Children's Books discussion
Banned Books: discussions, lists
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Discussion of censorship, equity, and other concerns.
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Of course New Brunswick wants to block teachers and psychologists from joining the lawsuit against the province, since Higgs et al know full well that teachers and psychologists have first hand knowledge and can and will tell just how destructive the province's dicktatorial (sic) gender identity bill for schools (and especially regarding pronoun use in school) is and has been.
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Cobb County Georgia Schools removes more books for ‘s--ually explicit’ contenthttps://www.wsbtv.com/news/local/cobb...
At Thursday’s school board meeting, Superintendent Chris Ragsdale gave an update on the review process. He confirmed four books have been removed: “It Ends with Us” by Collen Hoover, “The Perks of Being a Wallflower” by Stephen Chbosky, “Lucky” by Alice Sebold and “Thirteen Reasons Why” by Jay Asher.
“As long as I am the superintendent of the Cobb County School District, I will work tirelessly to ensure your children are not given unrestricted access to materials containing lewd, vulgar, and s--ually explicit content, nor will your taxes be used to fund it,” Ragsdale said.
Channel 2′s Michael Seiden spoke with President of the Cobb County Association of Educators Jeff Hubbard about the decision.
“We expected it, to be very honest with you, because of the fact that Marietta City [Schools] had removed the same books, along with some other titles at their last board meeting last month,” Hubbard explained. “As long as process and policy is being followed, and any book that has been brought forth to discussion is given a fair shake, then we have no objection to it.”
At Thursday’s meeting, Ragsdale said he doesn’t see the process as book banning.
“I still very much encourage those who are opposing any material removals to personally review the materials before condemning action by the District,” Ragsdale said.
From Literary Activism "Dozens of books might be returned to Conroe Independent School District (TX). Read this story and sit with the statistics (which aren't shocking, as we've seen the same in states like Maine, but are absolutely worth reiterating): when the book review committee actually reads the book being challenged, it stays on shelves 77% of the time."https://www.houstonpress.com/news/ove...
A Conroe ISD teacher, tired of seeing so many books taken off the shelves in the district, decided to do something about it and organized an appeal writing campaign.
The teacher, who did not want to be identified so we'll call them Alex, decided to organize a complaint writing campaign after trustees approved a way to file complaints about the newly banned books in an attempt to return them to the district.
Alex said prior to the board's decision, those who were against titles up for review or recent removals had no way of fighting to keep these books on the shelves.
"At first, there was no conversation. Now, the conversation includes more than the people sending lists of books to the district," Alex said. "In a conversation, anything can happen. But in silence, nothing can happen. Silence is not a defense.”
Alex knew they had to take advantage of the opportunity while they had it. With the assistance of a handful of people from a community-led Facebook group, Alex sent appeals for 27 of the 44 individual titles taken from classroom collections and sent back to the district. Most of these texts had been removed as a result of informal reviews.
Alex received one hearing to make their case as to why all 14 books they wrote appeals about should stay on district shelves. The others who wrote appeals were also given a singular hearing for the titles they appealed as well. The same administrator will be hearing all of the complaints.
Those who sent these challenges to book removal requests were initially somewhat hesitant to do so. As a CISD educator for more than 20 years, Alex said their “sympathies lie with the district.” Those sending these appeals were not trying to make more work for the administrators or other employees.
“This was really the only option we had,” Alex added. “We’ve got to put the kids first. We really have to say this is for freedom of thought and what’s best for students and teaching and thinking.”
Although the basic procedures for formal and informal review are laid out online in the district’s policies covering library and instructional materials, details of the informal committees' makeup and the basis for their decisions to retain, remove or restrict a book remain murky.
A panel of librarians, usually seven or eight, meets in informal review committee meetings for library materials. They are responsible for reviewing library books that community members, parents, outside individuals or groups want off district shelves.
According to reports from multiple librarians, these committee meetings occur monthly. Ahead of at least some of the meetings, librarians had not read the books and were not made aware of what titles they would be discussing. Instead, they read reviews by professional literary publications and one “nonprofessional” website — BookLooks,
According to district records, when a committee has to read the books, titles under review are kept 77 percent of the time and removed 23 percent of the time. When a committee does not have to read the books, those reviewed are kept 21 percent and removed 79 percent of the time.
A source with ties to the district, who requested anonymity, said Dr. Hedith Sauceda-Upshaw, the assistant superintendent for Teaching & Learning, oversees reviewing instructional materials. However, there is no indication of who makes up these committees or if the titles used in the curriculum or that are a part of classroom collections are reviewed the same way as library books are.
Alex said they felt compelled to file complaints due to the lack of discussion, to their knowledge, of artistic or literary merit during these determinations. They added that they were also against removing titles that featured what could be considered controversial subjects in age-appropriate ways, as they argued those books hold value when made available to students.
"Maybe education actually works to protect students as well. The group of parents out there banning books just wants to protect kids — and maybe there is something nefarious — but they really are pushing hard to protect kids,” Alex said. "Their belief is that the way you protect kids is to wrap them up and keep them from the real world for as long as possible, and it’s just not my opinion of protecting kids.
“I think the world is going to be out there, and the kids are going to have to interact with it," Alex added. What are the warning signs? What to look out for? What can you learn from a villain in a book so you don’t have to learn it in real life?”
Alex wants to give the committees pause to review the book in its totality and not “a page here or a page there.” Actually, Alex said, they would like to see the district to choose to do away with informal reviews altogether.
The teacher said they did not want to leave the recently removed library books without appeals, but they need more people to help file the complaints, especially now that those who appealed received one hearing to try to make the case for multiple books.
The district source assisted Alex and the others with formatting and editing several complaints forms. The source said because the complaint process was not designed to reverse book removals or oppose pending book reviews, the board will have to work out many additional unknowns as it unfolds.
“It’s definitely interesting how difficult it is to put a book back after it is removed,” the source added. “Nobody thought about what would happen if a book got removed, and it shouldn’t have.”
Alex and the others who filed complaints have received their scheduled hearing date but have not been told what to expect during the hearing. Alex said the matter may not be resolved until the summer.
From Literary Activism: "Nazareth Area High School (PA) will keep Push on shelves and has updated its book review policy. This line in the story should bother you: "Leh said he didn’t want to put the district at risk of a lawsuit by voting to remove it, but suggested the book could 'disappear' down the line along with others that haven’t been checked out often by students."
“I wouldn’t want this in my house. I wouldn’t want my kids reading this,” said School Director Jodi Mammana at a recent meeting.
Jennifer Simon, a district parent, submitted the reconsideration request for “Push” in the fall under district Policy 109 regarding resource material. Simon, secretary for the Northampton County chapter of Moms for Liberty, wanted the book removed from the library.
(view spoiler) Simon said at the March meeting, suggesting the book be donated to the public library.
The board voted ultimately 5-4 to keep the book in the district’s collection at the recommendation of Superintendent Richard Kaskey. (In order to remove the book, six votes would have been needed to override Kaskey’s decision, per school code.) A committee of administrators and teachers voted 4-3 in the fall to keep “Push” in the library, but restricted for Simon’s child.
Board President Linda Stubits voted to keep the book in the library, along with Mammana and directors Gregory Leh, Christopher Miller and Melissa Kalinoski. Vice President Wayne Simpson voted against keeping the book in the library, along with directors Elmo Frey, Melinda Gladstone and Kathryn Roberts.
Many school directors expressed dismay at the book’s content, even those who voted to keep “Push” in the district collection.
“I think it’s a slippery slope to move books that people don’t like, then what’s next?” Miller said. “I don’t like the book, make no doubt about that, but I just think it’s a parent’s choice. I would never want my kid to read it.”
Miller said his decision was informed by his experience during the height of the pandemic. He didn’t want to be forced to have his son wear a mask. Similarly, he doesn’t want to decide for other parents whether their children can read “Push,” he said
Mammana also said she doesn’t like the content of “Push,” but other parents should be allowed to decide for their children. She said the district already allows individual parents to restrict their child’s access to books they don’t agree with through Policy 109.
Kalinoski was torn on her decision, but ultimately voted to keep the book in the library, noting it’s important that students who have experienced trauma can read books they relate to so they don’t feel alone.
Leh said he didn’t want to put the district at risk of a lawsuit by voting to remove it, but suggested the book could “disappear” down the line along with others that haven’t been checked out often by students. “Push” was checked out less than five times in more than a decade.
“We should have a policy that says if a book is not taken out five times in five years, it should be removed from our library, period,” he said.
Gladstone voted against keeping the book in the library. She said the book is not age appropriate, noting a retailer suggests the book is for people age 22 and older.
Roberts wanted the book removed for its s---ally explicit content, adding she would not support removing books for any other reasons, even those dealing with politically controversial topics such as abortion and gun rights.
“I agree as a society we shouldn’t ban books, but we already exercise a lot of control over our children,” she said, noting district rules around cell phone use as an example.
There were fewer community members at the March meeting than the one in October that filled the district meeting room, but those who turned out still had strong opinions and remained split on the book.
“We don’t want to spend money on lawsuits. I get it. Nobody wants to do that,” said resident David McMurtrie. “But until we as a society stand up and say that’s enough of the nonsense, the nonsense will continue.”
Liz Summers, a district parent, said librarians should be trusted as trained professionals and students’ right to read should be protected
From Literary Activism: "Nazareth Area High School (PA) will keep Push on shelves and has updated its book review policy. This line in the story should bother you: "Leh said he didn’t want to put the district at risk of a lawsuit by voting to remove it, but suggested the book could 'disappear' down the line along with others that haven’t been checked out often by students."
“I wouldn’t want this in my house. I wouldn’t want my kids reading this,” said School Director Jodi Mammana at a recent meeting.
Jennifer Simon, a district parent, submitted the reconsideration request for “Push” in the fall under district Policy 109 regarding resource material. Simon, secretary for the Northampton County chapter of Moms for Liberty, wanted the book removed from the library.
(view spoiler) Simon said at the March meeting, suggesting the book be donated to the public library.
The board voted ultimately 5-4 to keep the book in the district’s collection at the recommendation of Superintendent Richard Kaskey. (In order to remove the book, six votes would have been needed to override Kaskey’s decision, per school code.) A committee of administrators and teachers voted 4-3 in the fall to keep “Push” in the library, but restricted for Simon’s child.
Board President Linda Stubits voted to keep the book in the library, along with Mammana and directors Gregory Leh, Christopher Miller and Melissa Kalinoski. Vice President Wayne Simpson voted against keeping the book in the library, along with directors Elmo Frey, Melinda Gladstone and Kathryn Roberts.
Many school directors expressed dismay at the book’s content, even those who voted to keep “Push” in the district collection.
“I think it’s a slippery slope to move books that people don’t like, then what’s next?” Miller said. “I don’t like the book, make no doubt about that, but I just think it’s a parent’s choice. I would never want my kid to read it.”
Miller said his decision was informed by his experience during the height of the pandemic. He didn’t want to be forced to have his son wear a mask. Similarly, he doesn’t want to decide for other parents whether their children can read “Push,” he said
Mammana also said she doesn’t like the content of “Push,” but other parents should be allowed to decide for their children. She said the district already allows individual parents to restrict their child’s access to books they don’t agree with through Policy 109.
Kalinoski was torn on her decision, but ultimately voted to keep the book in the library, noting it’s important that students who have experienced trauma can read books they relate to so they don’t feel alone.
Leh said he didn’t want to put the district at risk of a lawsuit by voting to remove it, but suggested the book could “disappear” down the line along with others that haven’t been checked out often by students. “Push” was checked out less than five times in more than a decade.
“We should have a policy that says if a book is not taken out five times in five years, it should be removed from our library, period,” he said.
Gladstone voted against keeping the book in the library. She said the book is not age appropriate, noting a retailer suggests the book is for people age 22 and older.
Roberts wanted the book removed for its s---ally explicit content, adding she would not support removing books for any other reasons, even those dealing with politically controversial topics such as abortion and gun rights.
“I agree as a society we shouldn’t ban books, but we already exercise a lot of control over our children,” she said, noting district rules around cell phone use as an example.
There were fewer community members at the March meeting than the one in October that filled the district meeting room, but those who turned out still had strong opinions and remained split on the book.
“We don’t want to spend money on lawsuits. I get it. Nobody wants to do that,” said resident David McMurtrie. “But until we as a society stand up and say that’s enough of the nonsense, the nonsense will continue.”
Liz Summers, a district parent, said librarians should be trusted as trained professionals and students’ right to read should be protected
Still catching up on last week's newsfrom Literary Activism
24 books will have their fates decided in Hernando County Schools (FL) at the May 2 meeting.
https://www.suncoastnews.com/news/her...
At 8:30 a.m. on Tuesday, May 7, board members will assemble in a public meeting and take up the 24 book challenges, all made by members of Moms for Liberty of Hernando County. Two of the books in the list have no committee recommendations.
Censors of the day:
Board Member Shannon Rodriguez
A common declaration from Moms for Liberty and others seeking to remove books is that they’re not trying to ban books, just remove immoral and overly suggestive materials.
They’ve had an ally in Rodriguez, who has made long speeches about the need to shelter children from the “filth” and “smut” she said is in the schools’ libraries in Hernando County.
What followed was readings of passages from three books that are being challenged. Julia Thomas read from “Forever” by Judy Blume, Kara Floyd read from “Life Is Funny” by E.R. Frank and Wendy Porter read from “Queen of Shadows.”
After a long discussion of how the challenged books got into the schools and how the committees that evaluate the books need to lose their “biased” members like teachers who, Floyd said, “are advocating for the sexualized grooming of children, which is unacceptable.”
“Their actions raise serious doubts about their suitability to serve in roles influencing educational content,” she said. “I urge the board to review the volunteer selection process and replace biased individuals with unbiased adults.”
BookRiot editor Kelly Jensen reports: "The Perkiomen Valley School Board (PA) passed a new book removal policy, and this story is...conflicting? They're happy not to have passed a book banning bill but then mention they banned Gender Queer earlier because it didn't meet their new standards. The tl;dr is they'll only ban graphic novels and comics now."https://www.pottsmerc.com/2024/04/12/...
The Perkiomen Valley School Board quietly and unanimously adopted a new policy for library resources in what many hope will be the final chapter of a dispute that spawned a student walkout, and accusations of book banning, racism and anti-LGBTQA-plus bias.
The conflict began in March 2023 when then-school board president Jason Saylor introduced a policy mirroring a controversial one adopted by the Central Bucks School District and attempted to fast-track the matter and get the full board to vote on it, bypassing the usual procedure of sending it first to the policy committee.
That attempt failed.
At subsequent school board meetings speakers accused the school board of everything from inviting porn into the schools to undermining efforts to improve equality and understanding for Black and LGBTQA-plus students by removing materials that reflect their experience.
By April 2023, more than 300 students at Perkiomen Valley High School had staged a walkout to protest the proposed policy.
The primary difference between what was being discussed last year and what has now been adopted, Superintendent Barbara Russell explained, is that the committee backed away from trying to analyze text for appropriateness and focused instead on images.
Russell said the board picked up some language that was suggested by the Pennsylvania School Board’s Association for guidance.
The key language in the new policy now prohibits “materials that include (view spoiler) are prohibited when they meet the criteria under ‘harmful to minors.'” State law defines such materials as being those that (view spoiler)
Russell said the novel entered the Perkiomen Valley system with a batch of new “e-books” automatically sent by the district’s vendor that had not yet been reviewed by the librarian for appropriateness “and by the time it was brought to my attention and I talked to the librarian, it had already been pulled,” in part because the librarian knew it would not meet the standards set out in the pending new policy.
After the vote, Saylor “I’m glad this policy passed. I think it’s critically important for public education to have a moral compass, but for nine months, myself and my friends were called abhorrent things in this community.” He said people called his home and “came to my house” to upbraid him about his stance on the issue, and it impacted the school board election in November.
“There was a slate of candidates that ran on not banning books and now that’s exactly what we’re going to do, thankfully,” he said.
Board member Tammi Campli said “I don’t believe in book banning, but it took a couple years to get to the point where there was some give on both sides and we could get to the point where we’d meet in in the middle. I’m not 100 percent happy with it and I’m a little disappointed some books will not be able to be in the library because the parameters have tightened things up.”
Former board member Kim Mares, who supported Saylor’s position on the policy and lost her seat in the November election, said “I am just shocked. I am pleasantly surprised and pleased because this is what should have been done two years ago.”
She told those elected to the board this year “I am disgusted with the members who are new to the board. You were adamant, and so were the community that supported you, that we have graphic novels that were inappropriate. Mr. (Todd) McKinney, you stood where I’m now standing and said ‘shame, shame, shame’ and I tell you I feel exactly the same way.”
“So many of you were adamant this not happen, now it’s just coming in because the (Pennsylvania School Boards Association) has recommended it and there’s no push back,” Mares said. “My question is, who is running the district, our school board or the PSBA?”
Also in PennsylvaniaBermudian Springs school board (PA)
The Bermudian Springs school board voted 8-1 to update its resource materials policy to reduce sexual content in district materials, a move supporters applaud but critics call a book ban.
Policy 109 – Resource Materials was adopted March 14, 2006. Less than two pages long, the original guidelines include that materials “shall be suited to the varied interests, abilities, reading levels, and maturation levels of the students to be served.”
The updated version is now almost four pages and more specifically defines what materials are allowable, focusing on s---al content. The restrictions are separated for elementary, middle and high school materials.
The definitions in the updated policy define s-x acts (view spoiler)
The updated policy further defines “implied s-x acts” as (view spoiler)
In the updated version, a new committee, CIRA (Curriculum, Instruction, Resource and Assessment) exists to help review and approve materials when needed. Materials fall into a “borderline” category “when an administrator is unsure if a resource material meets the criteria of the age-appropriate guidelines below,” and the administrator can ask CIRA to review the material in question.
CIRA is made up of three board members – Jennifer Goldhahn, Ruth Griffie and Chad Mowery – as well as the assistant superintendent and district director of innovation. According to the CIRA bylaws, “at most, three parent advisors who live in the Bermudian Springs School District” will also be added.
Many protesters – including students – argued that the updated policy will ban books that contain s--ual content but have important information, perspectives and diversity. They argued that the district’s current practice of seeking parental permission before allowing students to read books with mature content is sufficient.
“The board misses the point,” teacher Dana Nelson said. “We’re not trying to carry the banner for s---ally explicit books. We’re just trying to carry the banner for books and freedom of choice and access and equity. Many would say this is what makes our country so great. Removing opportunity and access is un-American.”
Another individual applauded the students who spoke both for and against the revisions, though the speaker ultimately was against the revisions and criticized the idea of a committee reviewing borderline books for possible removal.
“If you take away kids’ ability to find something that they need, then you are taking away their right to learn and to explore their lives and the things they have had to deal with,” the speaker said. “And as a parent, I absolutely have 100% trust in our teachers; however, I’m sorry to say I do not trust a small group of people who feel that they know better than everyone else.”
On Monday evening, some board members criticized an opinion piece board member Matthew Nelson had published in Gettysburg Connection on April 4.
In the op-ed, Nelson repeated many of the criticisms and concerns he has voiced in board meetings. Nelson contended that although the policy does not call itself a ban, “restricting and removing books from the district is a book ban.”
During the meeting, Jennifer Goldhahn identified 12 “lies” in the op-ed.
One example Goldhahn gave was that in his op-ed, Nelson said CIRA could remove books.
“Fact: The CIRA committee does not have the authority to remove anything as a subcommittee of the board,” Goldhahn said. “The CIRA committee only makes recommendations to the whole board so all board members have a vote, which is clearly outlined in the CIRA committee bylaws. Only the board as a whole can enact anything recommended by the CIRA committee.”
In another example, Goldhahn also felt the term “book ban” used in the op-ed misrepresented the goals of the policy.
“Again, this is not a book ban,” Goldhahn said. “Guidelines are not book bans. Policy 109 even clearly states, ‘a student may bring in a book from home.’ If a parent wants their child to read s---ally-explicit material, then they can purchase the book instead of the district paying with limited taxpayer funds.”
Ruth Griffie who also serves on CIRA, also disagreed with Nelson that the revisions equate to a book ban since the policy only affects materials presented by the district to students.
“We are not taking away parents’ rights,” Griffie said. “They can go out and buy any book they want their child to read.”
From Book Riot's Literary Activism editor : "The Hanover County School Board (VA) put together a new policy that would help end their rampant book banning — so I guess now educators can't teach Anne Frank unless they also teach a Holocaust denial book?"https://www.vpm.org/news/2024-04-11/h...
The board discussed changing its book removal procedures.
The Hanover County School Board recently introduced a revised draft of its library and media centers policy. The division’s existing measure, initially adopted in June 2023, has been criticized by county residents as a means to make it easier to ban books from school and classroom libraries.
Since the policy’s adoption, the school board has removed 91 books from circulation from school facilities. The board’s most recent book review decision kept the New International Version of the Bible in circulation.
School Board Chairperson Bob May said the changes to its existing policy arrived after a lengthy discussion among the board and its staff during a March work session.
“One of the reasons we have these work sessions in the first place is to work out how we can do things more efficiently,” May told VPM News.
Jennifer Greif, Hanover’s assistant superintendent for instructional leadership and chief academic officer, characterized the changes as a complete “rebuild” of the existing policy that establishes a layered method of how materials are reviewed — though many of the board’s initial intentions remain intact.
The introduction of the new policy is largely built on the language from the Virginia Code, which gives school divisions the authority to restrict access to “s---ally explicit content.”
Greif later clarified this particular policy does not prohibit teachers from teaching anything that is deemed controversial or sensitive, but asks them to present a balanced view determining which material they choose to use as an instructional resource.
The draft policy also maintains Hanover’s Library Materials Committee: a group of seven school board appointees tasked with evaluating complaints made against certain library resources and determining their appropriateness for use throughout the school division.
Two new sections incorporated in this draft policy are titled "Parental Involvement" and "Professional Learning," the latter of which was not included in the school division’s existing policy.
Greif said school staff recognized the importance of the partnerships forged between parents, guardians and instructional staff as controversial materials are made available.
The partnership would encourage parents to speak with the school system about the materials in school libraries. Should a parent or guardian have concerns over access to library materials by their child, that parent can restrict their child’s access at school.
An annual notification would be provided to parents who wish to place restrictions on their student’s access to certain library materials.
Another new section in the policy involves professional learning. The policy promotes consistency with the implementation between librarians and teachers. Greif said faculty would be trained to “maintain a consistent and cohesive approach to the curation of our libraries in the selection of materials.”
These training sessions also include information on the policies, practices and processes related to library materials.
Per the policy, faculty will "receive yearly professional learning on the concepts of age appropriateness, educational suitability, and controversial issues. These sessions will also include information on the policies, practices, and processes related to library materials."
The largest change to the board’s existing process are the roles school faculty have in acquiring library books and the process in which they’re reviewed by school staff and board members.
The process by which books are acquired, deselected and reviewed has mostly stayed the same, but with some notable changes.
Trained school librarians and professional staff remain responsible for selecting which books are acquired during a given school year. Classroom teachers also maintain their ability to house their own classroom library resources, so long as those materials remain in accordance with the policy.
Librarians and classroom teachers are also asked to consult a variety of professional resources for book reviews when making their selections. They are also responsible for regularly analyzing what’s in circulation, eliminating items from a library to keep the collection current, appealing and relevant.
School administrators have the responsibility of overseeing the deselection process on the fiscal side. Principals are asked to meet regularly with staff responsible for deselecting and removing library materials.
The method in which residents file complaints or challenge individual books found in schools is similar as well. Parents or guardians of students in the school system or a county employee or resident has the authority to file a challenge regarding the retention of books in a school or classroom library. The school board also retains its authority to remove or acquire any book by majority vote.
There are now changes to the levels of review for challenges:
Level One: Local School Review Committee
Level Two: Library Materials Committee
Level Three: School Board Review
When a complaint is submitted by a local resident, it’s evaluated by the school at the local school level. An opportunity will be given for the complainant to meet with the Local School Review Committee to discuss the validity of their complaint.
Prior to that meeting, the committee will also read, view or experience the challenged material in its entirety. They will then discuss this with librarians and teachers, and evaluate the challenged library material for its strength and educational value as a whole before determining the need to keep it or not.
If the complainant denies the opportunity to meet with the committee, the review will be discontinued.
Should the committee opt to remove the book from schools, that book is removed from the school where the complaint was made, rather than it being removed from all the schools.
The complaint then moves to the Library Materials Committee, where they’ll determine if the book or media material is suitable for the division as a whole. That recommendation is then forwarded to the school board for a final vote.
During the review process, the challenged material will remain in circulation until the school board makes its decision.
Committee members are required to share information across each level of review. Greif said there are a lot of opportunities to determine nuances for books that may be appropriate at the high school level rather than at the middle or elementary levels.
“We talk about what are some ways that we can carve out the most appropriate place for materials to be used,” she said. “This policy is really hinged upon the collaboration between professional library staff, teachers and principals.”
Upon the draft policy’s introduction, Hanover’s school board will have another opportunity to review the rewritten policy during its meeting next month, where the board will have the opportunity to adopt the revision.
Clancy, Montana parents upset about LGBTQ+ books in elementary school, offer Bible verse as "proof" of "indoctrination." I put the most hateful comments in the spoiler tag.
https://helenair.com/news/local/educa...
The Clancy Elementary School board of trustees presented the public with three resolutions after parents and community members spoke on both sides of the issue about LGBTQ-themed books in the school library.
Board chair Sarah Brown on Wednesday read the three resolutions aloud, which are not in formal policy:
First, "books for school-age children that do not have appropriate content will be available upon request," Brown said.
The second resolution was "all books donated and bought will have to be approved by the superintendent."
And third, which Brown said was the most important, stated that "if at any time parents do not wish their children to read certain books they can talk to Tona Iwen (librarian) and she will respect that decision concerning book selection."
The resolutions are intentionally vague, according to Brown, because the topic will likely be discussed further and the board chair told the room of about 35 people that the process will be "organic."
Superintendent Dave Selvig clarified that the books in the library are for reading pleasure and materials are not foisted onto students in curriculum. He said the library is not pushing any agenda whatsoever.
When Selvig said the books are available to students, some in the crowd mumbled, "That's the problem."
In March, some members of the public told the board that transgender and gay-themed books should not be in the school's library, calling such publications (view spoiler)
Board vice chair Trent Jensen and Brown said Wednesday the books referenced in the discussions do not reflect their beliefs, but the board and school wants to avoid censorship.
"These books do not align with my values, my personal values," Brown said. "I value the right as a parent to be able to teach my kids according to how I feel I want them to be taught," Brown said.
"By having that right, it is important that I also allow every parent that right to teach their children what they want to be taught."
Brown said there are families in the Clancy school community whose interests are represented by the books being discussed.
Rhonda Burnett, the grandmother of a student at Clancy Elementary School, said she wrote a letter to "those that might have the authority to do something about the issue that I am concerned about" with questions listed regarding her issues.
One of the questions was: "Where is the educational value in these books that clearly indoctrinate young minds? Let's be the adults in the room and let our children be children."
Michelle Popp, a parent, said LGBTQ-themed books should not be in the library, but the resource should be available to the students.
She said the books should be held by the school's counselor, Krista King, because she is the only one qualified to talk to the kids about the topic. Popp said students are not developmentally ready for the topics in the books.
Mary Edwards had a daughter who went to the Clancy school and said the librarian would walk around the room to see what students were reading, which Iwen still does.
Edwards said kids do not go in the library to grab a book they are not interested in because it does not impact them, but one attendee said "that's not true."
Cindy Roscoe cited the book of Matthew in the Bible chapter 18 verse 6 which says, “if anyone causes one of these little ones — those who believe in me — to stumble, it would be better for them to have a large millstone hung around their neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea."
Brown asked Roscoe to refrain from talking about millstones around people's necks, which Roscoe replied, "Why? (view spoiler)
People continued berating the books with comments like, "children are being preyed on their innocence," playing in the mud is not just for boys, citing "Jack (Not Jackie)," and more.
Some of the attendees had an opposing argument to banning the books with a point of view from their personal lives and opinions.
One attendee said their values are different from some of the others' values, but that does not make them right or wrong, it makes them different.
She said she could go around the library and pick out other books she would not want her child to read and she said it does not matter if it is politics, history, geography or race.
There are things that come up in people's daily lives that allow her as a parent to teach their child how to deal with those things and understand them, she said.
"That 10-year-old is going to be 15 and then 20 and I want them to learn how to deal with life in general," she said.
One attendee talked about their transgender cousin and said she was terrified to speak.
She said banning and excluding books like these is wrong because she said her cousin and friends have said they would have liked having some sort of representation growing up in school.
Another attendee responded saying she has many gay friends who agree with her that the books in the elementary school are wrong.
"With young children we do need censorship ... I am tired of being told I am doing censorship when we are the ones being censored all the time," she said.
Elsewhere in Penn.South Middleton School District continues review of books as students, residents argue process
https://cumberlink.com/news/local/edu...
No decision has been made on whether two books with LGBTQ+ themes will be permanently removed from the Boiling Springs High School library.
Superintendent Kevin J. O’Donnell Jr. said Monday that “All Boys Aren’t Blue” and “Last Night at the Telegraph Club” were among the five books the South Middleton School District pulled from the shelf in early fall pending an internal review.
“We’re not saying that those books will never come back to the high school,” O’Donnell said. “What we’re very much saying is ‘Let’s take a look.’”
The books depict physical relationships between characters, O’Donnell said during a school board meeting. “It’s not an accurate statement to say all these titles were pulled specifically because they were LGBTQ+.”
The decision to remove those books for review has drawn criticism from members of a student club and from local property owners who work as educators in the Cumberland Valley School District.
This was not the first time that South Middleton has pulled books with LGBTQ+ themes from the Boiling Springs High School library. Last year, two books by Juno Dawson were removed, only to be returned to the shelf following a review by an evaluation committee.
For Ella Kilko, what started as outrage has turned to resolve. A senior at Boiling Springs High School, Kilko read about the Johnson and Lo books being pulled from the shelf.
“My first instinct was anger,” Kilko said. “Just the fact that these books are being removed from a school that I go to. I’ve heard about Florida and the ‘Don’t Say Gay Act’ and how their books have been removed. I never thought that it would happen directly in my school.”
Kilko is co-president of the Gender Sexuality Alliance Club, formerly the Gay Straight Alliance. The name was changed years ago to make it more inclusive for everyone in the school, she said.
Kilko said her anger turned to confusion over the rationale behind pulling the books from the school library. Monday night, she spoke out on behalf of club members during the board meeting.
“We have found it devastating that books with characters or themes regarding the LGBTQ+ community have been removed from our access,” she said. “We can only conclude that the reason they were removed had to do with prioritizing personal beliefs over the benefit of educating students on a variety of different lifestyles, cultures and beliefs.
“These stories provide a source of belonging for students that cannot relate to the typical heterosexual novel,” Kilko said. “By removing these, the school district is restricting and limiting the representation of LGBTQ+ people within our school. It is no secret that there are students who identify as a member of the LGBTQ+ community in our school, so by removing these books, you are removing their sense of self, security and safety within the district.”
Kilko mentioned there have been instances at the high school where LGBTQ+ students have been harassed by other students. “Nothing severe,” she said. “Nothing physical like that, but little comments that are made in the hallway. Over time, that can really affect people.”
“We as a club would like to know who is reviewing these books and deeming them inappropriate, a detailed reasoning as to why they are being deemed inappropriate, and why these books in particular are being chosen,” she asked board members. “We would like to have student representation on the committee that is reviewing these books.”
“The administration has been very clear that all students need to be represented in a library collection,” O’Donnell said during the meeting.
In keeping with Board Policy 109 Resource Materials, administrators are working to develop regulations and procedures governing the selection and maintenance of school library books.
“These conversations remain ongoing, internally, collaboratively with department chairs,” he said. Administrators are trying to balance the concerns of different groups of stakeholders, he said.
“We hear feedback from both sides of this conversation,” O’Donnell said. “We have heard from those that say the district, the board and administration isn’t doing enough. Then we have heard from those who say the administration and board have gone too far. At the end of the day, we accept the feedback, and we will continue our work guided by applicable board policy and regulations as we move forward with the selection of resource materials.”
During an interview after the meeting, O’Donnell was asked whether his administration was open to the idea of having a student representative on an evaluation committee.
“We had a fierce debate internally,” he said. “Ultimately, we decided not to have students on the committee. We didn’t know if we wanted to have our students specifically in the center of that.”
Of the nine board members present Monday, only Vice President Robin Scherer commented on the issue. “What I would like to understand is how some of these books are educational,” she said. “‘All Boys Aren’t Blue’ – sitting here reading three pages from it, I would never want my children to read this. I don’t understand how this can be educational to anyone. In my opinion, I don’t feel a school district should be using taxpayer dollars to put this profanity – however, you want to describe it – into a school library.”
In late March, resident Carol Yanity expressed her opposition to the district pulling the Johnson and Lo books from the high school library. A reading teacher, she cited the 1982 U.S. Supreme Court case of Island Trees School District vs. Pico in which Justice William Brennan said that school boards could not determine the content of school libraries based on their personal political ideology.
During the meeting Monday, Yanity quoted research that found that if students have the latitude to explore topics of interest to them, they read more outside school, thus achieving higher comprehension and better test scores. She also listed accolades associated with [the books].
Cheryl Shaw is a mother of three students in the South Middleton School District and an elementary school librarian with the Cumberland Valley School District. She has 22 years of experience as an educator.
“This is the first time I have felt the need to address a school board,” Shaw said. “The removal of several titles from the high school library makes me concerned the decision-makers in this district are deliberately limiting my students’ opportunities to explore and learn about their world.
“I compel this board to make it a priority to create a policy that allows a concerned parent to share an opinion and challenged material to be reviewed before it is removed from student access,” she said. “In the meantime, I ask that all books that have been removed from the library shelves be returned there until such time that formal challenges to them are issued by a concerned party and that challenge is investigated by a committee of stakeholders who can provide an informed suggestion to the school board about the action to be taken.
“The materials chosen for the library collections have been considered carefully by certified librarians that you have hired and currently employ,” Shaw said. “These professionals are trained to choose age- and audience-appropriate literature through hours of coursework in master’s degree programs. In hiring them, you [the board] have accepted their credentials and training as valid and appropriate for their position. They deserve that continued trust and deference to their advanced understanding of literature selection.”
In California, where it is not legal to ban books, 2 children's books were moved out of the appropriate sections in Newport Beach's PUBLIC library!https://www.ocregister.com/2024/04/13...
Four patrons have requested reviews of “Melissa,” by Alex Gino, and “Prince & Knight,” by Daniel Haack, asking they be removed from the children’s section and placed in an adult reading section.
“Melissa,” first published as “George” in 2015, has been deemed appropriate by library staff for children in grades three through seven under the library’s Collection Development Policy, and “Prince & Knight” as a picture book for children from preschool through kindergarten. Both books are available in many of the other Orange County public library children sections, the city’s library director has said.
Library Director Melissa Hartson and her staff will have an opportunity to explain to the board their decision to retain the books where they are and to detail how they were selected per the library’s Collection Development Policy, which seeks to provide breadth and depth, various points of view and differing formats, Hartson said
The library endeavors to balance materials of permanent value with those of current interest, Hartson said. Materials are selected based on their content as a whole, not on selected excerpts, and the race, nationality or political, social, moral or religious views of an author will not affect the selection of materials, she said.
The board could also decide to remove the books from the library entirely.
If it did, Hartson said it would be the first time a book has been removed due to “questionable content.” In 2004, “Gossip Girl,” by Cecily von Ziegesar, was challenged and the board considered an appeal in a one-time case, upholding the library director’s decision to keep the book in the collection.
Eight books in the children’s section at the Newport Beach Library have been appealed to the library board under the new policy.
The books were first brought to the library staff’s attention through a policy allowing patrons concerned about specific titles to submit a “patron’s request” for evaluation of library resources. In this process, library staff evaluate the material and send recommendation to the director, who responds to the patron in writing.
With the new appeals process, a patron who disagrees with the library services director’s decision may ask the trustees for a final resolution.
In the case of “Melissa,” three patrons detailed their concerns about the book,
The four patrons appealing the books argue their contents don’t fit in the children’s section, voicing concerns about the depiction of sex, hiding things from parents and not being age appropriate, among others issues.
“It is absurd that a child could be walking either with a parent or school group and run into the book and be subject to inappropriate material,” one patron wrote in their appeal. “This book needs to be moved out of any section targeting minors.”
Hartson declined to comment on the books being appealed, but in her response to one of the petitions to “Melissa” wrote that “the criteria fits within the children’s collection parameters and 30 other OC libraries include this book in their children’s fiction collection.” She also added that “tastes are individualized and subjective.”
Alabama, of course, fast becoming the new Florida.A superintendent at Spain Park High School (AL) removed access to two books via the SORA ebook app at the school when one parent complained. The entire app has been disabled now so the school can look for other problem books.
https://www.alreporter.com/2024/04/15...
Then a Spain Park High School parent complained last week about a book they felt was inappropriate on the system’s online library, SORA, superintendent Dr. Kevin Maddox said he acted swiftly to remove the two books in question.
“As you know, we have a clearly defined board policy for parents to request reconsideration of books that we have available,” Maddox said at a council meeting Tuesday. “However, after reviewing these two books, I had both books pulled from the catalog because I do not believe explicit and graphic s--ual content is age-appropriate for high school students.”
Kervin did not give the titles of either book, but a resident and an out-of-state activist pointed to the availability of “Queer: The Ultimate LGBTQ Guide for Teens” being available through the app.
John Amanchukwu, a North Carolina
Now the school system has taken a step further and has completely blocked access to SORA for students while it conducts an internal review for more “s---ally explicit” content.
“Additionally, we have initiated an internal audit of our SORA online library to ensure that similar books with mature s---al content are removed. During this review period, access to SORA e-books will be unavailable,” the school system sent in an email to parents. “The District remains committed to being proactive in our efforts to safeguard the well-being of our students and uphold our district’s mission and values. We appreciate the cooperation and support of our community as we continue to prioritize our students’ educational experiences.”
The Autauga-Prattville Public Library board approved policies in February that prevent the library from purchasing any books advertised for minors 17 and under that include “s--ual orientation” or “gender identity.”
Amy Minton, one of Ivey’s newest appointees of the Alabama Public Library Service board, has applauded the moves of the groups and introduced a proposed amendment to APLS administrative code to require all state libraries to implement policies akin to Prattville.
The better news of the day (more news to come)In Oregon, in a district where they have yet to see numerous challenges, Baker County Library board updates policy for challenging books, other materials
https://www.bakercityherald.com/news/...
“The library board and I are concerned about the explosion of challenges to the right to read in libraries of recent years,” library director Perry Stokes said. “It is important that public libraries raise the bar for challenges in order to protect taxpayer resources while still providing accountability and due process to the community. Many libraries in the nation can incur costs in the thousands of dollars from responding to challenges.”
In response, the board during its April 9 meeting approved a new policy for patrons who challenge books or other materials in the library.
The challenge procedure has changed, as well.
Under the new policy, patrons who have concerns about a book or material must first try to resolve their complaint with Stokes.
“That gives me a chance to discuss with the individual to see if we can come up with a remedy, to explain the library’s position, about our policy and legal obligations,” Stokes said.
Under the previous policy, challenges were reviewed by the library staff.
Under the new policy, patrons who can’t resolve their issue by meeting with Stokes can fill out a form, titled “Request for Review of Library Materials,” to make a formal challenge.
To do so, the patron must be an adult who lives in Baker County and has a library card with the district.
“Requests from groups or organizations will not be considered,” the form states.
Other changes in the new policy include:
• Each request is limited to a “single title,” and an individual can submit only one request per month.
• Each request is limited to a “single title,” and an individual can submit only one request per month.
• The district could impose a fee for people who submit more than three requests in 12 months.
• Any book or other material that is challenged but is kept at the library is exempt from another challenge for three years.
As for the challenge forms, the previous version was a single page and asked the patron to explain, in writing, their concern about the material.
The new challenge form, which covers four pages, includes a similarly worded question but also has other questions, including:
• What do you believe is the overall message intended by the creator(s) of this material?
• What alternate material representing the viewpoint of this material in a “better way” would you recommend the library include in its collection?
• What originally prompted you to look at and/or borrow the material from the library?
• Do you attest that you read/viewed/or listened to this aterial voluntarily and not due to coercion from library staff?
• Do you believe this material violates library policy or federal, state or local statute?
• Has reading, listening, or viewing this material directly caused you, or one of your family members, personal or financial harm? If YES, please describe. Be as specific as possible to show a clear connection between the alleged harm and the library material.
• If an adult library patron disagrees with your viewpoint, why should they accept the action(s) you are recommending?
One commonality between the new and the previous forms is that both note that challenge forms are public records and that the names of people who submit forms could be publicly disclosed.
Stokes said he sees the new policy as a “reinforcement of readers’ rights.”
“The very fact an item is controversial and the focus of public debate is a compelling reason for a library to make a book available,” he said. “This ensures citizens can access the content and make up their own mind about it. All books offered by the library are considered innocent until proven guilty.”
More from last weekOconee County Library Board of Trustees (GA) has moved several books around the Athens Public Library. This includes moving a book for juvenile readers to the YA section and a YA book into the adult section.
https://www.classiccitynews.com/post/...
The Oconee County Library Board of Trustees accepted the recommendation of the Athens Regional Library System Reconsideration Review Committee on Monday and voted unanimously to move the book Other Boys by Damien Alexander from the Juvenile to the Young Adult section of the Oconee County Library.
The Board put aside the recommendation of the Review Committee that Nick and Charlie remain in the Young Adult Section and instead moved the book to the Adult Section of the Library.
Both decisions followed the recommendations of Board's own Book Action Committee and were consistent with the requests made by the two Oconee County citizens who filed Requests for Reconsideration of the classification of the two books.
The vote to move Nick and Charlie was opposed by three members of the Board and supported by six.
The Board took the action at the end of its hour-long meeting. Six citizens had spoken at the very beginning of the meeting, with four of them speaking critically about the library, and two offering support.
Three of the four who spoke critically are on the ballot in the upcoming May 21 Party primaries. Two are seeking posts on the Oconee County Board of Commissioners, which largely funds the Library, and one is running for the Board of Education.
Reconsideration Requests
The request by Laura Stimson to move Other Boys from the Juvenile to the Young Adult section produced no controversy among Board members.
I’m The Reconsideration Review Committee, made up of professional librarians, wrote in its report to the Board "that the intended audience indicates that this book is directed more toward young teens and should be moved to the YA (Young Adult) section."
The Book Action Committee, a subcommittee of the full Board of Trustees, recommended the same. Members of that Committee are Rubielen Norris, Deann Craft, Mike Eddy, and Matt Stephens, with Board Chair Mark Campbell serving ex-officio.
The professional Reconsideration Review Committee had found that Nick and Charlie contained materials appropriate for the 11 to 18 year Young Adult classification and recommended keeping the book in that section, but the Book Action Committee disagreed, recommending removal to the Adult section.
Board Member Angela Moss-Hill said "now that we have the middle school section kind of separate from the YA" the book should remain in the Young Adult section. "It is something that is pertinent to high school groups," she said.
"I read the book," Board Member Fred Lutz said. "It's not literature...I kind of like the way the BAC came out."
"I can assure you that all members of the Committee that reviewed this book read the book," Board Vice-Chairperson Norris said.
Moss-Hill, Laura Moore, and RaFour of the six speakers to the Board also had addressed it in January, when it accepted the recommendation of the Reconsideration Review Committee and the Book Action Committee not to reclassify four books citizens had requested be moved. Andrea Wellnitz, one of the January speakers, said on Monday at the meeting in the Bogart Library that "we are here because these books have a common theme, and that's that they are about LGBTQ children and their families. That's what the real issue is here."
"I really feel like when you censor a book or a program to sort of in some sense to protect one child," Wellnitz said, "essentially what you are doing is telling another child and another family that they don't belong here. And I firmly believe that all children and families belong in our public library."
Wellnitz was followed by Ally Carrick who said she went to the library and read the two books that were up for reconsideration.
"I'm an adult, reading them wasn't enjoyable for me," she acknowledged.
Carrick said Other Boys "was put in the wrong section of the library...The book is clearly geared toward young adults. That is where it belongs."
Nick and Charlie "is now in the Young Adult Section of the Library, and that's where it belongs," she said.
It is based on another popular series by the same author, Carrick said, and it was actually made into a television show geared toward teenagers.
"If there is anybody who is concerned and don't want their kids reading these books," Carrick said, "the library has good Internet service. You're welcome to G
It is based on another popular series by the same author, Carrick said, and it was actually made into a television show geared toward teenagers.
"If there is anybody who is concerned and don't want their kids reading these books," Carrick said, "the library has good Internet service. Google them before checking them out."
Watson voted against the motion to reclassify the book to Adult.
Stephen Aleshire, who is running for Post 5 on the Board of Education in the Republican Party Primary on May 21, was the third speaker. He also addressed the Board in January.
"Currently there seems to be no evidence of a formalized procedure for reviewing how books are classified," he said. "And if there is a classification and formalization, I think it should be made available to everyone just so we all know what the playing field we're on.”
"If we knew that there was more than one person involved in this classification and we knew that there was a work product that might be available for review," Aleshire said, "I think it would go a long way to improve the relationship."
Suzannah Heimel, who is running for Post 1 on the Democratic Party Ballot in the May 21 primary, without party support, began her comments by saying “I'd first like ask if there has been any vetting of these speakers? Are we sure they live in Oconee County?”
“I think what is said is impacting you, is influencing you, and the way that you feel about the books that we have in our library,” she said. “Let me just suggest that maybe you look into a way to vet our speakers and make sure that they are actually residents of the county and not some additional neighboring county. All six of the speakers had indicated they lived in Oconee County in response to a question on the "Sign Up Sheet" and all of them except Heimel had listed a specific address in Oconee County.
Heimel, who also spoke in January, then switched to her continued concerns about the American Library Association, saying "I've been told over and over again that we are not a member of the ALA.”
“I've provided numerous documents that indicate otherwise to John Daniell, our Board of Commissioners Chair,” she said. “He has shown me nothing. If there are documents that show we are not a member of the ALA, please provide those. They don't exist. We are a member of the ALA.”
“So the situation we are in is what happens when we let the professionals look at the books and make decisions for our children and our books in our libraries,” Heimel said. “We need parent oversight. We need parent involvement. And we need some kind of oversight board of parents who can get together and look at these books."
“We're conservative,” she said. “Are we sure that these books are placed where we want them to be?”
Arik Garcia began his comments by holding up his phone with a picture he said he took at the Oconee County Library in Wire Park. He then walked around the table to show the image to each of the Board Members and the Library staff .“This was in the pre-K section display for our children to see,” he said. The image was of the book jacket for A Child’s Introduction to Pride by Sarah Prager. The picture shows the book, cover exposed, on a shelf next to other, stacked, but not displayed, books.
“The reality is it is not really appropriate for my child to walk in and see,” he said. “I think it is my responsibility as a parent to ensure that my children are taking out the right books that I think fit my philosophy that I want to share with my children.”
“But when it is on public display,” he continued. “I just think that it is something that we should be aware of. Maybe it was put up by someone else other than the library staff. I don't know. What I can say is that's what I saw. Maybe that is something that the library staff can walk around and just make sure that there are certain books that aren't on display.”
Victoria Cruz, who is running for Post 4 on the Oconee County Board of Commissioners in the May 21 Republican Party Primary, was the final speaker on Monday. She also spoke in January. She began by congratulating Valerie Bell, Director of the Athens Regional Library System, for changes Bell has made in the Young Adult section of the system libraries, including the two in Oconee County.
“You put some guardrails on the books that children can at vulnerable ages take out,” Cruz said. “In other words, children in that middle school, that vulnerable middle school age group, where parental presence is not always there.”
“I did read through one of the books that was in Young Adult section,” Cruz said, “and I thought the writing was atrocious. I really did. I thought the plot development was atrocious. Maybe it made sense, maybe it would have made sense to a child, a young reader, but I rather doubt it.”
“We're not trying to censor anyone's choices for their children,” Cruz said. “I have a gay niece. She is married. They are expecting a child in April. I haven't disowned them. Children change what they want. I think that my niece chose when she was in college. But now that choice has been pushed further and further down the line and I think we ought to take that into consideration."
Kearney Public Schools (Nebraska) parents fussing because they were told to parent their own kidshttps://kearneyhub.com/news/local/edu...
Kearney school board meeting features additional discussion of 'inappropriate' library books
The school board went over an update on the policy regarding the selection, de-selection and reconsideration process of library books in the school system.
Previously, an 11-member book review committee followed up every time a citizen protested a book, with appeals going before the board. On the heels of hate messages to committee members and school board members, in January of 2023 the board voted to step out of its role in reviewing books and instead lean on parents to take responsibility for what their students read at school. KPS policy requires that parents approve or disapprove their child’s access to the school library. Parents also have the authority to hold their students out of classes if they disapprove of the material.
At Monday’s meeting, Superintendent Jason Mundorf said there will be a presentation by the director of media services at next month’s meeting on the updated process for the school board. Mundorf discussed how the previous policy, called 13:10, was taken out of the district’s policy handbook.
During the meeting Mundorf discussed the new system, which involves oversight by school media specialists. Books get taken out of circulation for numerous reasons during the “weeding” process, he said, because the book is either too damaged or out of date, to name a few. The district is also looking at placing stickers on some books that have themes that warrant a warning.
Three people spoke about library materials they viewed as harmful and inappropriate for children during public participation.
Kathy Adams spoke about materials that could be harmful to students and contain material that might not be age appropriate. Adams expressed concern that kids would inadvertently pull “something off the library shelves that’ll give them a ‘Machaela Cavanaugh moment,’” referencing the controversy around state Sen. Steve Halloran using Cavanaugh’s name while reading a book passage that described rape on the floor of the Nebraska Legislature. “Only theirs will be true trauma, not drama,” Adams said.
Darcy Svoboda, the second public participant at the Kearney school board meeting, compared some of the books in the schools to pornography saying “pr0n is mind pollution.” She also said that it was a “shame” that these materials are allegedly in schools, asking “what have we fallen to?”
Brooke Ritter said books with mentions of the LGBTQ+ community are harmful to her elementary school-age child. She said her elementary school daughter got a middle school level book even though she never gave permission for her to have it.
Ritter said no one is doing anything to protect children from being harmed and she believes that eventually will happen. That’s a notion Kearney school officials have said is incorrect.
After the meeting had adjourned, school board member Drew Blessing told the Hub, “Public participation is a way for people to come and have their concerns heard.”
Blessing also said he was happy a piece of legislation didn’t pass during the current Legislature session. LB 441 would’ve allowed the prosecution of employees that are in K-12 schools or school libraries for providing obscene materials to minors.
...
“I’m thankful that it didn’t pass. It didn’t pass by a wide margin, which is concerning, but I do think it is important as board members and as a school we continue to support our staff and support parents who understand that it’s their right to control education for their students.”
Discussing meeting’s events with the Hub on Tuesday, Mundorf said the district has media specialists who are well-trained in selecting library materials. He discussed the right of parents to filter access for their children, a right they should have, while also saying parents don’t have an unalienable right to govern students who aren’t their own kids.
VirginiaWhy An Appalachian School Board Pulled 57 Books Off Library Shelves
https://wvpublic.org/why-an-appalachi...
It’s a broad list of books. A lot of them have to do with the LGBTQ community, racial issues, mental health, stuff like that. One of the books, Felix Ever After, is about transgender teen, which is a coming of age story. There are some books on the list that are considered classics — books like The Bluest Eye, Beloved from Toni Morrison and Slaughterhouse-Five. There are books on the list that do have sexual content, profanity, violence. Looking for Alaska is on the list.
And then there are one or two books that don’t have any sexual content, profanity, violence. One of them is The Invisible Boy, which is a picture book. And then the other one is Drama, which is a middle school theater book that has kissing but no real sexual content. With The Invisible Boy, which is a picture book that talks about not feeling alone and having empathy, one of the board members said that they think it was mistakenly included. There’s another [similar] title that has to do with race and evangelical Christianity and stuff like that. One of the school board members did say that she thinks the picture book was mistakenly included on the list.
[The school board] said that this removal is temporary while they develop a new policy to review library books.
They’ve started the process of creating the policy of how books enter libraries, and how books are reviewed if they’re challenged. The other week, they met with school librarians to talk about what policies they have in place, what they would like to see from the policy, stuff like that. I think that was the first meeting to talk through what those policies will look like.
They’ve said they want to hear from community members, parents, teachers, librarians, all those kinds of people to start developing the policy. They’ve said that they would like to get it out sooner rather than later. They had that first meeting, and then I think they’re going to have another meeting where they hear more from the community. But from there, they’re going to develop a policy and we’ll see what they decide to include.
, the board member who compiled the list said, I pulled these from parent complaints, but then went and researched through Book Looks. She has this document that the vast majority of the books that she researched, which was about half of the list, she said is from Book Looks. There’s at least one screenshot for one of the books that she pulled directly for Moms for Liberty, too, which is a similar theme across a lot of school divisions where they’re using Book Looks or sources like Moms for Liberty to either pull directly from those lists of books, or, like in Rockingham County, the board member used to research it.
[T]he chair of the board about this, he said that he’s not interested in national groups’ opinions about what’s going on because he’s listening to his constituents in Rockingham County.
They don't stop in Alabama... A conservative coalition in Fairhope, Alabama wants 8 books relocated in the public library.
https://www.wkrg.com/baldwin-county/8...
Brian Dasinger, a member of the Baldwin County Conservative Coalition, which compiled the list of titles, says he wants to protect local children from literary works with s--ual content.
“We are trying to protect the children of Fairhope and move what we believe is s--ually explicit material from the children’s section to the adult section,” Dasinger said.
One by one, both sides stood up to speak. Some did not see a problem with the books and said they should stay where they are.
Elizabeth Denham, a long-time Baldwin County resident, says book relocations could lead to censorship.
“You move a book from one section to another, you start to label it inappropriate or exploitative and that’s a slippery slope to banning,” Denham said.
Dasinger said he believes the books are inappropriate for children.
“Quite frankly, the majority of them disgust me; there are s--ually explicit pictures. More than that, there is indoctrination occurring and a glamorization of how to perform s--ual acts,” he said.
Angie Hayden, a parent, says the books are not explicit.
“They will take books from the young adult section or adult section and they will find that one paragraph out of the entire three or 400 pages that mention something s--ual and read it aloud and then imply that it’s being pushed on 8-year-olds,” Hayden said.
Dasinger told News 5 that he and the Baldwin County Conservative Coalition came up with a resolution to relocate certain books and take measures to prevent minors’ exposure to what he sees as adult-oriented content.
[The books are mainly picture books!]
With the new legislation in Utah that bans books in every district that have been banned in a number of other districts, the state education department now has to issue guidelines for every district about what books they need to remove ASAP. 100s of books are being banned retroactively
https://www.kjzz.com/news/crisis-in-t...
The State Board of Education is still working on new guidelines for how school districts will enforce a recently passed law to ban books deemed p_____graphic or indecent.
It is estimated approximately 100 books already face being banned in various districts, and additional titles can be removed from shelves if challenged, pending review.
"The ground is literally shifting under our feet," said high school social studies teacher Deborah Gatrell.
Of the banned or removed books Gatrell said she’s aware of, one was removed in the middle of the unit.
“That’s a horrific experience for a teacher," Gatrell said.
The board said a committee met Tuesday to discuss implementation rules. The timeline said by May 2, a draft concerning "sensitive materials" will be presented.
Until the new law takes effect, districts will adhere to local policies. Statewide notification of books to be removed will be planned after the board meeting in August.
https://www.sltrib.com/news/education...
Since Utah’s sweeping sensitive materials law took effect in 2022, certain school districts and public charters throughout the state have individually decided to ban over 262 books from their shelves.
Now, those local decisions could lead to books being banned from every public school in the state, under a new law that takes effect July 1 and applies retroactively.
“Please be aware that at this time, no material has been removed statewide,” the Utah State Board of Education said in an email sent to superintendents and charter directors Tuesday.
But that could soon change — once school board leaders figure out how exactly to apply the new law retroactively.
The problem: All those previous book ban decisions were based on statewide guidance outlined in the 2022 law. The new book ban law introduces brand new guidance, which must be adhered to in order for books to be banned statewide.
And that statewide ban only happens if at least three school districts (or at least two school districts and five charter schools) decide to ban a title based on the new guidance.
Determining whether or not past book ban decisions jive with the new statewide guidance is no easy task. USBE is still in the early stages of formulating the process — an initial plan was drafted this week.
The new statewide guidance asks local education leaders to evaluate whether a challenged book amounts to “objective” sensitive material — p----graphic or otherwise indecent material, as defined by Utah code.
A book could also be considered “subjective” sensitive material, which may not meet the state’s definition of p----graphy or “indecent public displays,” but would otherwise be considered “harmful” to youth.
In that case, the book could still be removed from local shelves, but the statewide book ban threshold only applies to “objective” sensitive material.
The proposed administrative rule meant to outline how previous book bans could retroactively apply to the new statewide book ban law instructs schools to perform an “initial review” of all materials removed prior to July 1.
For some districts, like the Washington County School District, that may mean revisiting more than 50 titles that it has already banned, according to an analysis by The Salt Lake Tribune.
The initial review is meant to determine whether or not the material constitutes “objective” or “subjective” sensitive material — even if the original decision to remove the book did not consider the newly required distinction. The draft rule states that two local employees would be responsible for that determination.
School districts and charters would only have 30 days after July 1 to conduct these “initial reviews” and report their determinations to USBE, according to the draft rule.
USBE would then compile those determinations and communicate to schools by Aug. 5 which titles have met the statewide removal threshold, the draft rule states.
Even if enough school districts or charter schools determine a book is “objectively” sensitive, USBE still has the ability to intervene before a statewide book ban goes into effect.
To do so, the state school board needs to hold a hearing within 60 days of the threshold being met.
But under the plan to retroactively enforce the new law, USBE leaders only have 30 days from that time to meet and decide whether to keep the title on certain shelves.
If no hearing is held, the statewide removal stands.
Moving forward, until July 1, schools “should continue to follow their current policies and operate within existing laws, rules and policies until further guidance is offered,” USBE advised this week.
Charters and districts would otherwise have until Sept. 1 to revise their current sensitive material policies to adhere to the new state requirements, according to the draft rule.
Billings, Montana M4L demand book bans in schoolshttps://billingsgazette.com/news/loca...
Monday BPS board meeting rife with angry voters, threat to trustees
The agenda for the April Billings Public Schools board meeting was overshadowed Monday night by a throng of angry residents stating they would not vote for the school safety levies due to current school library book policies.
Members of the public lined the board room walls, some holding up “Protect our children” signs. Local Moms for Liberty members and supporters sustained public comment an hour into the meeting, with chapter chair Alba Pimentel and treasurer Jessie Browning, leading the charge. Laurel residents were also among the commenters, urging BPS trustees to follow in the Laurel district’s footsteps relating to book policies and challenges.
Peggy Miller of Laurel said in her public comment that seven books have been challenged in the Laurel school district since January, five of which have been removed.
Some public commenters held up large, blown-up images from books housed in BPS high school libraries, including Flamer, Handmaid's Tale, and Assassination Classroom, while others read passages aloud, many images and dialogue depicting themes of LGBTQIA+, (view spoiler)
Events turned uncivil when speaker Louis Moffet made it personal, aiming his comment directly at the trustees sitting in front of him.
“You wanna talk about child safety, (view spoiler)
[When censured] shouts were heard from audience members lining the back wall, saying, "stand your ground."
Next up was Jack Hanson [a voice of reason] "As to the graphic passages read and shown here tonight, that’s all very dramatic. None of these passages were from assigned readings in any course. (view spoiler) these are very real issues that high school kids in our society confront. These are difficult issues that are in some respects, grown-up issues, but there’s absolutely no reason to believe that ignoring those issues, or trying to prevent your kids from exploring them, is a healthy, productive way to deal with them… I remind you that historically, the proponents of censorship and book banning are the enemies of liberty and self-determination.”
Many commenters desiring a change to BPS book policies associated the risqué content in the books with school and child safety.
“I do not feel that we should be spending our taxpayer dollars on this type of content. I believe that we should be spending our money on materials that will lead to academic improvement and success for our students,” resident Elaine O’Donnell said. “When you have children getting their hands on the books that have the explicit stuff in it, this can lead to mental health challenges and violence among kids, and we have enough of that in our society. So, to me, this is a safety issue that needs to be addressed. Taxpayers are paying attention to what you decide to do.”
Karen Moses, a past board member and longtime school district advocate concluded public comment.
“This safety levy is not about the books in our library… Please continue to have the debate about books in the library and free speech, it will go on forever in the world, but do not, if you care about the safety of our kids in this levy, threaten it. This is not what the safety levy is about. Those of you who hold up 'Protect our children' signs, I hope you will turn your ballots in, in support of what this levy is about.”
Billings, Montana M4L demand book bans in schoolshttps://billingsgazette.com/news/loca...
Monday BPS board meeting rife with angry voters, threat to trustees
The agenda for the April Billings Public Schools board meeting was overshadowed Monday night by a throng of angry residents stating they would not vote for the school safety levies due to current school library book policies.
Members of the public lined the board room walls, some holding up “Protect our children” signs. Local Moms for Liberty members and supporters sustained public comment an hour into the meeting, with chapter chair Alba Pimentel and treasurer Jessie Browning, leading the charge. Laurel residents were also among the commenters, urging BPS trustees to follow in the Laurel district’s footsteps relating to book policies and challenges.
Peggy Miller of Laurel said in her public comment that seven books have been challenged in the Laurel school district since January, five of which have been removed.
Some public commenters held up large, blown-up images from books housed in BPS high school libraries, including Flamer, Handmaid's Tale, and Assassination Classroom, while others read passages aloud, many images and dialogue depicting themes of LGBTQIA+, (view spoiler)
Events turned uncivil when speaker Louis Moffet made it personal, aiming his comment directly at the trustees sitting in front of him.
“You wanna talk about child safety, (view spoiler)
[When censured] shouts were heard from audience members lining the back wall, saying, "stand your ground."
Next up was Jack Hanson [a voice of reason] "As to the graphic passages read and shown here tonight, that’s all very dramatic. None of these passages were from assigned readings in any course. (view spoiler) these are very real issues that high school kids in our society confront. These are difficult issues that are in some respects, grown-up issues, but there’s absolutely no reason to believe that ignoring those issues, or trying to prevent your kids from exploring them, is a healthy, productive way to deal with them… I remind you that historically, the proponents of censorship and book banning are the enemies of liberty and self-determination.”
Many commenters desiring a change to BPS book policies associated the risqué content in the books with school and child safety.
“I do not feel that we should be spending our taxpayer dollars on this type of content. I believe that we should be spending our money on materials that will lead to academic improvement and success for our students,” resident Elaine O’Donnell said. “When you have children getting their hands on the books that have the explicit stuff in it, this can lead to mental health challenges and violence among kids, and we have enough of that in our society. So, to me, this is a safety issue that needs to be addressed. Taxpayers are paying attention to what you decide to do.”
Karen Moses, a past board member and longtime school district advocate concluded public comment.
“This safety levy is not about the books in our library… Please continue to have the debate about books in the library and free speech, it will go on forever in the world, but do not, if you care about the safety of our kids in this levy, threaten it. This is not what the safety levy is about. Those of you who hold up 'Protect our children' signs, I hope you will turn your ballots in, in support of what this levy is about.”
Horry County, SC school board bans two bookshttps://www.myhorrynews.com/news/scho...
Acting as the final arbiter of a book battle, the board voted to return two titles to the supplier. It was the first time the board had agreed to consider appeals of book challenge decisions issued by a district-appointed review committee.
Crown of Midnight by Sarah Maas and Freedom Writers Diary by Erin Gruwell were deemed by the board to be age-inappropriate. The Maas novel had been in the general collection and was available to students; the Gruwell book of student essays was in the collection but access was limited to use by teachers for professional development.
The board placed a third book, Heir of Fire by Maas, on the restricted reading list, which requires written permission from a parent for a student to read the book.
The books were challenged by David Warner, chair of the Horry County chapter of Moms for Liberty, who wrote in a letter to the district that he found “s--ually explicit content” in each of the books.
"The graphic nature of certain scenes in these books, particularly those depicting s--ual content, raises serious concerns about their suitability for our young students,” Warner wrote in his appeal to the board. Dissatisfied with rulings of the book review committee to his original challenges, he asked the board to ban the three books.
The district’s Library/Media Center Review Committee — four parents, two school board members and five school district employees — had recommended that Crown of Midnight be moved from the general collection to the restricted reading list, requiring parental approval. The school board overturned that decision, striking the book from the collection.
"This book I found to be inappropriate for younger middle schoolers,” Board Member Pam Dawson said.
The vote to ban the book was 11-1, with board member Howard Barnard opposed.
The other Maas novel, Heir of Fire, was placed on the list requiring parental approval by a 10-2 vote by the board, with Barnard and Debbie Edmonds opposed. The committee had recommended it remain in the general collection.
Gruwell’s book, which the committee had recommended be retained for use only by teachers, was also returned to the supplier by the board. The vote was 11-1, with board member Janet Graham dissenting.
The district policy regarding library materials requires that complainants first meet with the district principal. The review committee is activated if a formal challenge is filed, and must review the challenge and issue a report within 30 business days. If complainants disagree with the committee’s decisions, they can then seek, but are not guaranteed, a final appeal to the board.
Horry County, SC school board bans two bookshttps://www.myhorrynews.com/news/scho...
Acting as the final arbiter of a book battle, the board voted to return two titles to the supplier. It was the first time the board had agreed to consider appeals of book challenge decisions issued by a district-appointed review committee.
Crown of Midnight by Sarah Maas and Freedom Writers Diary by Erin Gruwell were deemed by the board to be age-inappropriate. The Maas novel had been in the general collection and was available to students; the Gruwell book of student essays was in the collection but access was limited to use by teachers for professional development.
The board placed a third book, Heir of Fire by Maas, on the restricted reading list, which requires written permission from a parent for a student to read the book.
The books were challenged by David Warner, chair of the Horry County chapter of Moms for Liberty, who wrote in a letter to the district that he found “s--ually explicit content” in each of the books.
"The graphic nature of certain scenes in these books, particularly those depicting s--ual content, raises serious concerns about their suitability for our young students,” Warner wrote in his appeal to the board. Dissatisfied with rulings of the book review committee to his original challenges, he asked the board to ban the three books.
The district’s Library/Media Center Review Committee — four parents, two school board members and five school district employees — had recommended that Crown of Midnight be moved from the general collection to the restricted reading list, requiring parental approval. The school board overturned that decision, striking the book from the collection.
"This book I found to be inappropriate for younger middle schoolers,” Board Member Pam Dawson said.
The vote to ban the book was 11-1, with board member Howard Barnard opposed.
The other Maas novel, Heir of Fire, was placed on the list requiring parental approval by a 10-2 vote by the board, with Barnard and Debbie Edmonds opposed. The committee had recommended it remain in the general collection.
Gruwell’s book, which the committee had recommended be retained for use only by teachers, was also returned to the supplier by the board. The vote was 11-1, with board member Janet Graham dissenting.
The district policy regarding library materials requires that complainants first meet with the district principal. The review committee is activated if a formal challenge is filed, and must review the challenge and issue a report within 30 business days. If complainants disagree with the committee’s decisions, they can then seek, but are not guaranteed, a final appeal to the board.
This guy shows up everywhere trying to ban this one book.Florida of course
https://www.cbsnews.com/miami/news/br...
Broward School Board meeting gets heated over book banning
During public comment Tuesday, Pastor John Amanchukwu read several explicit passages from the book "Push" by Sapphire. He stated the book was available at a public school library, despite some salacious content and language.
While he was quoting the book, his microphone was cut off, effectively silencing him.
"You all reviewed this book and said it was educational. And you're muting my mic again. Why? Because you don't want to be challenged," he said. "You are a hypocrite Lori (Alhadeff). You're silencing my microphone because you say it's educational."
He was speaking to Board Chair Lori Alhadeff, who stated the meeting needed to maintain decorum. Alhadeff also had this exchange with Board Member Brenda Fam: ... Who then had this exchange with member Brenda Fam.
Mrs. Fam, you're out of order," Alhadeff said.
"This is not the time to speak to it? When should I speak to it?," Fam asked, regarding when she'd have an opportunity to respond to Amanchukwu's comments. She was told to wait until the end of the meeting, but she added "This was found not to be p----graphic and yet his microphone was cut off."
Then came the topic of banning the Bible.
"The Bible belongs in church, your home, your heart," Ken Minchew said when Fam interrupted him. "I don't believe we need the Bible in our public schools. There is separation of church and state. We need to continue that."
Minchew also quoted the Bible, citing a passage in "Ezekiel" in which a woman is described as "whoring openly" and "flaunting her nakedness", to suggest that it, too, contained explicit content.
But others spoke in support of keeping the Bible in schools, and the board ultimately agreed.
New Jersey- North Hunterdon-Voorhees Schools (NJ) will make a final decision on whether or not to ban Let’s Talk About It in early May. The committee has already apparently reviewed it but has not released the report.https://twitter.com/nhvfreadom/status...
Some good news this weekThe Rebecca Caudill Awards Unbanned by Millburn School District
The suburban Chicago district reversed their decision to end the program thanks to local and national push back.
literaryactivism.substack.com/p/the-r...
In mid-March, the Millburn School District 24, covering Wadsworth, Lindenhurst, and Old Mill Creek, Illinois, just northwest of Chicago, voted to end their participation in the youth-centered Rebecca Caudill Awards.
The Rebecca Caudill Awards are selected by fourth through eighth grade students across the state annually. The books which earn the coveted honor are selected based on both their literary excellence and their appeal to the middle age reading demographic. The award helps to encourage reading for pleasure among tweens and young teens, to develop a statewide list of excellent literature for this age group, and to help develop cooperation and collaboration among schools and libraries statewide.
Some members of the board, led by John Ruggles, began questioning whether or not there was a political agenda to the awards. He and other board members felt the list of eligible books for the award were "left leaning," based on his discomfort with a book his son brought home that he himself paged through. The book, Stamped: (For Kids) Racism, Antiracism, and You, appeared on the 2024 Caudill list and was a title selected for the award by 5-8th grade students in Illinois.
But thanks to local parents and activists in suburban Chicago and beyond, at last night's Millburn School Board meeting (April 22, 2024), the decision to kill the program was reversed.
Librarians and other staff members met with several stakeholders within the district in the last month, following the board's decision to end the program. One of the compromises proposed at the board meeting was that the program would be entirely opt-in, held through the library, and students who wanted to take part would need a signed parental permission form. This would turn the program from an opt-out experience to an opt-in experience.
Also mentioned was a heightened fear from educators in the district, who worried if they were to have a Caudill book in their classroom or choose to read one with the class, they would have blowback from parents and the board for doing so. Further, distrust was sown because of librarians recommending the Caudill books to educators and educators hearing messages from the board that these books had an agenda.
After an addition 50 minutes of board discussion, a member of the board motioned to vote on reinstalling the Readers Choice program with parental opt in or opt out as administered through the library. As might be suspected, this language was vague and confusion, so after a minute of thinking through the actual motion, it was reissued and voted on as reinstalling the Readers Choice program with a required parental opt-in. The motion did not carry.
Board member Fred Skeppstrom motioned then to reinstate the program, but as it stood as of March 1, 2024–with a parental opt-out, rather than opt-in clause.
and bad newsBook Banning County Commissioners Censor Honor for Girl Scout's Banned Book Library
https://literaryactivism.substack.com...
Hanover County, Virginia-
In response to the policy and removal of books, one local Girl Scout named Kate Lindley decided she knew how she could get engaged locally and work on a project that would impact her community and help her earn her Gold Award from the Scouts — the highest honor given. Kate created an app called the "Free to Read" app, which offered information about the bans and books impacted.
She then created free in-person libraries filled with banned books for anyone to access. These "Banned Book Nooks" included titles banned by the school district, including This Book Is Gay by Juno Dawson, Sold by Patricia McCormick, and others. The Banned Book Nooks were placed in two local businesses, We Think In Ink and Morr Donuts, and Kate filled several local Little Free Libraries with banned titles as well. Morr Donuts reported a wave of online hate when they offered to host the project.
Kate's project was documented on an Instagram account, and her story made news nationwide.
On April 10, Kate was to be recognized by the Hanover County Board of Supervisors alongside her fellow Girl Scouts, who earned their Gold Award. But instead of being commended, one of the board members, Cold Harbor Supervisor Michael Herzberg, changed the language around Kate's project for her honor. No longer was the school board and its book ban policy and practice mentioned — the very things that spurred the project itself. Upon censoring the language around the honor, the rest of the Board of Supervisors approved the changes.
The Hanover Public Library also found itself at the center of right-wing censorship in early March 2024, and it is impossible not to connect the censoring of this proclamation with the ongoing battle between County Supervisors and the public libraries.
During a toddler story time at the Atlee Branch Library, one person was offended by the inclusion of Todd Parr's The Family Book, which showcases all of the ways a family can look. The idea of two same-sex parents "normalized homosexuality," and the person took their concerns to the library's board director. The book was deemed perfectly appropriate, but the individual wasn't satisfied.
That individual then went to Chickahominy District Supervisor Danielle Floyd, who read the email aloud at the next library board meeting, held February 28.
Floyd then shared the same talking points of those sympathetic to book banning across the country — that the library had a history of promoting s--ually explicit books and being "anti-police," among other things. Floyd requested that libraries not ban the books but make the toddler storytime books available prior to the story time in order for families to decide whether or not they should attend. She felt it inappropriate the librarian "pushed her agenda" on the story time attendees.
Floyd attended the following library board meeting and spoke during public comment, parroting the same language about the book being inappropriate and demanding that the situation be handled (minutes for that library board meeting are not yet available).
Per the library board minutes, she stated, "Personal agendas do not need to be pushed on children and we do not find that acceptable in Hanover County." Immediately after Floyd's public comments — the final comments after a series of pro-book banning and anti-book banning sentiments during that time — the Goodrich County Library Board representative Barb Young introduced Floyd and fellow County administrative members to the new point of contact for the county attorney's office.
The March library board meeting was canceled.
Conversation about the evils of the public library were far from over. Hertzberg, the County Supervisor who censored the proclamation about Kate's banned book project, claimed the public library promoted "witchcraft, the occult, p-----graphy, and s---ally explicit material in the youth section," per the March 13, 2024 County Supervisor Board Meeting.
The same day that Kate's commendation was edited, the April 10 County Supervisors Meeting, Hanover County resident Peggy Lavinder noted that something was fishy at the public library.
the Pamunkey Regional Library Board of Trustees [has put forth a proposal] to revise the collection policy, and that is going to involve changing the way the library is in general. The proposal is to have an adult section, and that any book, even if it's written for a child, a teenager, a 17-year-old, if it has any s--ual content in it, it's going to be put in the adult section. She added that there was no consideration whether it was a s-x education book that was written for a young teenager or how this restriction was going to be enforced if a teenager picked up a book from the adult section. Ms. Lavinder spoke regarding book titles that received complaints which she added was 50 maximum and suggested, instead of trying to determine what the public does not want to read, the Board should spend time finding out what the public does want to read. If the library does not have a title, it can be requested. She added that it is the same thing that happened with the school division, and she suggested that the Board use the process developed for the school division and spend time learning what people want.
The next full library board meeting, to be held Wednesday, April 24, is debating how to differentiate between middle grade books and juvenile books. It appears that the library is considering subdividing books for middle schoolers, middle graders, juvenile readers, and books for young adults. The cost of this project, per board documents, is over $53,000. This emerged in part due to citizen comments from the February meeting but also due to a library board member making statements during the January meeting that were misleading and false regarding the middle grade collection — which led back to a letter sent by the then County Board of Commissioners Chair W. Canova Peterson in April 2023 to the public library requesting “age appropriateness of materials in section of the library should be considered to better differentiate elementary school, middle school, high school, and adult audiences.”
The letter came as a culmination of complaints about materials in the public library collection spanning back to at least September 2022, when a patron brought a complaint to the board about a banned books display in the Atlee Branch library.
That patron, Christie Schumacher, is currently on the library board.
Hanover County Schools Supervisor Floyd and fellow County Supervisor Faye Prichard — who was absent from the meeting where the proclamation for Kate's project was censored — are currently involved in the process of selecting two new members of the Hanover County School Board as well. Floyd is aligned with a local right-wing group, the Hanover Patriots, who've had a hand in the policy-making that led to banning dozens of books in the school district.
Kate will attend the County Board of Supervisors meeting on Wednesday, April 24, to receive her now-censored commendation from the board. She plans to attend college in the fall and study computer science.
“The Board of Supervisors has bestowed upon me the greatest honor anyone fighting censorship and banning could receive by censoring me and my project,” Lindley said in an interview with WVTF, Virginia's Public Radio.
Mod
Nothing to do with book banning, perhaps, but this is disgusting, and there should not only be an apology, but the flight crew individuals who took the headdress away should be severely disciplined and also identified, should be specifically and publicly shamed.
That's baloney! I traveled with my American Girl doll - twice- on a plane where there was no more overhead storage. I took her out of my backpack and sat her on my lap, shoved the backpack under the seat in front of me. PLUS I had my back cushion in a reusable shopping bag I carried on! A ceremonial headdress that fit on her lap should have been fine. I looked it up and there are TSA/CATSA rules for sacred, spiritual and ceremonial objects going through security. There must be rules for flying with them as well. People fly with their loved ones ashes.
Back to booksIn Florida, Fade and Empire of Storms might be pulled from Alachua County Schools (FL). Some college student who might not even be a resident in the district who brought about the challenges.
https://www.wuft.org/2024-04-18/frust...
School staff and residents of Alachua County have expressed increasing frustration over the lack of community support in the wake of numerous book challenges that have taken titles off school library shelves.
“In a lot of ways, our hands are tied because of the legislation” District Media Specialist Patty Duval said.
Since the district changed its book challenging process in early February, parents and residents have challenged 16 books in Alachua County.
Two of these books recently passed a district-level meeting on April 11. The books “Fade,” by Lisa McMann, and “Empire of Storms,” by Sarah J. Maas were challenged by University of Florida student Olivia Haley, and the District Library Advisory Committee made the recommendation to have them removed from shelves after concluding that passages of the book contained descriptions of s---al conduct.
The Alachua County School Board has yet to establish Haley’s residency in the county, which is a legal requirement for proposing these challenges. As a result, the books are in a pending status. This requirement was emphasized in recent meetings after a woman who had not been an Alachua County resident for a year had challenged a book, resulting in the reversal of its removal.
According to Duval, if the county is able to establish that Haley meets the residency requirements and therefore go through with the 12 pending challenges from Haley and the remaining challenges from other objectors, the district will be at capacity for reviewing books for the school year. This means they will have to hold over any other book objections for the next school year.
Citizens in the community, including school staff, shared their concern with how many book challenges there have been in the current school year what this means for children in the over 60 public schools in the county.
Jane Spear, 80, was one resident who attended the district level meeting and is a member of PFLAG Gainesville Florida Chapter, an organization intended to support LGBTQ+ youth and adults.
Spear said she regularly attends both district level and school board meetings, with the hopes to voice her concerns and stay updated on every book challenge that comes up.
Spear was most concerned about how a small group of Alachua residents can make long-lasting impacts on libraries that provide for thousands of students.
“They don’t have the right to tell other parents what their child should read,” Spear said. “Choose for your own child, you don’t have a right to choose for every student.”
Haley, who spoke at a school board meeting on April 2, said the board should consider alternatives for books that contain inappropriate material, using “The House on Mango Street,” by Sandra Cisneros and “The Joy Luck Club,” by Amy Tan as examples. Haley said that the books included characters with diverse backgrounds without containing graphic material.
Mod
Yes, it is pure and utter BS and racism.
Good news from NevadaWashoe County Library board rejects book bans pushed by conservative activists
https://thisisreno.com/2024/04/photos...
About a half dozen people have requested that about a dozen library books be removed from library collections or that staff move the books to a “parental discretion section.”
“The Library recognizes that some materials may be controversial and that any given item may offend some,” the library’s policy notes. “Only the individual can define what materials are consistent with her/his own values. Individuals can apply those to the use of library materials for themselves.”
Library Director Jeff Scott, in response to one petitioner, emphasized “a plurality of viewpoints” and said librarians “do not provide oversight over which materials might be appropriate for a user; we leave that to the individual and in the case of minors, let parents determine for their own children which materials are acceptable.”
The board rejected citizen calls to remove the books. Only board Chair Gianna Jacks voted to censor the books.
...
Some commenters spoke in support of the [Drag Queen] story hour while others continued their criticism, with one mother saying communists are infiltrating the library.
Jenny Clark attended with her three small children and said she addressed the board as a “conflicted” mother. She called the library a “communist institution” and claimed her four-year-old daughter identified a book at the library to her as a “commie book.”
Clark also said it was sad that she had to screen books for her four-year-old child and claimed her children bring books to her for approval, asking, “Is this ok, mommy? Is this a commie book?”
[Hello?! Talk about grooming! Yikes!]
She also accused the board of “grooming” and informed them that they were “not going to do that to my kids.”
Clark’s remarks were met with laughter and smattering applause. Community member Lynn Arnone said she was an “avid user of the Washoe County Library System for the last 25 years and a proud parent of a transgender child.”
She said she strongly supported Drag Queen Story Hour and felt the need to speak against efforts to prevent access to books that have been challenged. This sentiment was expressed by many in attendance, including Washoe County Commissioner Mariluz Garcia, who told This Is Reno that it was her choice and right as a parent to decide what content or programs are appropriate for her children.
“One hundred seventy-five people were here when I arrived to the meeting; standing room only,” she said. “I am sitting here in the hallway with many other concerned citizens because I want our librarians to know that I support them.”
Our Center Executive Director, Stacy Spain, also addressed the board to express her support for the library. Spain said children are not forced to attend Drag Queen Story Hour and that parents choose freely to participate with their children.
“In fact, children can not attend without an adult with them,” she added.
Spain’s comments were met with head shaking and eye rolling by the mostly older people in opposition. Spain also expressed her “unwavering support for the story hour” as the leader at Our Center.
“The signaling out of queer and trans publications for banning is not only an attack on a cherished community event but also makes clear that the nationwide rise in anti-LGBTQI violence has become a very real local issue,” she said.
Washoe County Libraries Director Jeff Scott told This Is Reno he was looking forward to the meeting. Scott said it is essential to have representation and that having a Drag Queen Story Hour is “great because it shows that we are committed to that, and having collections that represent them is important.”
Good news California"California lawmakers recently voted down a bill requiring school boards to ban books with “harmful material” from libraries and classrooms, legislation that would have given parents the ability to sue those that did not comply."
https://news.yahoo.com/california-law...
The Senate Education Committee on Wednesday did not advance Senate Bill 1435 from Sen. Rosilicie Ochoa Bogh, R-Yucaipa. Bill opponents called it an “overreach in what the law is” and a “form of censorship.”
SB 1435 would apply to preschools, transitional kindergartens, kindergartens and grades one through eight. It would require school boards to ban books with content considered “harmful” under California Penal Code 313, which prohibits the material from being distributed to children.
Penal Code 313 defines content as harmful if it (view spoiler) and which, taken as a whole, lacks serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific value for minors.”
It would require school boards to adopt this standard for books and would allow parents, guardians and school district residents to sue in civil court “after the governing board of the school district’s refusal to remove any harmful matter requested of it,” according to the Education Committee staff report.
During an exchange with Ochoa Bogh, Sen. Lola Smallwood-Cuevas, D-Los Angeles, said she does not “need the state’s guidance to tell me how I feel about what my children are doing.”
...
Ochoa Bogh and said the bill is necessary because “as this material becomes more readily available through social media, movies, books and other digital mediums the state Legislature has been slow to provide the necessary oversight.”
“As a result, these materials have slowly crept into our schools,” she said.
Erin Friday of Our Duty, an anti-transgender organization, testified in favor of SB 1435, reading lines she considered s----ally explicit from books she said are available in middle schools.
“If you don’t vote yes on this bill, you will be on record that you believe that children should be exposed to the type of harmful matter that I just presented,” Friday said. “There can be no other interpretation.”
ACLU California Action, the California Teachers Association, Equality California and other groups opposed the bill. Seth Bramble of the California Teachers Association said it “opens the door to removing books from our schools simply because some individuals don’t like the views in those books.
“This bill is about taking books out of our school libraries,” said Bramble, who testified against the bill. “The proposal seeks to fuel fear and distrust in our public school libraries and in our public education system, disrupting the work that teachers do to try and grow the next generation of inventors.”
Lawmakers expressed concerns about the legal liability the bill would create for districts, as well as the subjective nature of the “harmful material” test.
Sen. Lola Smallwood-Cuevas, D-Los Angeles, said parents and school district residents already have “the opportunities and systems and structured environments for parents to have this conversation with their school district.”
“This bill proposes to go around that,” Smallwood-Cuevas said.
Committee Chair Josh Newman, D-Fullerton, questioned whether the books Friday discussed are the “exception” and asked whether they justify a new rule.
“I commend you for instigating this conversation today, and for your work prior to it,” Newman said. “I’m going to abstain on the bill, simply because I do believe that there are more problems generated here than the prospective solution.”
PennsylvaniaBad followed by good
A Pennsylvania school district canceled a gay ‘30 Rock’ actor’s event, citing his ‘lifestyle.’ Parents are fighting back.
Parents in a Pennsylvania school district are petitioning to overturn a unanimous vote by the school board to cancel a talk from “30 Rock” actor Maulik Pancholy, over concerns about his “activism” and “lifestyle.”
Pancholy, who is gay and a children’s book author, was scheduled to speak at Mountain View Middle School in Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania, on May 22. But the Cumberland Valley School District (CVSD) voted unanimously on Monday to cancel his visit.
More than 6,000 people have signed a petition started by Trisha Comstock, a parent in the school district, demanding that the board reverse their decision.
Pancholy, who is known for voicing Baljeet in the cartoon “Phineas and Ferb” and for his role as the assistant on the TV show “30 Rock,” has written two award-winning children’s books that focus on themes of empathy and anti-bullying.
Nikhil Out Loud
Board members who spoke during the meeting said they were concerned about the topics Pancholy would discuss while speaking about his books.
“He labels himself as an activist, he is proud of his lifestyle, and I don’t think that should be imposed upon our students at any age,” CVSD board member Bud Shaffner said during the meeting.
Board member Kelly Potteiger echoed Shaffner’s concerns about Pancholy discussing his “lifestyle.”
“He did say that’s not the topic but that’s what his books are about and he will probably talk about his pathway, because he talks about anti-bullying, and empathy and inclusion so part of that is his journey,” Potteiger said. “That’s where, as a self-proclaimed activist, that’s where it gets concerning, I think.”
Ultimately, the board voted unanimously to cancel the event.
Pancholy responded to the district’s decision in a statement posted on Instagram Thursday, thanking the community for their “outpouring of solidarity, love, and support.”
“When I visit schools, my ‘activism’ is to let all young people know that they’re seen. To let them know that they matter. When I talk about the characters in my books feeling ‘different,’ I’m always surprised by how many young people raise their hands – regardless of their identities and backgrounds – wanting to share about the ways in which they, too, feel different,” Pancholy said in the statement.
“That’s the power of books. They build empathy. I wonder why a school board is so afraid of that?”
...
Comstock said she was haunted by what she heard during that meeting. Instead of sleeping, she got up and started the petition.
It has since garnered thousands of signatures, many accompanied by frustrated comments from local students, staff members, and families.
“I have not only been contacted by parents in the district, and students who feel silenced and not heard, but I was also contacted privately by teachers – teachers that are openly gay – that watched the meeting and cried and said, ‘Am I welcome here? Do I belong?,’” Comstock said.
Brooke Ryerson, a gay student who used to attend Mountain View Middle School and now attends the district’s high school, says she “couldn’t believe” what she was hearing when she watched the board meeting livestream.
“They’re blatantly sending the message that they don’t think LGBTQ+ stories and lives belong in our schools. To the countless students and staff at CV who are part of the LGBTQ+ community, and especially at Mountain View Middle School, this just strengthens that lingering doubt if we really belong,” Brooke, 16, told CNN.
During the board meeting, another member, Matthew Barrick, said he wants “politics out of our school.”
Parents have criticized the board’s disapproval of so-called activists, noting that Moms for Liberty, a right-wing group that focuses on a range of school-related initiatives, had advocated for Potteiger’s appointment to the school district’s board.
Colby Zebel, whose daughter Willow is a 7th grade student at the middle school where the event was going to take place, told CNN the board’s decision sends a message to students that they are “not concerned about bullying, especially if you are gay.”
“My daughter is furious. She is upset about missing the talk, but more importantly the way this decision was made and the apparent reasons for it. It is also clear to her that the primary reason for the cancellation is the fact that the presenter is gay,” Zebel told CNN.
“The attempt to walk this back and claim that he is a political activist does not hold up. I reviewed his website and while the term ‘activist’ is prominent, anti-bullying is the only focus, and politics is never mentioned.”
Comstock also took issue with the board labeling Pancholy an activist.
“Anyone can go to his site and see that his activism is around bullying,” Comstock said. “If we’re going to class activists as threats to our students, then we could never host a Mothers Against Drunk (Driving), or drunk driving event, because they’re activists.”
The reason why Pancholy wrote the children’s stories, he says, is because he never saw himself in books and South Asian-American or LGBTQ+ characters “didn’t exist” for him.
“And when I set out to write my own novels so many years later, I was still hard-pressed to find those stories. It’s why I wrote my books in the first place. Because representation matters,” he wrote in his statement.
“I hope that every single student at MVMS is receiving that message of support and love. That you know that regardless of who you are, you belong. To each of you: I see you. I appreciate you. You matter. No one can take that away from you.”
Brooke’s mom, Valarie Ryerson, told CNN the district is known for “the very best administrators, teachers, guidance counselors and staff,” many of whom are gay, she said.
“Mr. Shaffner’s comments that kids should not be ‘exposed’ to a gay speaker turned my stomach, knowing that we have so many members of the LGBQT+ community in our schools, teachers, and students – including my daughter – who now feel completely devalued, unwelcome and unsafe,” Ryerson said.
“I’ve been very lucky to have so much support from my family and in school,” Brooke said.
“But it must be terrifying for kids who aren’t open about their identities to be hearing things like this being said by people with so much control and power.”
Success!Pennsylvania school board reinstates talk by ‘30 Rock’ actor after canceling over his ‘lifestyle’
https://www.cnn.com/2024/04/26/us/cum...
After two weeks of outcry, the Cumberland Valley School District’s school board held a special meeting Wednesday that resulted in a 5-4 vote to reinstate Pancholy’s visit to a local middle school.
The actor and author reacted to the news in a video posted to social media the following day.
“I’m deeply grateful to the hundreds of people who showed up and for the outpouring of support from the superintendent, administrators, parents, caregivers, teachers, and community members,” he said.
Pancholy said he was especially moved by students in the school district who bravely spoke during a public comment session at the meeting.
“Thank you for sharing your powerful messages of love, inclusion, respect, and belonging. It was an honor to listen to each of you,” he said. “I cannot wait to meet all of you in person.”
Wednesday’s school board meeting, which lasted for more than five hours, began with apologies from some board members, including Bud Schaffner, who, according to CNN affiliate WHP-TV, faces calls for his resignation over remarks he made during the April 15 meeting about Pancholy’s sexuality.
“I want to apologize to everyone this evening, especially our students, staff and families,” Schaffner said. “I will accept the blame because of the insensitive word I spoke on April 15. I fully understand the interpretation of my poor word choice, but that is not what I meant. I am not a prejudiced person and that is not who I am or what Cumberland Valley stands for.”
“I am proud of the diversity in the Cumberland Valley school district and agree that nothing could be more important than a message of acceptance and anti-bullying, not only for our students but for everyone.”
But for many members of the community, including students, the apologies and the board’s reversal did not go far enough.
“When you voted to cancel the assembly you sent students the message that it is okay to judge people who are different from you,” one eighth grade student told the board. “It is your job to use your position of power to help people when instead you are using it to cause harm.
“I am here to say that the students of Cumberland Valley will not tolerate bullying behavior from the adults on our school board.”
Scary news Idaho• "Idaho House Bill 710, also known as the Library Bill was signed into law by Idaho Governor Brad Little. The law states that any parents or child, whether they’re a resident of Idaho or not, can complain about a book they deem to be inappropriate for their child’s age group. Some of the examples of inappropriate content are p___graphic content and homosexual references. After receiving the complaint the library has 30 days to relocate that book to an adults-only area, if not they will have a monetary penalty."
https://legislature.idaho.gov/session...
Texas• An "inappropriate book" was distributed to low-income kids via a partnership between Amarillo Independent School District (TX) and StoryBridge, ending their relationship following a parental complaint.
https://lonestar923.com/ixp/195/p/ama...
Storybridge provides free access to quality children's books for families in low-income areas. By giving kids books, it can help change their lives.
According to a Reddit post, Amarillo ISD canceled its partnership with Storybridge after AISD received a complaint about an inappropriate book. The book in question was allegedly about two dads. According to a comment made on the Reddit post, principals sent emails out to the staff 2 weeks ago about stopping Storybridge immediately.
[a teacher in the district confirmed the e-mail]
"The partnership between Amarillo ISD and StoryBridge has not been dissolved, but we have temporarily paused book distribution while we strengthen the book vetting process. As is the case with systems in place in our school libraries, we want to ensure parents have the ultimate say in what is appropriate for their family. –Amarillo ISD and StoryBridge
As of now, the relationship has been paused to put a new plan in place for a new process of what kind of books are distributed to children."
Carroll County, MarylandSupport of reading legislation comes at a cost in Carroll County. Commissioners plan to withhold some additional funding to the Carroll County Public Library because staff supported Maryland’s Freedom to Read Act, they said in budget work sessions this month.
The recently passed state bill sets standards for public and school libraries that books cannot be removed because of an author’s background. It also protects library workers from discipline if they’re following the new standards.
https://www.thebaltimorebanner.com/po...
Carroll’s all-Republican state delegation took issue with the legislation: “It is evident that this bill was designed to target Carroll County’s Board of Education and take away local control,” said a letter signed by State Sen. Justin Ready, Del. April Rose and Del. Chris Tomlinson.
Meanwhile, the Carroll commissioners had to figure out how to balance the county budget as they face a deficit over $12 million. During an April 2 budget work session, Kenneth Kiler, president of the Board of Carroll County Commissioners, had an idea.
“This will be ugly for some,” Kiler said. “If you want to get some operating money out of the budget to help with this, I would make a motion that Carroll County Public Library get the money they had last year. No increase for this year.”
Kiler said in the commission’s budget work sessions that he thought the request should be denied because library staff advocated for the Freedom to Read Act in Annapolis. He called the bill anti-Carroll County.
“They’re directing a fight at us and Carroll County Public Schools because they hate Moms for Liberty,” Kiler said of library staff in the April 2 meeting. “They can go fight Moms for Liberty in the Westminster library if they want. I don’t care. But they don’t have the guts to do that so they try to do something in Annapolis that hurts Carroll County.”
Andrea Berstler, the library’s executive director, had pledged last fall to keep the challenged titles in circulation.
“Carroll County Public Library staunchly supports the tireless efforts of library staff to ensure access to information free from the specter of retribution,” Berstler wrote in an open letter. “We endorse the belief that parents should choose what is suitable for their own child to read and that librarians are uniquely qualified to curate collections that reflect diversity and inclusivity designed to meet the needs of all members of our community.”
In a 3-2 vote on April 2, Carroll commissioners initially decided not to increase the library’s funding. Less than a week and a half later, though, they changed their minds.
On April 11, the commissioners decided to pay for half of the increase while the library will be responsible for funding the other half with its surplus funds, which total $1.2 million.
In an email to The Banner last week, Kiler stressed that the budget isn’t final. Commissioners concluded what was supposed to be their last budget meeting on Thursday without discussing library funding again. They decided to meet a final time on Friday to complete their proposal, to be released Tuesday. There’s also a public hearing on the budget set for May 6.
The budget gets a final vote May 21.
Until then, Westminster resident Neal Goldberg is pushing back. The public school parent has been a vocal opponent of book removals and supported the Freedom to Read Act. After hearing Kiler’s comments, he helped start a petition to fully fund the library, which has gathered more than 800 signatures.
Some commissioners have also pushed back.
Commissioner Tom Gordon III said at the April 2 meeting that he sees where Kiler is coming from but is concerned about the repercussions for not funding the increase. The library gives access to computers, digital books and a place to cool off when it’s hot outside, he noted.
“The people that are going to get harmed the most are going to be some of those users,” Gordon said.
Fellow commissioner Ed Rothstein, said he fears it is “putting consequences” on the people who go to the library. But he agrees that conversations with library leadership need improvement and said later the library staff is “making this easy for us” when it comes to deciding where to make cuts.
Commissioners noted in their April 11 meeting that the library’s relationship with the board would need to improve if they wanted to see funding increase in the future.
MichiganDeWitt school reverses course, cancels optional first-grade lesson on pronouns
https://www.lansingstatejournal.com/s...
The school district's plan to offer an optional class for some first graders at Schavey Road Elementary School on the use of pronouns by individuals drew backlash, enough that by Friday the district had reversed course and canceled the plan announced to parents in an April 11 letter.
The lesson, planned for sometime in the next few weeks, was intended to introduce students in one classroom to they/them pronouns, which are used by those who don't identify with gendered pronouns he/him or she/her. The class was intended to read "They, She, He, Me: Free to Be!" by Matthew Sg and Maya Christina Gonzalez, and then talk about the themes in the book, including pronoun use and genders outside the mainstream binary.
The optional lesson has drawn the ire of some parents, a state representative and several social media conservative groups. School officials, however, defended the lesson as age-appropriate and pointed out it's optional.
DeWitt Public Schools Superintendent Shanna Spickard on Friday released a statement explaining her decision to cancel the plan.
She said since the optional class was announced to parents "several of our hard-working school staff members have received inappropriate, angry, and threatening phone calls, emails, and social media messages. Some staff members have had their personal information, including information regarding their families and children, placed online to harass and intimidate them, a cyberbullying practice called 'doxing.' While the vast majority of these inappropriate communications have originated outside of our community, several staff members have expressed feeling anxious, stressed, and even afraid to go to school."
Spickard said the school has had increased police and administrative presence since the backlash.
The first grade class was going to read the book, practice using "they/them" pronouns and learn what to do if they accidentally get someone's pronouns wrong. The students were also to discuss why it's wrong to purposely change someone's pronouns, officials said in the April 11 letter to parents.
In the letter to families who have students in the classroom, Spickard and Principal Liz Crouch introduced the lesson and provided information for parents who wanted to opt their child out of the lessons. The letter said parents had until April 18 to ask to review the lesson or opt their child out of the lesson.
State Rep. Steve Carra, R-Three Rivers, criticized the lesson in a Facebook post. Carra's post received more than 300 comments and was shared nearly 500 times.
Anti-LGBTQ social media posters who oppose such topics being discussed in schools have railed against the lesson on X.
Libs of Tiktok, a far-right and anti-LGBTQ social media account, posted a clip of WILX 10's interview with a parent who opposed the lesson. Moms for Liberty, another far-right and anti-LGBTQ social media account, shared the same clip. The TV segment used did not explain the lesson was optional.
Social media posts opposing the lesson also did not say the class was optional or that it would only be taught in one classroom.
On April 17, Spickard addressed the backlash against the lesson in a Facebook post.
"The purpose is to promote greater understanding, compassion, and kindness regarding gender identity and the use of pronouns," Spickard said in the post. "The mini-lesson is not designed to challenge, persuade, or alter family beliefs. Instead, it aims to promote a safe and respectful learning environment where all our students feel valued.
"Again, this is an optional session and 100% voluntary and is only being offered to students in one first grade classroom in response to concerns brought to our attention, not as part of our general curriculum," Spickard wrote. She did not elaborate on what concerns were raised that prompted the lesson.
OhioA Group Of Catholic Believers Pray The Rosary Outside Celina’s Mercer County Library
https://mercercountyoutlook.net/2024/...
(4-20-24) Today at the Mercer County Library in Celina a group of Catholic Believers held a time of praying the Rosary in concern over books that are presently available.
The Rosary Crusade of Restoration flyer that was posted describes the concerns and why the group was coming to Celina.
In October of 2023 concerns were brought up about certain graphic novels that were made available to children and teens at the Celina branch.
Plus, the Mercer County Commissioners, also in October, met and made a new appointment to serve on the Mercer County Library Board of Trustees. Two of the three Commissioners voted to approve Andrea Strable to replace Jan Morrison whose current term ends. The other Commissioner abstained in the voting.
Mod
A Group Of Catholic Believers Pray The Rosary Outside Celina’s Mercer County Library
https://mercercountyoutlook.net/2024/...-..."
We had some Catholics try this at a local mall in Calgary when I was a teenager. I am Catholic and I very publicly took out the rosary I owned and threw it in the trash (maybe I should not have done that, but it felt good and really freaked out those extremists).
Mod
• "Idaho House Bill 710, also known as the Library Bill was signed into law by Idaho Governor Brad Little. The law states that any parents or child, whether they’re a resident of ..."
Will these parents also be able to complain about books available for purchasing or books that families, that individuals own and are reading with their kids at home? I sure hope this only pertains to libraries but that is already freaky enough.
Manybooks wrote: "Will these parents also be able to complain about books available for purchasing or books that families, that individuals own and are reading with their kids at home? I sure hope this only pertains to libraries but that is already freaky enough...."Yes in some places, like Texas, they are targeting bookstores as well. A judge declared the Texas READER act that would fine bookstores for not rating and for providing "obscene" material to minors was Unconstitutional. Each state, each community has different laws but mostly the judges are pro-First Amendment rights even when they don't agree with the books personally.
https://bookriot.com/fifth-circuit-co...
The extremist groups, the haters and others who spend too much time rotting their brains on social media have called in bomb threats to bookstores over LGBTQ+ content.
More news from last weekVirginia
Rockingham County School Board held a regularly scheduled meeting on Monday, April 22nd. On the agenda: a formal policy on how the county will review content children have access to in schools, particularly books.
An initial draft of the book review policy was proposed in March, but today’s meeting made it official in a 4-1 vote, with Dist. 1 representative Jackie Lohr as the dissenting vote.
The policy follows two procedures, one for s----ally explicit content complaints and one for challenged materials.
A content review committee will review all complaints citing s--ally explicit material. This committee will include a librarian, the Assistant Superintendent, Supervisor of English and four other parents or community members. For non-s----ally explicit material, parents can meet with principals and file a formal complaint. Then, the principal will chair a committee consisting of two parents and three staff members. If a conclusion isn’t reached, it is up to the Superintendent to decide whether or not the content violates the rules.
Passionate community members awaited their turn at the podium during the public comment portion of the meeting. While some speakers were in support of the board, many were not.
Teachers and parents have signed documents stating their displeasure with the board. One document has over 500 signatures from parents, guardians and grandparents of students in Rockingham County.
After the board removed 57 books library books from shelves on January 8th, students have held walkouts, parents for and against the bans have spoken out and eyes have turned toward the school board. The new policy is supposed to provide clarity on how the board decides whether or not to remove a book.
MinnesotaAnoka-Hennepin School District (MN) is the largest in the state and is dealing with a board candidate who refuses to vote on a budget because he is a puppet of the 1776 Project PAC and believes, among other things, social studies classes are only telling a biased history.
https://sahanjournal.com/education/an...
Anoka-Hennepin school board member threatens budget standoff over racial, gender equity efforts
Matt Audette’s targets range from the use of gendered pronouns to Minnesota’s new social studies standards, which will include ethnic studies starting in 2026.
An Anoka-Hennepin school board member backed by a conservative parents rights group says he plans to force a budget showdown if the district does not scrap programs aimed at racial and gender equity.
Matt Audette wrote in an April 12 Facebook post that he would not vote for any budget that included the “spreading of divisive, one-sided views.”
But officials at the north metro school district say many of these programs are required by law, and eliminating them could imperil the district’s funding and students’ ability to graduate.
Audette won election in 2021 with support of the 1776 Project PAC, which opposes diversity, equity, and inclusion in public schools. He said that he and school board members Zach Arco and Linda Hoekman, who both won election last fall with the backing of the conservative Minnesota Parents Alliance, had developed a list of items they would not fund. Minnesota school board candidates supported by parents’ rights groups lost most of their races over the last several years. But since the Anoka-Hennepin school board has six members, this bloc of three now comprises half the board.
Audette’s lengthy list of targets includes any use of the concepts of “equity” or “anti-racism” with staff or students; culturally responsive teaching; land acknowledgments; social-emotional learning; several staff positions focused on diversity, equity, and inclusion; adoption of Minnesota’s new social studies standards; requiring or asking students to share their gender and pronouns; restorative justice practices; and any display of a flag other than the American flag.
Jim Skelly, the district’s communications director, provided an 11-page document, which he said the board discussed at the April 4 meeting, citing more than 30 state and federal laws that require the district to include some of the programs Audette objects to. They included the U.S. Constitution and a 2021 settlement agreement with the Minnesota Department of Human Rights resulting from a lawsuit filed by a transgender student in Anoka-Hennepin Schools.
One of the items Audette said he would not fund is the state’s new social studies standards. In January, a judge approved the new standards, which will form the basis of social studies instruction for every school district in the state. The new revision adds ethnic studies to state social studies standards for the first time, which advocates say will make Minnesota’s social studies classes more inclusive and representative of the state’s diverse communities. Though the standards will not go into effect until fall 2026 guidance from the Minnesota Department of Education indicates that districts should engage in professional development and curriculum selection over the next two years.
[T]he document from district staff identifies legal problems with failing to adopt the new standards. For example, Minnesota law requires students to complete state academic standards in order to graduate. And state law also allows the Minnesota Department of Education to reduce or withhold funding if the school board “authorizes or permits violations of law” by “noncompliance with a mandatory rule of general application.”
Anoka-Hennepin is the largest school district in the state, with more than 38,000 students, and has been rapidly diversifying. Students of color make up more than 40% of its current enrollment and are on track to become a majority in the next decade.
In recent years, the district has taken steps to better reflect its growing diversity, said Sarah Hjelmberg, a ceramics teacher at Coon Rapids High School.
“I fear for the safety of our students if [the] culture changes,” Hjelmberg said. Since the district released its equity plan in 2019, she said, school culture had changed for the better.
Mod
I guess very many Social Conservatives are actually radically left wing and collectivist, and thus the kind of radically Stalinist so despised by say Ayn Rand.
Follow-up with good newshttps://sahanjournal.com/education/an...
Following an outcry from hundreds of students, parents, and teachers, the co-chair of the Anoka-Hennepin school board agreed to decouple the district’s 2024-25 budget from a list of diversity initiatives, ending an impasse that could have shut down the district.
But co-chair Zach Arco said he and two other conservative board members still planned to seek changes to a long list of diversity, equity and inclusion targets ranging from teacher use of students’ preferred pronouns to how the district complies with new state social studies standards.
Anoka-Hennepin students who led a rally and packed a school board meeting Monday night were elated at the outcome.
“To know real impact came almost immediately after student and parent pressure is unthinkable and extremely rewarding,” said Sydney Oundo, co-president of the Coon Rapids High School Black Student Union.
“I was really excited because our voices were actually heard and our feelings were not dismissed,” said Ileene Yang, a Champlin Park High School senior. “What we did really made an impact on their decision.”
Evan Whipple, a student at Champlin Park High School, said at Monday night’s meeting he attributed his academic success to participating in student clubs, including the Indigenous student club he started.
“These clubs gave me a chance to see who I was as a person,” he said.
On Tuesday night, the board held a work session to address the items on Audette’s list and develop next steps for each item. Students, parents, and teachers packed the meeting room to hear the discussion. Toward the beginning of the meeting, Arco said that the board did not intend to cut student groups.
“No one is suggesting that student groups be canceled,” Arco said.
Throughout the meeting, the board discussed possible next steps for Audette’s list that could include clarifying the district’s policy around notifying parents about a student’s preferred pronouns; narrowing the list of professional development topics; and reviewing the district’s plan to comply with the state’s new social studies standards. Any changes to district policy would require the votes of four school board members.
Amelia Eric, treasurer of the Coon Rapids High School Black Student Union, said she was “so happy” that the students’ pushback had an impact.
“We all know the fight isn’t over,” she said. Students wanted to see an expansion of the programs Audette sought to cut, like social-emotional learning and diversity training, she said. But, she said, “Our work meant something.”
Oundo, one of the lead organizers for Monday’s rally, said she had been impressed by how quickly young people mobilized around the school budget, and the rally’s immediate impact.
“Student power was able to make people in power think again about the decisions that they’re making,” she said. She said she had learned that school boards are complicated, and that students would continue to sit in on meetings as the school board works its way through its next steps to make sure the board’s actions did not go unnoticed.
For Ileene Yang, who started the petition against the school board’s actions, seeing the school board’s response gave her a sense of empowerment.
“I just feel so much more powerful,” she said. “My voice is going to be heard.”
Paywalled but in Rutherford County, Tenn. 26 books have been banned.The Rutherford County Library System Board also has banned books, including "Flamer" and three others pulled in August in response to the Murfreesboro government's now repealed community decency standards ordinance
https://subscribe.dnj.com/restricted?...
Children's Books
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at the end of November, Penguin Random House filed a lawsuit against the American state of Iowa, in concert with the Iowa State Education Association. This lawsuit challenges an Iowa senate bill which, according to court papers filed by PRH and the education association, “prohibits books in school libraries and classroom collections” that contain content about s--, gender identity, or sexual orientation.
Also listed as plaintiffs at the time were high-profile authors who have seen their books removed from Iowan school and classroom libraries: Laurie Halse Anderson, John Green, Malinda Lo, and Jodi Picoult. And there are an Iowa high school student and three educators also among the original plaintiffs.
newcomers to the plaintiffs’ roster are:
Hachette Book Group
HarperCollins Publishers
Macmillan Publishers
Simon & Schuster
Sourcebooks
In joining the lawsuit led by Penguin Random House, these five publishers have issued a joint statement that says, in part, “We as publishers are uniting in our unwavering commitment to stand with educators, librarians, students, authors, and readers against the unconstitutional censorship measures being imposed by the state of Iowa.
“The alarming rise of book bans across the country demands our collective action. Now, more than ever, we must stand firmly with our authors and readers to defend the fundamental right to read and the freedom of expression.”
Many trade visitors who were at London Book Fair and/or the Bologna Children’s Book Fair will recognize here what the International Publishers Association (IPA), working with four other major sister international organizations, has dubbed the “Trinity of Freedoms” that are being pressured in many parts of the world under autocratic dynamics that challenge democratic values: freedom to publish, freedom to read, freedom of expression. The World Expression Forum (WEXFO) is also programming a special afternoon of programming on the “trinity” and is challenges on May 27 in Lillehammer.
With the anticipated January 1 implementation of the law having been temporarily blocked by Judge Locher’s injunction, the state of Iowa appealed, and the plaintiffs filed a brief in the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals in opposition to that attempt to have the injunction overturned.