indiana-news/hamilt...
Students in New Hampshire are heading back to class soon, and it's the third year their teachers will be dealing with new rules around how they can talk about race, gender and sexuality.Republicans led an effort in 2021 to pass a state law restricting certain teaching on those issues, and that law is currently being challenged in court.
New documents from that ongoing court case offer a window into how it's affecting teachers, districts and the state officials who are in charge of overseeing education. Several New Hampshire teachers unions and individuals have brought a lawsuit against the state, basically alleging that the new law chills free speech. They say it's unconstitutional, and it's basically so vague that they don't really ever know when they're violating it. And they also allege that this is contributing to a hostile environment for teachers.
in Windham. There was a social studies teacher there showing music videos in her class, basically trying to help students make connections between contemporary culture and the Harlem Renaissance. A parent issued a complaint, and then the investigator from the Department of Education calls the school. And this teacher, in the lawsuit she says that she was interrupted in class three times in one day to speak with her superiors about the music video clips. These are very popular music videos, I might add — it's one of Beyoncé's famous videos — and she says that this kind of behavior contributed to a climate of fear and unease among teachers. In fact, she says, "One colleague decided not to show a clip from a popular TV show because she did not want to face the same kind of scrutiny and stress that I had faced."
Multiple complaints about Gender Queer: A Memoir, a complaint about A Good Kind of Trouble
In New Hampshire, one of the people who's been tasked with handling complaints about this and other books is actually the guy at the state Department of Education who investigates teacher misconduct at large. So he deals with all kinds of complaints coming into the department, including really serious ones — ones that are, you know, alleging abuse by teachers. So he's in charge of all of those. In his deposition for the lawsuit, he says he's also been asked to gather information about things like whether a book like "Gender Queer" is in a school library. And he says, "Parents are very creative when it comes to complaining about the books. So you have to cut through the nonsense and determine whether or not there's actually a code of conduct violation."
this parent, who feels she's not really getting through to the superintendent, she emails the state education commissioner, Frank Edelblut. He then gets involved. He calls the superintendent to ask for and about this book, "A Good Kind of Trouble." Then when he doesn't hear back, he asks the attorney at the Department of Education to get the book for him, and he discusses it with leaders of the district. However, it's not really clear what happens after that.
https://www.nhpr.org/education/2023-0...
Good news in Douglas County, COThe Board of Trustees for Douglas County Libraries ultimately voted to keep those books on library shelves, but not before a standing-room-only debate in Parker.
Aaron Wood filed four appeals with the Board of Trustees for Douglas County Libraries.
“I’m not out to demonize a particular community and, honestly, I believe this has a disadvantage for the LGBT community, because I would be opposed to heterosexual content that would put sexual perversion or sexual acts in front of children,” Wood said.
Bob Pasicznyuk, executive library director, said the books meet guidelines, they are available at national bookstores and there are programs that allow for guided exposure to book collections.
Wood told FOX31 he’s planning another set of appeals to address graphic novels that include what he calls “inappropriate material,” whether the theme is LGBTQ or heterosexual.
https://kdvr.com/news/local/lgbtq-boo...
Good news Montgomery County, MDJudge denies motion for Montgomery Co. families to opt kids out of lessons with LGBTQ+ books
Without the injunction, all students returning to class on Monday in Montgomery County will participate in lessons as laid out in the curriculum.
The ruling on the injunction does not mean that the lawsuit stops. The court still needs to hear the full case, and issue a final decision.
A rally for parents in favor of opting students out of lessons is planned, with security set up in front of the MCPS building on Thursday afternoon.
https://www.nbcwashington.com/news/lo...
‘Knowledge is power’: new app helps US teens read books banned in schoolDigital Public Public Library fights back against rightwing censorship with resource that works through geo-targeting
the Digital Public Library of America (DPLA) is trying to fight back. It recently launched the Banned Book Program, granting free nationwide access to books restricted in schools or libraries.
It functions through GPS-based geo-targeting; by typing in your zip code, you are shown the complete list of titles prohibited in your area. Once you download the Palace e-reader app, these books are available to download.
“Saying ‘Just to go to the library’ is no longer a stable alternative to having these books in schools,” Jen said. “Some kids don’t have supportive parents or live near public transport. The DPLA has created a resource that will benefit so many.”
“These books aren’t just for kids who are queer,” Jen added, “they’re as much for those who aren’t, to teach them empathy. It’s insidious that the state is telling children who they should or shouldn’t be.”
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2...
Heartstopper Series Volume 1-4 Books Collection Set By Alice Oseman now a popular Netflix series, unavailable in some public libraries in southern Mississippi, news outlets reported.Anyone under 17 will have to ask their parents for permission, since the YA book series is available only in the adult sections of the Columbia-Marion County Public Library per an Aug. 18 decision, the Mississippi Free Press reported. The books were temporarily pulled from the libraries Aug. 9 after resident Heather McMurry complained about the LGBTQ story to the library’s board of directors, WDAM-7 reported. At the meeting, McMurry shared a page from the book that shows two teenage boys kissing, the station reported.
The library system’s board of directors called the second special meeting Friday, Aug. 18 to review residents’ complaints and vote on what to do next, library director Ryda Worthy told McClatchy News in an email. That’s when they decided to permanently move the “Heartstopper” series to the adult sections in all three of the public libraries, as well as review every book in the teen area of the library for “more mature content.” Books in the “Heartstopper” series were immediately moved into a “newly designated Graphic Novel section” in the Adult Fiction department, which shelves material for both young adults and adults, officials said. The library system’s board of trustees and staff are considering splitting the teen area — which currently contains material for those 12 and older — into two smaller age categories, officials said. Any content they deem “more mature” would go adjacent to the Adult Fiction section.
McMurry also complained the young adult section was full of other titles she deemed inappropriate, and the board then agreed to review every book in the section, multiple reports say. Several state representatives spoke out against the books at the meeting, including State Rep. Ken Morgan (R-Morgantown) and Sen. Angela Burks Hill, the Columbian-Progress reported. Burks Hill shared a state law regarding “dissemination of sexually oriented material” to people younger than 18, and Morgan told the board of directors they could be charged with violating the law. Residents weighed in on the decision in comments on a Aug. 12 post on the library’s Facebook page. Some praised the decision while others described it as “heartbreaking.”
“I believe you and all those present are genuinely concerned for the welfare of our children,” someone said while thanking the board for the decision. Someone responded to that comment saying they didn’t think there was anything inappropriate for children in the book. “Concerned for the welfare of children because there’s a book with no s__al material with two gay people,” they said. “This group called this book p__graphic when it is anything but…. There is nothing adult about this book, if it was a heterosexual couple y’all would be completely fine.”
Read more at: https://www.miamiherald.com/news/nati...
Bans on diverse picture books? Young kids need to see their families represented, experts sayEducators and free-speech advocates said the books often simply acknowledge the existence of different identities. That's crucial, they say, to help young children develop empathy and an understanding of themselves — especially for children whose families include people of color or LGBTQ+ relatives.
In Alabama, Gov. Kay Ivey, a Republican, replaced the state's early childhood learning director in April over the use of a guide for preschool teachers. The governor denounced the guide as teaching "woke concepts" because of language about inclusion and structural racism.
The book comes from the National Association for the Education of Young Children — the nonprofit professional association for early childhood education, which accredits daycares and preschools. The fourth edition of the group's "Developmentally Appropriate Practice Book" says in part that children "begin to see how they are represented in society" in preschool and that the classroom should be a place of "affirmation and healing."
Research has found that children as young as 6 months old can perceive race-based differences. Limiting content denies children opportunities to learn about themselves, and to relate to other people, Austin said.
For young children, having access to books that interest them is also a crucial factor in becoming strong readers and battling disparities in literacy rates, said Michelle Martin, a youth and children's services professor at the University of Washington. Although the diversity of children's books has grown in recent years, representation is still lagging.
https://abcnews4.com/news/local/bans-...
I'm really, really sick of the misinformation, deliberate lies and people who think they're above the law/don't seem to know what the Constitution is. It takes a long time to read each book and weigh it against the laws. It takes time and money and librarians can't just ban books based on isolated passages because a few bad apples say so! And now for this day's latest news:
BookRiot reports:
*In under a month, there have been six bomb threats within a small geographic area of Chicagoland, all at public libraries!!! As of writing, there's been no further information about the individual or groups behind these threats, and there's been no information tying any of these incidents together.
This is not new news. Bomb threats have become a reality at public libraries since the rise of right-wing book banners. Last September, there were dozens of headlines about the number of these threats happening across the country.
Still, they continue.
Knoxville, Tenn. schools require the book review committee to actually READ the book before they ban it.They're considering tweaking their policy to add clarification that the school can reconsider removals on a case-by-case basis.
"The parent would then complete the process, fill out the paperwork, articulating why they feel that material's not age-appropriate," Phillips said. "And then we'd go through a process internally, where we then read that material and we go through a series of questioning to determine if the parent is right and making the recommendation for us to reconsider that, or if we feel like it is age-appropriate, and it can remain in the school."
Yet, opinions vary. One person may think a book is inappropriate but another person may not. It is hard to define inappropriate to a broad band of parents, teachers and students, Phillips said.
This is why it depends on a case-by-case basis, where they read those texts, and then each parent is notified of the outcome.
If parents are dissatisfied with that outcome, they have the option to appeal the decision. The Tennessee Textbook Commission has an appeals process, and Phillips said that they just updated their language and their policy to include that process for parents.
"Our school media specialists or librarians go through an annual review of their circulation," Phillips said. "So the books in their circulation are reviewed. They do a weeding process. What's no longer relevant, what might not be age-appropriate, and they remove those texts from their circulation."
The executive director of learning and literacy for the district says she wants teachers to feel empowered to use additional material, but also said it has to meet curriculum requirements.
Last year, KCS went through two reviews and removed one book. They took the second book out of circulation for students, but teachers can still check it out.
"It's through the use of good content that we are able to do that for kids," Phillips said. "I'm hopeful that as we support teachers in the field, they develop this broader understanding of why those materials are important for students."
https://www.wbir.com/article/news/com...
Some GOOD news Fight against book bans prompts Orchard Park, NY teens to start national organization Students Protecting Education. They also have a chapter in already has a chapter in Charleston, S.C. Jillian and co-founder Luke Lippitt continue to outline plans for the coming year for the organization, which already has a chapter in Charleston, S.C.
The group aims to empower students to fight for their rights to a diverse and equitable education. By May, it had endorsed three candidates with similar aims for School Board.
“We’re not fighting against something, we’re fighting for (it)” Luke said. “We’re fighting for our voices to be heard. And we’re fighting for things that we think are important. And if you’re trying to take things away that we value, we’re going to let you know how we feel about that. We’re going to fight for those things that we care about.”
While the group is a student-led operation, the teenagers have some help. Three adults sit on the board of directors. The group is in the process of obtaining nonprofit status with the Internal Revenue Service.
https://buffalonews.com/news/local/ed...
The national debate over books has come to West Texas. And librarians are stuck in the middle.West Texas residents are organizing over their love — or concern — for books. Meanwhile, from Lubbock to Midland and Odessa, librarians are trying to reaffirm libraries’ role as community hubs.
Librarians find themselves once again caught in the middle. Many try to keep their heads down, wishing the tempest will pass. Others are actively reaffirming a library’s place in their communities, not just as a center for information but as a gathering place. And there are those who are rethinking what they offer their community. In Midland, for example, the library system won a $72,000 grant and will use the money to invest in job training opportunities, to help close the digital divide in rural parts of the county and to offer more science, technology, engineering and mathematics courses for all age groups
No matter how beneficial the work is, it hasn’t stopped West Texas policymakers from joining the fray.
Earlier this week, the Midland County commissioners debated proposed changes to the library district’s policy on challenged books. No changes were put in place — for now. However, the five-member committee directed the library to leave the American Library Association. The decision follows a move made by the Montana State Library in response to a 2022 tweet posted by the association’s president describing herself as a “Marxist Lesbian.”
In Lubbock, the fight over books is fraught as both sides seek to rally grassroots support for their views.
Earlier this summer, the Lubbock chapter of the True Texas Project, a far-right group that traces its roots to the 2009 tea party movement, attempted to host an event dubbed “Defeat Dirty Books.”
The event was scheduled at the city’s Science Spectrum, a nonprofit museum and theater. Tracy Shannon, an anti-transgender activist with ties to conspiracy theorist Steve Hotze and other extreme anti-LGBTQ+ figures, was booked to speak for the event. Shannon also leads the Houston chapter of MassResistance, which has been designated as a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center since 2008. The True Texas Project, which has benefited from the largess of West Texas oil tycoon and Republican megadonor Tim Dunn, did not respond to a request for an interview.
Other Lubbock residents fought to cancel the event. Pressure from Harpster and other Lubbock residents worked. The museum backed out of the event, and so did another venue. Ultimately, it took place at a local church.
“When we have an uneducated, uninformed populace, we have a populace that is easy to manipulate and control,” said Gracie Gomez, chair of the Lubbock County Democratic Party.
Gomez organized an event recently at Mahon Library in Lubbock that aimed to inform residents about the True Texas Project and the book ban movement. Gomez sees the movement as both anti-education and a way to rewrite history by limiting what information is available in libraries.
Peter Muhlberger, a former political science professor in Lubbock, likened the landscape in Texas to Florida where, according to a PEN America study, book bans are most prevalent. And with Lubbock County being majority conservative — more than 65% of the county voted for Donald Trump in the 2020 election — Muhlberger said the city is low-hanging fruit for right-wing movements.
With peace unlikely anytime soon in the latest war on books, librarians throughout West Texas say they hope to emphasize the role of libraries as a public good.
In rural communities where the distribution of information is limited because of weak broadband connections, keeping books on shelves makes information accessible for communities with scarce resources, said Laughlin, the rural libraries association executive director.
Like the Midland County public library, the Ector library recently won a $75,000 grant from the state. It plans to use the money for outreach — taking a mobile library to rural areas outside the Odessa city limits.
“The mission of this is to bring the library to you,” said Howard Marks, director of the Ector County library.
In an email to The Texas Tribune, the Texas Library Association emphasized that libraries are essential in local communities where people from all walks of life come together. They added that librarians are highly trained in collection development and follow all state, local and federal law when purchasing books.
“Libraries are the ultimate democratic institutions,” said Shirley Robinson, the association’s executive director. “They serve the entire community, not just those with certain beliefs. The library is a place for voluntary inquiry and discovery.”
https://www.texastribune.org/2023/08/...
https://www.texastribune.org/2023/08/...
At the Evelyn Goldberg Briggs Memorial PUBLIC Library in Wisconsin, a group calling itself Concerned Citizens of Iron River recently was distributed to Iron River residents, saying that many books available at the library “encourage exploration of changing your gender to small children” including kids as young as toddlers.The anonymous letter also claims that the Iron River library contains “75 titles under the heading of ‘transgenderism’ and 475 titles under ‘LGBTQ,’” figures that the library board said are patently false.
“The 475 titles of LGBTQ+ materials are mixed among 30 libraries that make up the full northern 1/3 of the state of Wisconsin, this also includes 143 ebooks and eaudiobooks supported by the state of Wisconsin. Iron River Public Library Board and staff have no control over other libraries or what is purchased digitally,” the board wrote on its social media accounts.
BookBanLetter1.jpg
A copy of the anonymous letter distributed in Iron River, obtained by the Daily Press.
Following the board’s vote, Randy Morgan, a member of the group seeking the ban, declined to comment on behalf of the group, but said residents with worries about the “obscene materials at the libraries and schools” should attend the group’s Sept. 6 meeting at the Iron River Community Center.
At that meeting, “concerned citizens will have a chance to share their thoughts and the course(s) of action that will be taken to ensure that continual proliferation of these materials cease,” the letter says.
Morgan, on his social media accounts, says he was a member of a group that “shut down low income government housing in town” a couple of years ago, and calls the books “pornographic.” He also shares memes calling for a “straight pride month” and video that claims the recent wild fires in Hawaii and California were sparked by a “directed energy assaults.”
His group has circulated “petitions for the removal of books and to halt future purchases thereof,” and “petitions for resignations,” the letter states.
https://www.apg-wi.com/townnews/museu...
PUBLIC library!
Dothan Houston County Library Services (AL) assures users they don't have sexually inappropriate materials in their children's collection. No kidding!
"Dothan Houston County Library Services Director Chris Warren promises the library will never subject children to anything that could be seen as inappropriate.
“We do not have s___ually explicit material in the children’s collection,” said Warren. “We again make very careful, very informed decisions about what is developmentally appropriate, what themes are important and all of that to make sure we are serving the community the best we can.”
Chairman Brandon Shoupe feels censorship should not be enforced in the library as a whole, but ensures the county commission will draw the line at children.
“The library is probably always going to have books that I would object to, but that’s just part of a healthy democracy,” said Shoupe. “I don’t think it is a government official’s business to say you aren’t going to have this book or you aren’t going to have that book, but I do think it is within our wheelhouse to say we are not going to fund a library that’s going to have explicit content targeted towards children in the children’s section.”
With the content still available in the library, parents could be concerned their children may still find content they deem inappropriate. Luckily, Warren highlighted measures in place at the library to ensure a child’s safety.
“You can’t get a library card without a parent signature if you are under the age of 19,” said Warren. “If you are under the age of 13, you cannot be in the library without a parent or guardian. So, we do have policies in place to make sure that parents are involved.”
Shoupe and Warren are aware of the diversity in the Wiregrass. With numerous ways of life in the area, both want to provide a safe and welcoming place for people to access materials, books and any other needs they may have.
https://www.wtvy.com/2023/08/23/dhcls...
An appalling list of over 100+ media titles listed as "sexually explicit" in Prince William County, Virginia schoolsYes, Virginia, Chaucer and the Ancient Greeks are sexually explicit.
No Virginia A Doll's House does not actually have sexual content, being a 19th-century play!
No Virginia Gulliver's Travels was banned in the 18th century not today
The Jungle is an expose of the meat packing industry in the early 1900s. Not sure how they get sexual from that.
No Virginia, art is not explicit
Yes Virginia Candide is a little racy but it's supposed to be FUNNY
Yes Virginia Robert Burns had questionable morals but in his own time his poetry was accepted even if he was not!
https://www.pwcs.edu/userfiles/server...
Good news in Kentucky, "Daviess County Public Library [KY] Director Erin Waller has reviewed nearly 70 of the 248 titles deemed 'inappropriate for developing minds' by the Daviess County Citizens for Decency (DCC4D) group. Waller said she recommends the ones she’s reviewed so far remain in their respective sectionsWaller said that as of just after noon on Monday, she had reviewed 69 of the 248 books identified.
She said of those 63, five books are in the teen section and 58 are in the juvenile section. Waller said six of the books on the list were already shelved in the adult section.
“My recommendation is that we keep them where they are (in their respective sections),” Waller said.
Waller added that since the board meeting, DCC4D contacted her with corrections after they noticed some books on their list were not correctly identified.
Waller said to ensure the books are not checked out during the review process, all 248 titles have been listed as “In Repair” or “Being Reviewed” in the library’s system. According to Waller, some of the titles requested are lost, and about 50 were checked out when the review began.
Once the book has been reviewed, it will be returned to its shelf if still deemed appropriate, according to Waller.
“I’ve divided it up by section. As I get done with a section, everything that I think is appropriate to stay where it is will be going out there so that I don’t have all of these just sitting in my office for the whole time that I’m working on them,” Waller said.
Waller said her review process includes looking at laws about obscenity outlined in KRS Chapter 531 along with reviews and circulation numbers. She is also looking at the specific concerns outlined by DCC4D in the list the group provided to the library.
“I’m reading that to see what their concerns are so that I can better understand exactly what it is that I need to look for,” she said.
Waller will provide her recommendations to the Board of Directors, which has the ultimate decision on what to do with the books.
Waller said she alone is reviewing all of the books, but said that in the future there may be titles for which she seeks outside input from board members or other staff.
https://www.owensborotimes.com/news/2...
"At this pace, library director Kelly LaRocca predicted it will be three years or longer before it slogs through the mound of book challenges. Each requires a panel of librarians to read the book, discuss the merits of the challenge, and formulate a report to the board. This task, heaped on top of librarians' usual duties, costs the library about $400 per title, according to LaRocca." This is in St. Tammany Parish, Louisiana, where two more books just got returned to shelves and three more books were challenged because a crisis actor said the process is taking too long. They have received challenges under false names like "Mickey Mouse" and where it's clear the complainer didn't read the book.The library has discussed policy changes to lighten the load. One proposal would allow the board to toss out unmerited challenges, like those submitted under false names — Mickey Mouse is purported to have challenged at least one book — or those submitted by people who obviously didn’t read the book.
One such challenge was discussed Monday. Connie Phillips, an activist with the St. Tammany Library Accountability Project, a far-right group behind the vast majority of the parish’s book challenges, submitted a challenge to “What Are Your Words?: A Book About Pronouns” by Katherine Locke.
Phillips alleged in her complaint the book, which is an illustrated children’s book, contained multiple instances of profanity and referenced page numbers and plot points that did not exist, indicating she did not read the book. A review of dozens of Phillips’ challenges showed she had copied and pasted the bulk of her objections, alleging each book violated state law on material harmful to minors.
A couple dozen library supporters, clad in purple shirts bearing “Trust Our Librarians,” arrive early, venting their frustrations with the whole process. They sit mostly on one side of the aisle, while a small handful of activists who want to restrict minors’ access to certain materials, sit across from them.
The actual challengers to the books are rarely in attendance, although library board policy allows them five minutes to make the case for the book’s removal to the board.
The book opponents are generally quiet, whispering in clumps of two or three who are often families. That is, until the public comment period starts.
Inevitably, during the portion of the meeting set aside for patrons to raise their concerns on the books being challenged, raised tensions lead to raised voices.
Occasionally, local police have to step in to remove an angry attendee, but usually the shouting settles down on its own.
The excitement has become so predictable that one meeting regular circulated bingo cards with phrases and actions so often observed at meetings. Players could check off squares for a heckler, for police removing an attendee or for somebody referring to a children’s book as porn.
There were several calls of “Bingo!” throughout the meeting. Winners were treated to a copy of a challenged book and a foam medal in the shape of a millstone, a reference to a book challenger who on more than one occasion insinuated library board members would face the biblical punishment of drowning by millstone if they allowed the books she challenged to remain in the library.
The St. Tammany library board still has a backlog of over 100 challenged titles to go through, and more challenges are always coming in. Some, like those submitted Monday, are counter-challenges of books favored by conservatives.
“I’m gonna submit more challenges, and I’m gonna go for Harry Potter and the Bible and that d__n hungry caterpillar,” Cynthia Weatherlysaid as she handed over her three challenges.
While the books await a decision, they remain behind the circulation desk where they are available to patrons only upon request. In response to concerns patrons might not know they exist if they cannot freely browse and find them, the library purchased dummy books bearing the books’ information that are placed where the books would normally be.
Still, the practice, known as “red flagging,” has drawn the ire of First Amendment advocates.
https://lailluminator.com/2023/08/22/...
Good news in ColoradoPahrump library trustees declined to make any changes to the public’s book collection on Monday after its director reported that none of the libraries she had surveyed over the past month had censored or banned any youth books about race, gender, or sexuality. Seven similar-sized libraries had relocated some youth titles on sexuality to their adult section, Pahrump Community Library Director Vanja Anderson told trustees on Monday, including a Colorado institution that had moved 'sensitive' titles 25 years ago prior to developing a formal challenge process to its public collection. But since that time, the library hasn’t banned, censored, or relocated any books for questionable content,
https://pvtimes.com/news/library-shel...
More good news
At Mason City School District (IA), where they used AI to determine books that did not abide by the new Iowa law, Friday Night Lights is back on shelves
44 books under fire at the Prattville, Alabama public libraryhttps://www.alreporter.com/2023/08/24...
The Pronoun Book
Notes: This is the book that allegedly started the entire book challenging campaign in Prattville, after a parent reportedly mistook the book to be about grammar. The book poses the question: “How do you know what someone wants to be called?” and provides the answer: “Ask.” The reconsideration form states that the book “presents a grammatically incorrect presentation that indoctrinates world view that is untrue and Biblically opposed.” Suggested replacements for the book include “God made boys and girls,” “God made me in His image,” and “Jesus and my gender.” The library board ultimately moved this book to a high shelf representing non-fiction within the children’s library.
Yes! No!: A First Conversation About Consent
Author: Megan Madison
Challenged content: *Sexual content
Notes: The challenger of this book characterized it as demonstrating that it “is intended to teach children that they must consent to any behavior done to them, specifically sexual.” However, the book does not address sexual consent at all, although some of the lessons about consent in the book could be applied to sexual situation later in life. The challenger later admits “the subject matter is not sexual” but argues that children cannot consent to any activity until they are 18; before then, the parent must also give consent, they say. This book was moved to a higher shelf within the children’s library.
Door by Door: How Sarah McBride Became America's First Openly Transgender Senator
Challenged content: LGBTQ content
Notes: This book is rated a 1/5 by BookLooks, meaning the content may be inappropriate only for very young readers. This book is in the juvenile nonfiction section of the library. The book tells about Sarah McBride and how she became the first openly transgender Senator in the country. The challenger states, “There are only 2 genders. Teaching immature (children) that they can change their gender is misleading and destructive to their futures. Children cannot make such life-altering decisions … No age group should be exposed to this propaganda … remove and destroy.”
https://www.alreporter.com/2023/08/24...
More punishment for the students of Cobb, GA where the teacher was fired for reading My Shadow is Purple.Cobb reading bowl canceled over book bans
Jeff Hubbard, president of the Cobb County Association of Educators, said Friday the steering committee for the Cobb event “has made the difficult decision to not participate in this year’s event.”
Each school district has its own local quiz-bowl-style competition for elementary, middle and high schools to test students’ knowledge of Georgia Book Award selections prior to regional and state showdowns.
When reached by the MDJ for comment, Cobb County School District spokesperson Nan Kiel provided a statement disputing any talk that the reading bowl in Cobb is off.
“The District is aware of an inaccurate email which indicated Cobb students would not be participating in the Helen Ruffin Reading Bowl,” she wrote back. “The specifics of that email are currently being investigated. While there is currently no change to Cobb student eligibility for the Helen Ruffin Reading Bowl, all District partners are expected to use books, videos, or other forms of digital content which are in accordance with District policy and the Law.”
Yet Hubbard told the MDJ Friday the CCSD statement “is entirely incorrect.”
“The Helen Ruffin Reading Bowl is completely run on a volunteer basis by system media specialists and teachers, who do this outside of their contractual day,” Hubbard said. “The school system has no auspices of the organization or production of the annual competition.”
Despite the independence of the competition from the district, the situation surrounding former Due West Elementary School teacher Katie Rinderle’s firing has led those involved in organizing the reading bowl to fear retaliation from CCSD top brass, Hubbard said.
That’s because, from reading specialists’ perspectives, some of the books on the list for the reading bowl are either those being targeted by the district or titles that would run up against the district’s recent crackdown on books deemed inappropriate for students.
Not only that — if the district decides it does not want schools participating in the competition, they won’t, Hubbard said.
He sent a letter to the district on Aug. 7 asking for three guarantees: that no teachers would risk discipline for their students reading these books as part of the reading bowl; that the district would allow schools to participate if parents sign a permission slip stating they understand some of the books contain material considered controversial, and that the district’s leadership would sign off on the books as acceptable for students to read.
Hubbard still has not heard back from the district on that request, he said.
Hubbard said media specialists have been in disciplinary hearings all week answering questions about books in their libraries, further proof to them that the reading bowl should not take place in such a climate.
He said there have been media specialists who have called him in tears about fears for their job security and uncertainty over the district’s policies surrounding controversial materials.
“They said the risk isn’t worth it,” Hubbard said.
https://www.mdjonline.com/news/educat...
The KAREN who sneaked into the school library to take photos of books she objected to has been censured but continues to maintain she did nothing wrong! KAREN!Granbury ISD trustee says she refuses to resign after censured for violating district policy
GRANBURY, Texas — During a special school board meeting Wednesday night, the Granbury ISD board of trustees voted 5-2 to censure trustee Karen Lowery.
The decision to censure her came after Lowery was accused of visiting the Granbury High School library on Aug. 2 with another person to examine books on shelves, allegedly without permission.
The censure, an official reprimand, means the board found her to be in violation of board policy.
“This was a big push to try to get me to resign,” Lowery said.
During an exclusive interview with WFAA Thursday, Lowery said she refuses to resign.
“Censure means nothing,” Lowery said. “I was sitting there while they’re trying to decide whether or not to do it. If you’re gonna do it, somebody raise your hand and do it.”
Lowery sat in Wednesday night’s meeting as public comment and discussion went on for more than four hours.
Dozens of speakers called on her to resign.
“We felt like our trust has been violated,” one speaker said.
Another speaker said, “If Mrs. Lowery does not resign or is not reprimanded for her actions, I believe she is more dangerous than any book in our library.”
Lowery told WFAA she listened carefully, something she believed was necessary.
“I was listening. I believe everybody should have the opportunity to speak, no matter what side you happen to be on. Sometimes, it was a little bit difficult to listen to,” Lowery said. “They didn’t have the facts, and I think that bothered me more than anything.”
During Wednesday night’s meeting, Austin-based attorney Joey Moore presented information from a district report involving the allegations against Lowery.
According to the district report, board policy requires trustees to check in with principals and report to the main office for any campus visit. The district report says Lowery’s designated destination on the campus was the cafeteria, where she was signed up to volunteer with school supply distribution. Lowery never disclosed her visit to the library, according to the district report.
Lowery, however, said she called the principal to disclose her library visit beforehand, and that she disclosed she would visit the library at the front desk.
The district report said there was no evidence that Lowery disclosed her library visit to the principal.
“It’s their word against my word, and they voted to censure, and I'll take that and move on and continue on,” Lowery said. “I’m not going to resign over this. I still want to help the children in more ways than just the books.”
In a July audio recording obtained by WFAA, Lowery expressed concern over sexual content in library books.
“We have opened the door for the evil to come through," Lowery said during the recording.
The district removed several LGBTQ-themed books last spring. Lowery, however, has pressed on since then. The July recording indicates she had previous plans to inspect books on shelves for herself to check for inappropriate books.
https://www.wfaa.com/article/news/loc...
And... the worst news I've read all dayA Hudson Valley, New York area PUBLIC school considers faith-based books for library
https://www.hudsonvalley360.com/news/...
Mod
Glad that DeSantis was loudly booed. And since the gun was legally bought and since DeSantis has loosened gun control laws, sorry, but part of this is definitely on him.
And I also hope that the investigation into the shooting does not stop because the perpetrator (the despicable monster) killed himself. It needs to be checked whether the shooter's family and/or his friends etc. know or suspected anything, and if they knew or suspected and chose not to alert the authorities, criminal charges should in my opinion be considered.
In a small town in Arkansas, Ozark mayor calls for defunding library if LGBT books remain in YA sectionhe mayor of Ozark, Alabama on Saturday suggested defunding the Ozark Dale County Public Library if LGBTQ books remain in the young adult section.
Mayor Mark Blankenship, posting from a joint Facebook account with his wife Lori, said “we have been trying to remove (view spoiler) [these books] from the kids section of our library for several months. We have been told several times it would be removed. It never happens and the library receives three or four more books per month. I know most of you are too busy to attend this meeting but you can contact your city council or county commission members and encourage them to cut their funding to the Dale County Library. If we cut the funding they will be closed and our children will not be exposed to this mess. It’s time the majority of the people stand up and address this liberal mess in Alabama.”
The post was in response to a special called meeting of the Ozark Dale County Public Library Board “in light of an informal request to remove all LGBTQ books from the Young Adult section.”
APR asked what he knew about the books that made them inappropriate.
“I don’t want children exposed to it in our library,” Blankenship said. “Any kind of sexual content at the young age of 12.”
APR asked Blankenship whether he considered all LGBTQ content to be sexual content, and he told APR some of the books might not be sexual and agreed that other non-LGBTQ books might be sexual. But regardless, he said these are the books he wants the library to move to the adult section right now.
The post generated a lot of reaction on Facebook, with many Ozark citizens pleading not to defund the library.
Blankenship said those people have gotten the wrong idea.
“They all want to think that this post is directed at homosexuals, gays, lesbians— I have extremely close friends that are gay,” Blankenship said, noting his pickleball partner is a lesbian. “She understands what I’m saying (about this issue) … it’s no big deal— I just don’t want children exposed to it.”
Ozark citizen Adam Kamerer said he was blindsided by the post.
“I was sitting down to play a video game when I saw this thing blowing up,” Kamerer said. “This is the first time I’ve seen this kind of talk from Blankenship. He’s largely been a benefit to Ozark, most people have been pleased with his leadership. This is the first time I’ve seen him go in this direction.”
In response, Kamerer started a Facebook group “Ozark Against Blankenship’s Call to Defund The Library Over LGBT Books.” It already has more than 450 members, including supporters from outside of Ozark.
The group has begun emailing and contacting city and county leaders asking them not to support defunding the library.
Even if only the city removed its funding from the library, it would be a major blow, wiping out about 50 percent of the library’s budget at more than $109,000. What’s more, based on Alabama Public Library Service guidelines, the library would likely lose state aid. APLS reduces funding when local funding drops. APLS currently funds the Ozark Dale library at about $40,000.
The library temporarily moved the books off the shelf for review, but have since returned the books.
City Council President Brenda Simechak took to Facebook to declare her support for the library.
https://www.alreporter.com/2023/08/28...
In Charlotte, NC students can't check out books from CMS libraries for start of school yearStudents can still go to the media centers for classes and elementary students can learn about library procedures.
Earlier this month, in response to the new law, the CMS board policy committee voted to recommend changes to four key policies to align with the new state law.
1. Parents will have to opt in for their children to participate in reproductive health and safety education programs. Previously, students automatically took part unless a parent opted out.
2. The district has to give parents options to review library media centers and supplementary education materials.
3. The district must develop policies that involve parents in schools and in their children’s education.
4. Gender identity, sexual orientation, or sexual activity may not be mentioned in any K-fourth grade curriculum.
https://www.wsoctv.com/news/local/stu...
In Alabama, Mobile residents may challenge up to 30 library books that include LGBTQ+ conceptsGail Walton and Cathy Odom say they do not want books banned from the Mobile Public Library, but they are going forward on an attempt to have a few of them reviewed by library officials that they deem troubling for children to read.
“We are fighting a culture war,” said Walton, a Mobile resident who is heading up efforts challenging books in libraries in Mobile County that include transgender lifestyles and include the concept of gender fluidity. She is also pushing against the library’s continued participation in the American Library Association, which also echoes efforts going on in other places around the country.
“We are concerned not just about books, but all materials offered to the children in the children’s section,” Walton said. “We want more parental control over what the children see. We ask the books we object to are moved to the adult section so parents can decide what’s appropriate for their child. A lot of parents do not have a clue.”
If need be, Walton said they will take their concerns to the Mobile City Council, which is in charge of appointing library board members.
She said approximately 30 books could be challenged, though only four books have been officially filed for reconsideration before the library administration.
The library, in a statement, said the women are approaching their concerns in the right way. Four books have officially been challenged, in writing through reconsideration forms, to library officials.
“What the ladies have done is what they should do in turning in book challenges,” according to the library’s administration. “They will be researched by staff and the challenges (will be) presented to management who will review the concerns to make sure we do what we should do.”
Walton and Odom were at the Library Board’s meeting on Wednesday but did not speak out about their concerns. They said they only attended to observe and understand the board’s processes.
https://www.al.com/news/2023/08/mobil...
Sold
This Book Is Gay
Beyond Magenta: Transgender and Nonbinary Teens Speak Out
All Boys Aren't Blue
Follow-upBook challenges at the Mobile Public Library have been withdrawn.
Library administration says a small group of people requested a review of four books that deal with LGBTQ issues
The library says the people withdrew the challenge after admitting they had not read the books.
https://mynbc15.com/news/local/book-u...
Keep shaming these people in the media and books will return!The Mason City Community School District in Iowa says it will put copies of Friday Night Lights — by Philadelphia author H.G. “Buzz” Bissinger — back in school libraries after banning book earlier.
https://www.inquirer.com/education/fr...
Books removed from a PUBLIC library in MURFREESBORO, Tenn. !! the Rutherford County board overseeing all county public libraries voted to remove four books from the shelves on Monday.The Rutherford County Library Board cited Tennessee State laws surrounding obscenity and the city of Murfreesboro’s recently passed decency ordinance when removing
Flamer
Gender Queer: A Memoir
This Book Is Gay
Let's Talk About It: The Teen's Guide to Sex, Relationships, and Being a Human
“It’s very clear the library was out of bounds by not following the Tennessee State law that passed two years ago,” said board member Shawn Wright. “The Murfreesboro ordinance brought a spotlight to a law that was already in place. As far as censorship goes, the library already censors. They censor movies; they censor video games; those are also forms of art.”
The board also made a directive for different library cards to prevent children from accessing books for adults. Once implemented, there will be a juvenile, young adult, and adult library card. A parent will be able to give their child access to young adult or adult books, but that would not be the default.
One board member asked if this means a high school student doing a book report on a historical figure like Clarence Thomas or Andrew Jackson.
“Unless their parents gave them permission to have the profile where they could,” the library representative said.
A newly formed group, Rutherford County Library Alliance, called removing these books an infringement on First Amendment rights.
“We should be teaching our kids about all types of sex. Education is power,” said Keri Lambert.
However, the board said they are not attorneys and are simply following city and state laws.
“This board is not First Amendment attorneys; we are not judicial. In the aspect of deciding the First Amendment or violations thereof, our job is to adhere to laws, local ordinances, and state laws, and as long as those laws are still in the book, that’s what we’re tasked to do,” said Rutherford County Library Board Member Steve Sullivan.
“That’s what they’ve been drilled into their heads to do is to support the ALA, and we have to like do some retraining before we like crucify him,” said one board member.
While the majority of books discussed and all the ones removed contain LGBTQ themes, the chair was adamant they were not targeting a specific group.
Sullivan also explained while the books they voted to remove will not be on library shelves moving forward, they will still be available digitally.
https://www.wkrn.com/news/local-news/...
The Vonnegut Library continues to build a Banned Books Library to make these challenged titles available for students either by library loan or outright gifting the books and creating dialogue to better understand them.Sponsors make it possible to provide free family memberships to Indianapolis Public School students and other schools. During Banned Books Week October 1-7,Vonnegaut Library for free speech hoopla and meaningful dialogue.
https://www.indystar.com/story/opinio...
CONWAY, S.C. (WPDE) — Monday night, differing opinions when it comes to literary censorship collided before Horry County School Board members.Dozens of parents, residents, former educators, and advocates attended the meeting with roughly 20 speakers signed up to talk about the reported removal of books from local high schools.
HCS officials confirmed that 12 books were removed from library shelves at the high school level. It's been reported and mentioned by concerned residents that the removal came after one parent alone complained about the books. That parent is the outspoken advocate with the local Moms For Liberty chapter David Warner.
"I want to thank the board for making the policy change that they made back in I believe it was December and giving the opportunity in the community to challenge concerning books within the schools," Warner said adding that the group has a new request for HCS leaders. "We are asking you to remove the five-year expiration on the book challenges that are there now."
Warner said that is a provision that ends the book challenge and subsequent removal.
The concern raised by Warner and other advocates is limiting "explicit" material within school libraries. However, educators and education advocates spoke against the decision to remove those books in the manner that HCS did.
"We should not have one complaint, one parent, making decisions for 47,000 students and the parents of those students," said DaVita Foushee.
It's not clear what parents now sit within these committees as the meetings are done privately when a complaint is brought to the district. You can read more about the policy between these committees here.
"We want a seat at the table where our voices are heard and respected," said Cori Porter with the Horry County Education Association. "We want to work with you to bring real positive change. There are those out there that like to throw around really loud phrases like book banning, CRT, and woke but all this does is distract us from working together and causes a division."
https://wpde.com/news/local/parents-a...
Moms for Liberty banks on new state law; Indian River School County, Florida Board to remove 20 booksorchestrated attempt by Moms for Liberty to circumvent the School Board's book-review policy hit pay dirt Monday.
Moms for Liberty members read the School Board "inflammatory" passages from previously challenged books. In the end, the board ordered at least 20 books removed from school libraries.
The board voted unanimously to remove books deemed too sexually explicit to be read during the meeting. Chair Peggy Jones stopped many of the nearly 50 speakers from finishing passages they were reading. For other books, she asked for a content warning be included so parents could remove children who were watching the meeting remotely.
It's exactly what the group hoped to accomplish, counting on a new state law that requires school districts remove books when someone is prohibited from reading them during a public meeting, Jennifer Pippin, president of the local chapter of Moms For Liberty told TCPalm on Tuesday.
Moms For Liberty is a conservative political group founded two years ago in Indian River and Brevard counties.
"Every other time we've read (the books), we've been shut down immediately," Pippin said. "We did the most inflammatory passages to be respectful of time."
Passages from 57 books were read, Pippin said. Jones stopped readings from at least 20 books, including "The Handmaid's Tale," "The Bluest Eye," and "Go Ask Alice," and a collection of books by author Ellen Hopkins, she said. An exact count is still being compiled.
Armed with the details of HB 1069, Moms for Liberty group was able to circumvent the school district's policy for book challenges, which begins with a complaint to the school principal. The next step, according to the policy, is a referral of the book to a district book-review committee for consideration.
Going through that review process is time-consuming — at least two or three hours per book, Pippin said.
"We thought it would be more respectful of everyone's time (to bring it directly to the School Board)," she said Tuesday.
A committee of about 22 people worked on the effort leading up to Monday night, each reading some books to challenge, Pippin said.
Moms for Liberty knew which passages to read because the books were part of a 2021-2022 challenge, Pippin said.
In 2022, five of 156 books challenged by the Moms for Liberty chapter were removed by the School Board. The rest were returned to school libraries, although some were moved to high schools and now require parent permission for students to check them out.
https://www.tcpalm.com/story/news/edu...
Also in Indian RiverTense discourse over books, African-American history standards at school board meeting
Parents, advocates bring concerns to board
"Which one of you on that board has ever spent a day black?" Anthony Brown, the president of the Indian River County Branch of the NAACP, said. "How dare any of you tell me about black history, how dare you minimize what it has done."
People siding with the local NAACP pushing the school board to reject the standards to the department of education, but not all agree.
"I agree that maybe this could've been phrased better, but some slaves did develop skills that benefited them when they became free," Betsy DiBenedetto said. "This criticism has been repeated so many times for the purpose to divide us and promote hate."
In a statement last wee,k Cailey Myers, a spokesperson for the Florida Department of Education said: "If you take the time to actually read the standards in full, you would see that we show a wholly open and honest retelling of African American history – the good, the bad and the ugly."
https://www.wptv.com/news/treasure-co...
In North CarolinaWith a decade of experience teaching education at the collegiate level, professor Ethan Hutt says one of his biggest lessons recently is adapting.
“We want our students to be ready to engage the world as they find it. I think that’s our primary job as educators," Hutt said.
Hutt's areas of expertise includes the history of education.
He says oftentimes, education is cyclical, with many trends reoccurring throughout history.
The most prominent example of that lately is the banning of books.
“Book banning has been part of American educational life since the beginning," Hutt said. "Because people disagree about the purpose of education, people disagree about what kind of content we should expose people to, what kind of books should be in the classroom and who really gets a say.”
An author himself, and a proponent of a well-rounded education, Hutt says limiting materials is a slippery slope.
“When you start moving whole subject matters from the table, then it does restrict what our educators can do and what our schools can do for our future citizens," Hutt said. "Our future workers and students. That does become challenging.”
Hutt says removing these options takes away discretion from educators.
“When a student has that spark, has that interest, you would hope an educator would seize on that moment and say, 'this is something you can really dig into,'" Hutt said. "You don’t have to take my view of it, you don’t have to take your parents' view of it. You can really think about and weigh the evidence, and get deep into a topic.”
Hutt advises everyone to take their time before considering taking any books off of school shelves.
“Listen carefully and try to engage in solutions," Hutt said. "Historically, we have found ways to get past these really contentious moments and say, 'hey, maybe some books aren’t appropriate for some students.' Maybe some books, there’s an option here.”
Hutt says districts that are receiving complaints on books should consider an opt-out policy rather than vetoing the book for all children.
https://spectrumlocalnews.com/nc/char...
Little Rock, ArkansasLittle Rock Central High School holds book banning panel
The Little Rock Central High School national historic site hosted the panel discussion on book banning at the main branch of the Central Arkansas Library System Saturday.
The panel included the director of CALS, as well as the executive director of the American Library Association.
The goal was to explore book banning past and present, and the impact of laws and regulations that restrict access to literature.
Tiffeni Fontno, director of the Peabody Library at Vanderbilt University, said that most of the time books being censored aren’t actually being read first.
“People need to get together and actually look and read these books,” Fontno said. “Most of the time these books aren’t actually getting read, and they’re being censored, let’s have the conversation to see why these things exist, because that means we’ll better be able to understand each other when we have these conversations.”
https://www.kark.com/news/local-news/...
https://www.arkansasonline.com/news/2...
In Texas at Round Rock ISD's first meeting of the school year, on Aug. 17 eight of the 48 people who spoke during the public comment portion of the meeting used their two minutes to read scenes from books they'd like to ban. The speakers did not make an effort to show how the scenes fit into the narrative of the book.Several of the book banners, including Jill Farris and Christie Slape, who ran losing campaigns for the school board last year, wore T-shirts promoting Moms for Liberty.
Katie Kizer, social media coordinator for Access Education RRISD, questioned why the book banners are still harping on the issue after the state's passage this legislative session of House Bill 900, which will ban books across the state. "It's clear that their only goal is to agitate," Kizer said. "But their tactics won't work here because parents are paying attention." Indeed, the book banners were decidedly outnumbered. Many parents expressed support for the district's librarians and opposition to banning books. Others were disinterested in the topic altogether.
https://www.austinchronicle.com/news/...
Mod
This sounds great, and perhaps the Vonnegut Library should also be making their books available for students out of state (like Florida or Texas students, but I could see DeSantis and Abbott freaking out at this).
But knowing how cunningly full of evil "righteousness" and Machiavellian many book banners are, the Vonnegut Library should in my opinion also guard against American Taliban members and Fascists like Moms for Liberty and the like being able to sign out books in order to destroy, to burn them etc.
I don't believe the Vonnegut Library has circulating collections or the means to make a virtual unbanned shelf possible. That's the purview of public libraries. Their mission is to champion Kurt Vonnegut Jr. and promote free speech. Their website says :
"The Kurt Vonnegut Museum and Library began participating in Banned Books Week in 2011 when Vonnegut’s novel Slaughterhouse-Five and a book called Twenty Boy Summer were banned from a rural Missouri school. KVML shipped 75 copies of Vonnegut’s book to students at that school who requested them. KVML has been celebrating the freedom to read ever since.
We celebrate Banned Books Week with seven days of programming and events. Along with our annual programming, we invite an artist, educator, or other passionate visitor to become our Activist in Residence. The Activist in Residence lives in the museum for the entire week behind a wall of banned books. This act protests the infringement of the right to free expression. "
As usual, parents in Hamilton County, Tenn. have actually NOT formally challenged any books. "To see a year later that none of those books have been challenged, should tell us that there was really nothing there to be concerned about. Our educators and our librarians are trained professionals, they know what they're doing, and they're looking out for the best interests of our kids ," says Taylor Lyons with Moms for Social Justice.
This comes as no surprise to Taylor Lyons, who thinks the logging was a scare tactic.
“You should be able to go into a library and choose a book that speaks to you. And a book that speaks to me may not speak to you. That's the beauty of a library," says Lyons.
At a September 2021 school board meeting, parents read excerpts they called concerning of books like
"More Than Words Can Tell," "On the Come Up," and "Far from the Tree."
One main issue that was highlighted was explicit language.
“There's a lot of good literature in this world. We don't have to have that kind of literature for children to read," says Rhonda Thurman.
Since that time, Hamilton County created a book review committee. School board member Rhonda Thurman is the chair.
We asked Thurman if all the work to log the books was worth it.
"Oh, absolutely. It's worth it. And like I said, there's still books that aren't supposed to be on book shelves, and they're not like the criteria of the state legislature, but they're still there. I hope that everyone's dealt with it's a central office, whoever's allowing that to continue. I hope they're dealt with," says Thurman.
Thurman added that schools needed to "get back to educating children."
https://newschannel9.com/news/crisis-...
Kevin Sorbo Star of 90s TV show "Hercules" is spouting off to Fox News on his ideas about gender. I won't dignify it with a click but it's on Google if you want to read it.
TUCSON, Ariz. (KVOA) — The debate over book bans is heating up, and the Pima County Library is at the center of it all, facing an unusual surge of complaints about specific books. "We've been receiving more complaints than usual about LGBTQ material and BIPOC experiences. These are the lived experiences of Black, Indigenous people of color," said librarian Kate Demeester-Lane.
Demeester-Lane, a librarian at the Pima County Library, emphasizes that librarians are here to defend everyone's access to materials in the library. They don't defend the content itself but rather the freedom of speech.
"These are rights that are not enjoyed everywhere else in the world—the freedom to access and read material that speaks to you and your values," said Demeester-Lane.
Just this year, the Pima County Library has received five complaints to ban LGBTQ and books depicting Black and Spanish people, among others.
https://www.kvoa.com/news/local/pima-...
One guess as to who is filing these complaints...
Has anyone seen the animated film Ernest & Celestine? It is apparently focused on prejudice and ethnocentrism. If you’ve ever wondered whether cartoon mice and bears can be friends, Ernest & Celestine has the answer. The themes of acceptance and inclusion are big topics in the film.Now there's a sequel. Ernest & Celestine: A Trip to Gibberitia, is centered on commentary about bureaucratic overreach.
Sounds interesting.
https://www.polygon.com/23846305/erne...
In Indiana,At Monday's St. Joseph County Public Library board meeting, supporters of the library's decision to keep a book dealing with LGBTQ issues shelved in the teenage section overwhelmingly outnumbered those in opposition.
This Book Is Gay challenged by Amy Drake. The book’s placement in the teenage section had been challenged at a July board meeting and later upheld by a committee formed by the library to review reconsideration forms.
Cecilia Hess, among those opposing the library's decision, said, "Just as your libraries cannot pre-screen every book in every section, it's all the more impossible for parents to do so. So we would counter if you're going to have a book in the kids section, it had better be developmentally appropriate for children.”
Which begs the question: Who decides what's "developmentally appropriate"? As we noted in a comment after Indiana lawmakers passed a book-banning bill, House Bill 1447, the books most often deemed "inappropriate" are those that tell the stories of Black and LGBTQ people or are by authors in those communities.
It's exceedingly rare for the library to remove a book from the children's or teen area, said Dawn Matthews, director of branch services, “because that denies access and is censorship.”
https://www.southbendtribune.com/stor...
Interesting news from Lafayette Parish, La. Lafayette library board president Robert Judge relinquishes leadership role
No explanation was provided. His term as president was set to expire Oct. 31.
Judge did not resign from the library board.
Judge was appointed to the volunteer library board in February 2021. He was nominated by Lafayette Parish Councilman Josh Carlson from among a field of seven highly qualified candidates that included educators. Carlson and Councilmen John Guilbeau and Bryan Tabor voted for Judge's appointment to the library board.
He almost immediately pushed a controversial ultra conservative agenda, starting in April 2021 by trying to change the library system's mission statement to remove "recreation and cultural enrichment" programs.
In October of 2021, the library board voted Judge president, reelecting him for a second year-long term in 2022.
Before Judge was appointed to the library board, he was a vocal opponent in 2018 to a proposed Drag Queen Story Time that was scheduled but eventually not held at the library. Stephanie Armbruster, who was appointed to the library board in August 2020, also protested Drag Queen Story Time.
Judge's presidency has been marked by controversy and conflict. He had an LGBTQ+ advocate arrested for speaking out of turn at a library board meeting and had an anti-censorship speaker escorted out of a meeting by armed law enforcement officers, leading to a federal lawsuit for violating free speech rights.
Judge attempted to fire a library manager for insubordination without properly notifying the employee, failed several times to kill plans to construct a Northeast Regional Library in favor of leasing space, and on Aug. 21 led the three newest board members in an illegal executive session vote to fire Library Director Danny Gillane, again resulting in legal action.
He was chastised by some on the Parish Council the next day for failing to move forward with construction of the Northeast Regional Library the day before when he voted against the purchase of land and was told to call a special board meeting to buy the land.
Gillane told The Acadiana Advocate Aug. 23 that he believes he was fired because of the Northeast Regional Library and that Judge does not want the library built.
https://www.theadvocate.com/acadiana/...
Like Florida, Iowa teachers are confused by the book banning law. the Iowa Department of Education offers no guidance on how to ensure books comply with the law, leaving each school district to their own interpretation. It’s unclear whether the department will be providing guidance in the future. The Iowa Department of Education did not respond to HuffPost’s request for comment.
“One of the unintended consequences is that there is a wide variance of interpretation of the law,” said Mike Beranek, the president of the Iowa State Education Association, the state’s only teachers union. “The anxiety and the angst and the worry about the consequences if they do something wrong is very burdensome.”
Bridgette Exman, assistant superintendent for instruction in Mason City, took a different approach: She used ChatGPT to narrow down which books could be violating the state law, Popular Science first reported.
“People have poked a lot of holes in my process, but no one has given me a formal process,” Exman told HuffPost.
Exman let ChatGPT choose from a list of books that are widely banned in U.S. schools, then read any she wasn’t familiar with or reread ones that she didn’t remember well. She eventually ended up with a list of 19 books that were removed.
“When I think of all the things I could be spending my time on, spending hours and weeks on trying to protect kids from books just didn’t sit right with me,” said Exman, who is a former English teacher.
“I should have been preparing professional development meetings, or learning how to welcome our new immigrant families,” she added. “Instead, I’m googling book summaries.”
Exman said the law fixes a problem that hadn’t even existed, noting that Mason City schools haven’t had a book challenge in more than 20 years. “Our communities trust us,” she said.
But Exman said she felt as if she needed to flag certain books for removal because she was worried about what consequences teachers could face.
“I want to protect our teachers,” she said. “This isn’t fair to them and they don’t want to lose their jobs.” Iowa, like many other states, is in the midst of a teacher shortage due to low pay and restrictive laws.
They’re trying to demolish public education,” Beranek said. “We’ve had legislators saying we’re sinister and that we’re trying to indoctrinate children.”
Framing policies like the new law in Iowa as an issue of parental rights or protecting children, conservatives have enacted laws that prohibit books with LGBTQ+ or racial justice themes, policies that censor what teachers can say about gender identity and sexual orientation, and measures that attack transgender and nonbinary children. In short, GOP-led legislatures have launched an all-out war on their own constituents.
“There’s been a real concerted effort in our state legislature to poke holes and damage the integrity of the public education system,” Exman said. “It feels like an intentional chaos bomb.”
https://ca.finance.yahoo.com/news/iow...
A tree fell at Florida governor's mansion but missed the house and the people. Don't believe it if you see otherwise in spite of what many people may wish.
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)
More...
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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Under new guidelines, parents would be allowed to opt their children out of learning about these texts — should teachers decide to include any of them in the class curriculum.
According to the state code, “explicit content” means any (view spoiler)[ description or visual depiction of a lewd exhibition of nudity, sexual excitement, sexual conduct or sadomasochistic abuse, sexual bestiality, coprophilia, urophilia or fetishism. (hide spoiler)]
But the Prince William County Education Association, the area’s teachers’ union, believes that definition leaves a lot of wiggle room, which constitutes a type of censorship.
“It is subjective and largely open to interpretation,” said Jerod Gay, with the association.
Gay, who previously taught 7th grade language arts in the county, currently works as a full-time release officer for the association and is a member of its collective bargaining team. That group is currently in negotiations with the school division.
Gay said that last year, well before this year’s list was revealed, the division started notifying language arts teachers and librarians about a new policy coming down the pipeline. Even so, he said, some were still surprised when the county’s suggested reading materials list came out.
Gay told WTOP that it seemed to him, and several of his colleagues, that the county’s list especially targeted references to homosexuality.
“It is another instance of limiting teacher autonomy,” he said, “and the ability to broaden a student’s perspective or give them insight into content that exposes them to perspectives or experiences of people different from themselves.”
Gay added, “There’s great value in that. That’s why we educate our children.”
Gay said the policy impacts students’ educational experiences while signaling to teachers and staff that, despite their work as professionals, they aren’t trusted to make responsible decisions about the books students access in schools. He also said the list assumes that “without this level of intrusion into their time, energy and autonomy,” school system teachers may “push sexually explicit material onto students, or groom them” somehow.
“That insinuation is not only insulting, but it’s a near impossible task for teachers to go through each text page by page on top of regular lesson planning, which is why many are opting out of including any optional texts at all in their classrooms,” Gay said.
According to Gay, many teachers have since resorted to removing their classroom libraries altogether — a move that Prince William County Public Schools Director of Communications Diana Gulotta suggested teachers did not need to make.
“It is very unfortunate that some teachers may have removed their classroom libraries based on the new state law,” Gulotta said in an email to WTOP. “It is important to note that the new law doesn’t prohibit the use of items on the ‘explicit materials’ list.”
Gay told WTOP it’s the position of many in the association that this policy could negatively impact instruction through its implementation.
Under the new policy, if teachers choose to use an optional text (a text that’s on the “explicit” list) in their instruction, they have to send a letter home to parents notifying them of their text selection. In that letter, which must be sent at least 30 days before students use an identified text, teachers must explain in detail the nature of the content that parents may find objectionable.
“Teachers may use those items as long as they follow the review, identification, and notification process,” Gulotta said in the email.
Parents then have the opportunity to opt their child out, and if they choose to do so, the teacher must supply an entirely new additional text for opted-out students not on the "explicit” list.
“That might sound reasonable to parents at first because this list says it’s all books that are ‘explicit,’ but the fact is some of these books don’t have much objectionable material at all,” said Gay.
As an example, Gay told WTOP about a text he taught for years in language arts during lessons on figurative language.
The piece — “The Rose That Grew from Concrete,” a poem by rapper Tupac Shakur — appears on the list amid a collection of poems in a book written by the artist.
“The poem is very short and there is absolutely no sexual content in it. All it does is use the metaphor of the rose growing from concrete to illustrate the rise of people from humble beginnings,” Gay told WTOP. “No one in a million years would read this poem and think there’s anything sexual in it. It’s about a rose. And yet it’s now on a list that says it’s ‘sexually explicit.'”
“Unfortunately, I don’t have the specific reasons why each item was chosen readily available to me at this time,” Gulatta told WTOP in the email.
Gay said that going forward, he’d likely leave this poem out of his lesson plans because “the entire process would be too much of a headache.”
Gay said many of his colleagues fear this new policy could also impact teacher recruitment and retention at a time when the county is already struggling to fill vacancies.
“Going into this year, the division has more than 500 open positions listed,” he said. “Last year, at its highest point, that number reached almost a thousand.”
The fact that the system is in the middle of a collective bargaining agreement also makes the policy loom even larger, he said.
“If (the division is) going to require that level of extra work from teachers when it comes to vetting and looking through these texts for even a sentence of objectionable material, then it is incumbent upon them to be far more specific, in terms of how they are defining (‘explicit’), and give concrete examples,” Gay said.
“We also want to know that any additional time teachers are going to be spending fulfilling these duties will be compensated fairly,” he added. “That’s incredibly important to us.”
Even if the teachers’ union and district come to a fair compromise, Gay said he still anticipates many teachers taking vast amounts of uncompensated time to thoroughly vet books for fear they could be penalized if they miss even one paragraph a parent could complain about.
“This policy in particular has only added more confusion, more frustration, and more of a feeling of being overwhelmed and underappreciated in the staff of Prince William County,” he said.
https://wtop.com/education/2023/08/pr...