Children's Books discussion
Banned Books: discussions, lists
>
Discussion of censorship, equity, and other concerns.
The library doesn't have the money to take action, that's why they must close to unaccompanied child patrons. I don't know if a sit-in is feasible for this community. The library is simply too small. I've never heard of such a tiny library and my neighborhood branch was pretty small.Money for expansion and bombarding senators and representatives with emails might be the best way to achieve change right now. If I can find a link to a news story I will share it so the news spreads. Anyone in the community should VOTE VOTE VOTE!
Share the links, shame the lawmakers who make these dumb laws.
https://www.ktvb.com/article/news/loc...
https://www.idahonews.com/news/local/...
Book Bans Are Surging in Florida. So Lauren Groff Opened a Bookstore. - The New York Timeshttps://www.nytimes.com/2024/05/10/bo...
I'm not a subscriber but I thought I'd post the headline!
Read challenged books to help Harford County Public Schools (Maryland)A new committee has been set up for Harford County Public Schools, to read and assess books in the schools' libraries that have been challenged.
The new Library Materials Reconsideration Committee is asking anyone who lives in Harford County, whether or not you have children in the public school system, to apply.
"The Reconsideration Committee is charged with evaluating challenged library books considering criteria outlined in the library's evaluation and selection procedure," stated HCPS in a release.
If you're selected, you will be required to read every book assigned to your subcommittee for reconsideration.
You'll also have to attend up to 11 mandatory meetings during the school year; one in September, up to five meetings between October 1 and December 15, and up to another five meetings between March 1 and May 15.
https://www.hcps.org/departments/curr...
Dumb. dumb. dumb. Trust the librarians and teachers.
Here's Where Library Workers are Prohibited From Their Own Professional Organization: Book Censorship News, May 24, 2024VERY scary stuff here
https://literaryactivism.substack.com...
Alabama againhttps://www.cullmantimes.com/news/apl...
The Alabama Public Library Service will be operating on a limited budget after the Alabama Legislature approved a near 9 percent budget cut despite what board members believed to be a “good—faith effort” to adhere to lawmakers’ demands.
A total of $15 million of the recently approved $11 billion Education Trust Fund was allotted to the APLS, the majority of which provides funding for outside programs. Gov. Kay Ivey proposed $4.1 million be allotted for APLS operations, but May 16, board chairman Ronald Snider said the Alabama House of Representatives cut the 2025 operating budget by 18 percent. The Senate restored half of those funds resulting in a reduction of roughly $350,000.
“It’s going to cause tremendous harm to this agency which only has an abridged staff of 40 people,” Snider said. “I think it’s a tragedy in terms of what this agency does and what we are asked to do more and more of.”
APLS board member and ALGOP chairman John Wahl agreed with Snider’s disappointment in the budget cuts and said he had petitioned his party’s lawmakers to reconsider their positions to no avail.
“I definitely worked hard to communicate with everyone I could on the importance of this board and the value it provides to local communities,” Wahl said.
When reached by phone on Friday, Wahl said any personnel or program cuts made in response to the reduced budget would be strictly administrative and would not affect local libraries.
Gov. Kay Ivey proposed APLS policy changes to restrict access to materials that were deemed “s--ually inappropriate” in a letter addressed to director Nancy Pack in October 2023,
Alabama lawmakers included stipulations within the ETF stating that local libraries would be ineligible for state funding unless policies were updated in accordance to the governor’s proposals.
The board approved strengthened policy changes May 16. Wahl presented a rewritten amendment originally offered by board member Amy Minton which stemmed from proposals from the conservative “parental rights” organization, Eagle Forum of Alabama.
Wahl said he believed the changes brought more clarity and guidance to Ivey’s proposal, which many had suggested were overly vague. Wahl’s amendments includes:
— Approve written guidelines that ensure library sections designated for minors younger than the age of 18 remain free of material containing obscenity, s----ally explicit or other material deemed inappropriate for children or youth. Age-appropriate materials regarding religion, history, biology or human anatomy should not be construed to be against this rule. [who decides what is age appropriate? The governor? The lawmakers? The trained LIBRARIANS?]
— Approve written selection criteria for minors that prevents the purchase or otherwise acquiring of any material advertised for consumers younger than the age of 18 which contain obscenity, s---ally explicit or other material deemed inappropriate for children or youth. Age appropriate materials regarding religion, history, biology or human anatomy should not be construed to be against this rule.
— Approve written guidelines that establish library cards for minors younger than the age of 18 must require parental approval before a minor’s card is permitted to checkout materials from the library’s adult sections.
The policy also now requires “materials selection policies, including selection criteria for minors and how they are safeguarded from s---ally explicit or other material deemed inappropriate for children or youth.”
“One of the big issues for me with the APLS has been that we listen to constituents. One of the key aspects of that is that we safeguard our children’s sections and that there are not s---ally explicit materials that children can accidentally run into. I think the board accomplished that,” Wahl said.
Wahl said “s----ally explicit” would be defined using Alabama’s anti-obscenity statutes and local library boards and the APLS would determine what constituted “other materials deemed inappropriate for children.”
Snider said he had believed these efforts had been in accordance with lawmakers wishes which made the budget cuts a particularly disheartening end to what had already been a turbulent year for public libraries in the state.
“The tragedy is that we had recommended the changes that the governor requested. We thought we were being responsive to those requests,” Snider said. “Nine percent is a big cut that will have long range negative effects to what we can provide.”
In Limestone County, Alabama, a resident and her friend at the local Bible college who have been comparing books in the library to "loaded guns" are demanding the state not fund that library until they have a "legitimate board" (aka, a board that will ban all of the books they do not like).The so-called professor equates books with LGBTQ+ characters to pr0n, refers to them as "trash" and claims giving kids access to these books is like giving them a loaded gun. Color me confused?! You can't kill someone with a book.
https://www.enewscourier.com/news/loc...
Elizabeth Stewart and Huntsville Bible College undergraduate professor Roy Mattson addressed the APLS Board Thursday, May 16, and requested that no state funding be distributed to what they described as an “illegitimate board.”
Stewart and Mattson previously addressed the Limestone County Commission in January about issues concerning the wave of library book challenges that swept through the state last year. The focus of the challenges largely focused on removing or relocating library books featuring depictions of LGBT characters which Mattson equated to providing children with a “loaded handgun.”
“What we’re doing here is leaving a loaded handgun around for kids to check out trash from the public library,” Mattson said in January. “We’re adults and we’re sitting around saying, ‘Oh, we need to study this for six for months.’ Meanwhile our children are reading p____graphy and homosexual literature in the library.”
Limestone County Commission Chairman Collin Daly told The Courier on Friday, May 17, that he has met with Stewart and several other members of the far-right “parental rights” organization Moms For Liberty on several occasions and the commission passed a resolution in January to “support libraries and parental rights.”
Daly said the commission’s resolution included a request for the Athens-Limestone Library to adopt policies in line with recommendations made by Gov. Kay Ivey in October 2023 which included the following “minimum” actions to be taken:
— Make state aid for local libraries contingent on the adoption of sensible policies to facilitate greater parental supervision of their children.
— Require all expenditures of public funds to the American Library Association be approved by the relevant governing authority in an open, public meeting.
— Reaffirm local libraries’ ability to respond to parental concerns about s--ually explicit or other inappropriate materials.
“I know there’s a group out there, Moms for Liberty, that have spoken to us about it and we’ve had several meetings with them. The biggest thing was that they wanted something included in the bylaws about the books in the library and the governor’s recommendations,” Daly said.
He said the board approved those changes in their most recent meeting and commended the library staff and its director April Wise on their job performance.
“The library itself and April and them do a great job down there. We’re not worried about the healthiness of the library,” he said. “The board has don’t what has been asked of them. They’ve adopted the governor’s recommendations in the last meeting. There’s no books in the library that have an issue. The board has done has done what they needed to do to fix everything,” Daly said.
Stewart and Mattson’s current concerns primarily focused on the current members of the Athens-Limestone Library Board which they said are in violation of the board’s most recently published policy. Before the policy was recently removed from the library’s website it showed that the board was to consist of three appointees from the city of Athens and two from the Limestone County Commission and members would be limited to two terms.
Currently, all five members have been appointed by the city and several have served far beyond the stated policy’s term limits.
“This is an illegitimate library board for all of these reasons,” Stewart said. “I’m asking that [the APLS] put a hold on state funding until a legitimate board can be placed. A lot of policy decisions are happening and they are being made by a board that is not legitimate.”
Athens city attorney Shane Black said the policy which has been removed was far outdated and provided an overview of the history of the board’s appointments. According to Black, the County Commission was only involved in board appointments for a brief period from June to September 2001 when both bodies adopted resolutions to create the Public Library Authority of the city of Athens with all appointments to be made by the Athens City Council.
In 2003, the city attempted to revert to a jointly appointed library board, but the commission opted not to act of those attempts. The city officially re-established the five-member municipal board in in 2009 and dissolved the Public Library Authority of the city of Athens in 2010. Black said each member serves four-year terms but the city has never imposed term-limits but rejected claims of the board’s autonomy.
“The board’s members may serve as many or as few terms as the city council determines. The library board has no control over who is appointed to the board, and so it cannot set term limits for its members,” Black said in an email sent to The Courier.
Daly confirmed Black’s overview and acknowledged the board’s legitimacy. He said since January the commission has been working closely with the city to adopt policies which would provide the county with representation on the library board.
“They did form a joint library board for a while and then the county went back and said hey y’all [the city] just handle all that and we’ll give money to it. It’s been kind of back and forth over the years but we’ve all got a good working relationship on it,” Daly said.
Stewart said an Alabama House Representative had requested an opinion from Attorney General Steve Marshall to address her concerns, but had received a response which said any requests would need to come from the city of Athens, Limestone County or the APLS.
Wahl motioned to request an opinion through the APLS, but chairman Ronald Snider said, that due to the board’s advisory role he didn’t feel it was it’s place to insert itself into local affairs. Instead, the board approved to advise both the city and county to request their own opinions from the AG’s office.
“If there are questions from the public and everything has been done in accordance with the rules and the applicable laws then there’s no reason not to seek an attorney general’s opinion,” Wahl said when reached by phone Friday. “Hopefully that might help ease the minds of concerned citizens if there are people who have questions or do not understand some of the changes that have taken place.”
Daly said based on the county’s discussions with the city up to this point that he didn’t believe an AG’s opinion would be necessary. He said the process of revamping the library board has been mutually amicable but would take time.
Three St. Tammany Parish (LA) board members have sued the parish council and a district representative for their unfair removal and for violations of the First Amendment.https://lailluminator.com/2024/05/20/...
Three St. Tammany library board members removed after a years-long fight over book content are suing the parish council and one of its district representatives in an attempt to block their removal.
Their federal lawsuit comes after the parish council voted earlier this month to replace five of the six members of the St. Tammany Library Board of Control, a volunteer body that oversees the parish library system. Their removal culminated months of contentious fights.
Conservative activists in the parish, led by the far-right St. Tammany Library Accountability Project, attempted to ban more than 150 books it deemed s---ally explicit. Most of the titles challenged have LGBTQ+ themes. The library board repeatedly refused to limit access to the books, rejecting arguments that the books were s----ally explicit. Their refusal put them crosswise with the new, more conservative parish council that took office earlier this year.
The three board members — Bill McHugh, Anthony Parr and Rebecca Taylor — are suing the St. Tammany Parish Council and Councilman David Cougle, a founder and attorney for the Accountability Project who led the charge to remove the members. The plaintiffs have asked the court for a temporary restraining order on their removal, which would allow them to stay in their positions while the lawsuit plays out.
In a statement, the plaintiffs emphasized the lawsuit was undertaken by them as individuals, not as an official action by the library board. They also noted Kelly LaRocca, the parish’s library director, is not involved in the suit.
Cougle has not yet responded to a request for comment for this report.
On May 4, the parish council voted to replace five board members, ostensibly because the council had discovered the board was not serving in staggered terms, as required by state law. But rather than staggering the current board members, the council used the opportunity to remove board members that resisted book restrictions.
That violated the First Amendment rights of the ousted board members, the plaintiffs charge.
“Plaintiffs were engaged in constitutionally protected activity when they spoke and acted at Library Bord [sic] meetings, as well as when they spoke out on matters of public concern such as the controversy over books with LGBTQ themes and characters, the presence or absence of s--ually explicit material in libraries, whether or not certain materials available in libraries is ‘p----graphy’ or constitutes ‘obscenity,’ and whether and how minors have access to such materials,” the lawsuit reads.
The lawsuit alleges the concern over staggered terms was an “obvious ploy” used to retaliate against their protected speech and their refusal to restrict access to books.
“Supreme Court precedent has focused “not only on the role of the First Amendment in fostering individual self-expression but also on its role in affording the public access to discussion, debate, and the dissemination of information and ideas,” the lawsuit says. “And it has recognized that ‘the State may not, consistently with the spirit of the First Amendment, contract the spectrum of available knowledge.’”
The suit has been filed in federal court for the Eastern District of Louisiana. If the court opts to grant a temporary restraining order, the existing library board would be allowed to continue serving pending the outcome of the lawsuit, which seeks to permanently block the council’s resolution to remove members.
“Preventing the Parish Council from engaging in unlawful patronage dismissal will preserve the integrity and independence of the Library Board, rather than leaving it subject to the political whims of the Parish Council,” the lawsuit says.
The lawsuit also says allowing the members to continue serving would continue to protect the public’s constitutional rights to receive information by maintaining their access to library books.
A superintendent at Orion High School (Iowa) made a teacher remove Fun Home from classroom instruction following a single parental complaint calling it "p____graphy." The book was being used in a dual credit course with the local community college.[It IS an adult graphic memoir but if it's for college credit than the assigned reading will be an adult text and not one geared for kids so why is the parent complaining?]
https://12ft.io/proxy
At Wednesday's school board meeting, English teacher Kielsey Rentfro-Cline argued passionately in favor of the book and in support of her colleague, Andrew Lister, who taught the book. Superintendent Joe Blessman had Lister remove it from the class curriculum.
Rentfro-Cline noted the book was part of a syllabus approved by Black Hawk College and said it is about a young woman and her father and his closeted homosexuality.
She said a parent had called the work "p-----graphy," and both Blessman and high school principal Nathan DeBaillie were under pressure to encourage Lister to remove it from the curriculum. She said this violated the policy of guaranteed academic freedom of both the college and the school's district. She went on to say there are a number of LGBTQ students at Orion who are "getting the message sent they are not worthy of representation."
She said making the decision to ban the book based on the drawings was like taking three notes out of a song and making a judgment about an opera. She expressed concern that students were missing out on an opportunity for rich critical thinking by caving in to a small but loud group of citizens who weren't content with not choosing to read a book themselves but wanting to make sure no one could read it.
Blessman said the decision had been his, and he said it wasn't the content of the book, but strictly the graphics that he struggled with. He expressed support for Lister, noting the community is well aware of what a great job he does in the classroom.
Orion Education Association co-president Tara Miller said she had both academic concerns and chain-of-command concerns about the banning.
High school senior Eleanor Wilbur said she understood the book was for mature audiences, but the college course was meant for mature audiences.
High school graduate Kian Pfannenstiel said the book was not in any manner p____graphic and banning it was indirectly accusing Lister of poor professionalism, which was folly. His mother Laura Pfannenstiel noted "12 Years A Slave" also had some sexual content but had important topics for kids to learn about and Fun Home was the same, albeit a different subject matter but equally as important.
Lister spoke as well, saying the whole experience made him question himself as a teacher.
"Many queer students visited my classroom every single day since this has happened looking for guidance," he said.
He also said he was upset the book was removed and felt it had gone against the chain-of-command and academic freedom.
Mod
VERY scary stuff here
https://literaryactivism.substack.com...-..."
Hmm, the librarians should either join the ALA on the sly or they should get friends or family members to join on their behalf!!!
Manybooks wrote: "Hmm, the librarians should either join the ALA on the sly or they should get friends or family members to join on their behalf!!!."It doesn't quite work that way. I'm not a member because it's too expensive. You can get an affiliate membership if you want to but it's not the same as full membership and even if someone else joins, you can't attend conferences and professional development classes and the library doesn't get the grant money.
Implementing policies in schools that came following parental complaints about inappropriate books in schools has lead to more books being challenged in Franklin County Schools (VA).https://12ft.io/proxy
A new policy was put in place late last year by the Franklin County School Board to review books in school libraries deemed by some to be objectionable. The change has slowed an onslaught of requests to remove books that began last year.
The Franklin County division is one of many school systems across the country that has seen an influx of requests to remove certain books from library shelves. Locally, those requests came from a concerned group of citizens including Boones Mill resident Keith Johnson.
Johnson, a retired Roanoke City police officer, said he has experience seeing youth who have been exposed to questionable material as a youth crimes investigator. He believes the content in the books he has challenged is not only unnecessary, but the s--ual content could be used by p----philes to groom children.
“Our children should not be exposed to that,” Johnson said of the content in the books he challenged this past October.
[The usual suspects]
The books cover a wide variety of themes and styles. At least one book on the list, “Check, Please!: #Hockey,” is more closely identified as a graphic novel.
There was also one additional book challenged by Johnson that was later confirmed not to be in any county school library.
When the new policy was put in place in December, the school reviewed each of the books under the tenets of the new policy, according to Superintendent Kevin Siers. The process takes around 10 hours for each book, he said, with longer books taking up to 22 hours to review.
“After the school board approved the new policy last fall, the high school librarians were asked to go back and evaluate the challenged books from the first semester under the tenets of the revised policy which includes making decisions on whether or not materials are age appropriate in addition to evaluating whether or not they’re s---ally explicit as defined by state code,” Siers said.
In the review of the 14 books, Siers said the committee first evaluated their circulation and decided to remove four books not checked out by students in the past five years. Those included “The Bluest Eye,” “Lucky,” “Tricks,” and “Out of Darkness.”
The novel “Push” was removed from school shelves due to content following the review, Siers said. Two other books, “All Boys Aren’t Blue” and “Beloved,” were moved to a newly created YA+ section which limits the books to students 17 years of age or older unless they are given permission from parents.
The seven other books challenged by Johnson remain on school shelves following the committee review.
The library book use includes high school and middle school students.
The review process for the 14 books differed slightly from the new book review policy due to those books already being challenged before the full policy was in place. The new policy requires multiple stages before a challenged book reaches a review committee.
One critical change in the new policy is only a student, parent or school employee or volunteer are now able to challenge a book. No outside individual or group can challenge a book, but Siers said they are still able to voice their concerns.
Johnson disagrees with the school board decision to not allow citizens to challenge books. While he is a parent, his children are now adults and are no longer in the school system, he said.
“The community has been completely shut out from this,” Johnson said.
For the new school policy, a book challenge first must be taken up by the school’s principal. The principal can meet with the person or persons filing the challenge and decide if substituting the book for other instructional material is appropriate.
If the complainant requires further action, the issue goes to a school review committee including the principal, a library media specialist, two classroom teachers, a parent and/or student and the complainant. The committee will then review the material and decide if it should remain, remain with parent permission to check out or be removed entirely.
If the complainant still has concerns, the challenge is then moved to a division appeal committee. The division appeal committee consists of two school board members, at least two division level administrators, two principals, two teachers, two library media specialists and a parent representative. They will make a final decision on the material based on a two-thirds vote.
Since the new policy has been in place, Siers said two additional books were challenged at the elementary school level. Those two books were resolved at the school level and not appealed to the division appeal committee for possible removal, he said.
Another key detail of the new policy is that any challenged book must be read in its entirety by not only each of the review committees, but also the complainant. Siers said reading each challenged book is a crucial part of the process. It allows individuals to understand the context of the challenged material fully, which he said is essential for interpreting the meaning and intent of the material as well as understanding the author’s message.
“Reading the entire book enables individuals to assess the overall literary or educational value of the work whereas a single passage or chapter may not accurately represent the entirety of the book or its themes,” Siers said.
Another aspect of the new policy is that parents are provided with an email alert when their child checks out any book from the school library. The alert gives the book’s title as well as a photo of the book’s cover.
All parents are automatically signed up to receive an email when their child checks out a book. Parents must fill out an online form if they do not want to receive future notifications.
Johnson said the email notifications do not provide enough details on what is included in the books. Many books may have innocent titles while containing questionable passages inside, he said.
As for questions about reviewing the entirety of the books to see the context of some passages, Johnson said the material in some of the allowed books is inappropriate in any context. He has found that the books contain “extreme, vulgar, s--ually explicit p----graphy” on some pages.
“Our children should not be exposed to that,” Johnson said.
According to Johnson, the American Library Association is sending these books to the schools. He said their goal is to push an agenda and local school media specialists are allowing the books.
Franklin County School Board Chairman Jeff Worley said it is “absolutely false” that media specialists are pushing any sort of agenda. They are members of the community who are serious about their job and are not trying to indoctrinate students, he added.
Worley said many of them are also disheartened to learn they are being accused of trying to harm children. Their goal is to provide material that is challenging as well as appropriate, he said.
“We do not peddle p-----raphy,” Worley said.
Another concern by Johnson is homosexual themes being pushed by the American Library Association. Worley disagreed with that accusation as well, stating their is no push in Franklin County libraries to influence students or change who they are.
“A book does not turn a person into something else,” Worley said. “It just doesn’t.”
Siers said some of the books challenged so far included themes involving minorities or members of the LGBTQ community.
The school’s book review policy in its current form is unacceptable to Johnson. He has voiced his concerns during the public comment period at both the school board and board of supervisors meetings along with a small group of other area residents.
Johnson would like to see the issue of questionable books be taken up by a community group rather than the school system. He said more books need to be reviewed and the school system should not accept books from the American Library Association.
“The way to fix this is to get the community involved,” Johnson said.
When the policy was approved, members asked that it come back for a review in six months which would mean it will be up for discussion at next month’s meeting. Worley said the school board member will look over the policy to see what is and what isn’t working.
Beyond the book policy, Worley encouraged any parent or guardian with a concern about a book or learning assignment to talk to the school. He said they will work to find the best solution for their child.
St. Charles County Library (MO) One of their employees is suing one of the library harassers. Why? Because their appearance became "proof" of LGBTQ+ "indoctrination" during book banning fights.
Critic, church mounted ‘campaign’ targeting St. Charles library employee, suit says
https://12ft.io/proxy
The St. Charles library employee targeted for her makeup and goatee is suing outspoken library critic Rachel Homolak and others for defamation and invasion of privacy, as well as a Maryland Heights church the suit says “urged congregants to take action to oppose persons who are members of the ‘LGBT crowd.’”
Attorneys for Danny Roberson, who works at a branch of the St. Charles City-County Library District, say the actions and false statements spread by Homolak, Grace Church STL and four other individuals have put her in danger, damaged her reputation by falsely accusing her of s---ually targeting children and interfered with her employment by making her the focus of “Homolak’s anti-transgender community engagement activities.”
In the lawsuit, attorneys for Roberson also cite Homolak’s repeated appearances on numerous talk radio shows, where she allowed the hosts, without correcting them, to embellish on the type of clothing worn by Roberson and to accuse Roberson, falsely, of being a p---phile — evidence of her “willful and reckless disregard for the truth.”
And Grace Church, the suit says, helped Homolak and others build a “campaign” targeting Roberson.
The suit says Roberson has suffered anxiety, humiliation, loss of sleep, mental anguish and more from being targeted by Homolak and the others.
None of the defendants could be reached for comment.
Library officials have repeatedly defended Roberson, saying that all library employees adhere to the district’s gender-neutral dress code, which requires business casual attire at work.
The lawsuit is the latest chapter in a yearlong saga that turned the popular library district into a culture-war epicenter. It started last spring, when Homolak went to the Kathryn Linnemann Library Branch in St. Charles with one of her children and saw Roberson working in the children’s section.
Roberson, who uses she or they pronouns, wears a combination of traditionally masculine and feminine clothing, makeup and natural facial hair.
That day last spring, she was seated behind a desk and did not interact with Homolak or her child, the suit says.
In the weeks and months that followed, Homolak made numerous “misstated and exaggerated” claims about Roberson’s appearance that were repeated and embellished, the suit says, falsely claiming that Roberson was dressed in “drag,” fishnet stockings, a corset and high heels at the library.
In those weeks, neither Homolak nor any other person publicly showed photographic evidence at library board meetings of Roberson’s attire that day.
“This attire is really only publicly tolerated in adult settings such as nightclubs and strip joints,” Homolak said during a June 2023 library board meeting, which was attended by more than 350 people.
Roberson’s attorneys, Madeline Johnson and Alexis Pearson, say their client began to fear for her life and physical safety. The library administration offered her paid time off and changed her duties so she no longer worked near the branch’s front entrance.
The suit details months of social media posts, church communications, public statements and radio appearances in which the defendants, primarily Homolak, described Roberson’s appearance as designed to groom, indoctrinate, push her s--ual identity on children and act in a s---ally explicit way around them. They and others accused her of working at the library for that purpose and being a p---phile, the suit says.
Concerns grew when Homolak publicly identified Roberson on social media with a moniker of “Danny the Drag Queen” and encouraged people to visit the library to see Danny when she was at work, the suit says. Then, in late July, a social media post was made that showed Roberson’s upcoming work schedule.
These unfounded accusations put Roberson in danger, the suit says, and motivated a man to visit the library last month and ask to talk to the “guy who works in the children’s section in drag,” saying he wanted to verbally instigate a fight with Roberson so he could then “punch (Roberson) in the face.”
The man, who is not identified in court documents, was intercepted by a library staff member. Roberson had been scheduled to work that day but had called in sick.
Church leaders at Grace Church STL, a nondenominational conservative church based in Maryland Heights, pushed the effort against Roberson, the suit says. In sermons and panel discussions and blog posts, church leaders encouraged congregants to speak out against Roberson and publicly confront people they believed to be sinners, saying “silence is violence.”
The church leadership “sanctioned, supported, aided and abetted Homolak in the dissemination of her accusations,” according to the lawsuit. Both Homolak and defendant Jane Puszkar, a member of the Francis Howell School Board, have attended services at the church, the suit says.
Puszkar, the suit says, accused Roberson at a public library board meeting of s---al misconduct and working at the library to “gain access to children for s---al purposes.” Puszkar’s comments and actions were made as a private citizen with “intentional, malicious conduct toward (Roberson), which was intended to harm (Roberson) as a transgender person,” the lawsuit says.
The lawsuit also names St. Charles resident Vanessa Hagedorn and Chris Barrett, who addressed the county council as a representative of the organization known as “Gays Against Groomers,” a politically far-right organization that has been labeled as extremist by the Southern Poverty Law Center. Another person, only identified as “JW” is also included as a defendant.
In total, the lawsuit says Homolak defamed Roberson 19 times since May 2023, and that she, Puszkar and the leaders of Grace Church STL conspired to target Roberson.
Roberson is requesting a jury trial and asking for compensatory damages.
Homolak now resides in Alabama and is at the forefront of a public campaign there involving the library district in Huntsville over allegations of s---ally explicit books being in the library’s collection.
Ohio-https://www.13abc.com/2024/05/16/bomb...
HOLLAND, Ohio (WTVG) - The bomb squad was called to the Holland Library after a staff member found a “suspicious item” on a bookshelf.
According to an official with the library, the staff followed protocol and notified the police.
Law enforcement officials, including agents with ATF were on the scene for hours before giving the “all clear” around 9 p.m.
No explosives were located. Instead, authorities found that someone has placed a battery with wires attached leading into a book about explosives on a display table.
Holland Police are collecting evidence and handling the investigation.
Elizabethtown Public Library in Mount Joy Township, Pennsylvaniahttps://lancasteronline.com/news/regi...
Three residents — Lori Longenecker, Donna Coble and Danielle Lindemuth, an Elizabethtown school board member — spoke against the Elizabethtown Public Library ever hosting or promoting a Drag Queen Story Hour like the March event canceled at the Lancaster Public Library because of a bomb threat. Longenecker said programs like a Drag Queen Story Hour are intended “to erase the established morals of our society and of course beginning with the children.” Elizabethtown Public Library and Milanof-Schock Library in Mount Joy receive township funds. Longenecker asked the supervisors to hold the libraries accountable in protecting children, since they receive taxpayer money. Lindemuth said funding shouldn’t go to library events that are “inappropriate for minors,” like a Drag Queen Story Hour, but such a program could be hosted for ages 18 and older.
At tTroy Schools (OH), one book will be moved from the middle school to the high school — that's Magical Boy — while Beyond Magenta, a book written for teens, will just be outright banned from the district.https://www.daytondailynews.com/local...
Troy school board bans 2 more books from library; others stay after 3-2 votes
The Troy City Schools Board of Education reviewed nine books in school libraries that a local resident argued should be removed, citing s--ually explicit content.
Superintendent Chris Piper and a school district review committee last fall recommended removing one book completely, limiting a second book only to the high school, and keeping the other seven as-is.
On Monday, Troy’s school board changed two of last year’s decisions from Piper and the committee, making the total number of books to be removed three, instead of one.
Bob Eyink of Troy last summer filed a complaint challenging the books at Troy High School, Troy Junior High School and Van Cleve sixth grade building.
The filing set into motion the district’s written policy for review of instructional materials. The process included forming the review committee that included seven teachers, two librarians, one principal and one central office staff member.
The policy requires the committee to examine the accuracy of the material, plus the appropriateness of the material for the age and maturity level of the students with whom it is being used.
The committee’s recommendations were sent to Superintendent Chris Piper who made the following findings last year:
* “Beyond Magenta” (THS) - This book should be removed from circulation due to the coarse and descriptive language of a s--ual nature.
* “Magical Boy” (TJHS) - This book would be better suited for high school students. It should be removed from junior high circulation.
As of last year, the other seven books challenged would remain where they were in the libraries according to Piper’s decision, under a designation of “this book should not be removed from circulation.”
As of last year, the other seven books challenged would remain where they were in the libraries according to Piper’s decision, under a designation of “this book should not be removed from circulation.”
On Monday, after discussing each book individually, the board voted unanimously to affirm the removal from the high school library of “Beyond Magenta.” It voted 3-2 to reverse the decisions on two books — “Magical Boy” will be removed from the high school library, as will “Some Assembly Required: The Not-So-Secret Life of a Transgender Teen.”
All other votes were by 3-2 on motions to either affirm the superintendent decision.
Eyink spoke briefly before the board discussion. He said he was speaking, “On behalf of other parents and community who said books are adding to s---ualization of our children and adding to the confusion and mental health problems of our youth.”
Board members indicated they had read the books or excerpts from them.
Board members Levi Fox and Sarah Davis voted for removal of all nine of the books. Board member Ben Redick joined Fox and Davis in the votes to remove “Magical Boy” and “Some Assembly Required.” But Redick voted with board members Sue Borchers and Theresa Packard to keep the remaining six books.
Borchers, Packard and Redick often referred to the rationale offered by the committee on whether the books were appropriate for the age group of students using a particular library.
Packard said she “would let her child read any of these books.”
Borchers, in discussing “Pumpkin: This Year’s a Drag,” said the main emphasis was on “not bullying, accepting people as they are.”
Board members who wanted to remove the books also gave reasons.
“I would like to note that not one of the reasons that I have given has been anything about transgenderism. It has been about s--ual activity or some other item,” Fox said. Other concerns aired were profanity, age-appropriate material and s--ual content.
“This is not a conservative or liberal viewpoint,” Davis said. “This is strictly for the mental health and health of these children.”
During comments, school officials were asked if parents could request that their children not be allowed to check out certain books.
“If any parent wants to notify the district not to check out, we can do that,” Piper said. “We believe the parents should be informed of what their children read.”
QNPoohBear wrote: "Civil rights complaint filed against Cobb County Schools over book removalhttps://www.fox5atlanta.com/news/civi...
The complaint was filed Monday ..."
Yet they're still banning books
Cobb Schools (GA) has removed yet another book for "review."
https://www.mdjonline.com/news/educat...
The Cobb County School District has pulled another book from the shelves of its school libraries as Superintendent Chris Ragsdale continues to defend the book removal process against a civil rights complaint filed with the U.S. Department of Education.
“The Summer of Todd Owen” by Tony Abbott is the latest title being considered for a ban from Cobb Schools, a district spokesperson confirmed.
“The Summer of Owen Todd is currently going through the District review process and, as the superintendent has stated numerous times, if any book includes s---ally explicit content, it will go through the review process. If, upon review, a book is confirmed to include s---ally explicit content, it will be removed from our schools,” the district’s statement reads.
It is not among the 25 other books that have been removed in neighboring Marietta City Schools which Ragsdale announced in January would also be pulled from his district’s school libraries.
This puts the total count of books that Ragsdale has targeted at 26, though he told the MDJ in April that only seven books had been permanently banned thus far.
At Thursday night’s school board meeting, Ragsdale dedicated a chunk of his comments to addressing a complaint filed Monday by the National Women’s Law Center with the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights.
The complaint stated that the district practiced “discriminatory censorship” in selecting which books to ban, targeting both LGBTQ+ people and racial minorities.
“I regret, once again, that a fair amount of our school district’s time and effort is consumed by responding to — quite frankly — lies spread by an out-of-state political action group attempting to impose their agenda onto our children and into our schools,” Ragsdale said.
Though Ragsdale mentioned that the first books pulled from the district in August — “Flamer” and “Me and Earl and the Dying Girl” — were banned after the school district was notified they were in catalogs, he did not mention that the complaint came from the New York-based conservative blog “Libs of TikTok.”
The superintendent went on to criticize the work of the National Women’s Law Center in advocating for transgender youth.
“The National Women’s Law Center (is) a Washington D.C.-based political action organization, whose efforts in Georgia have most recently been devoted to legally and politically pressuring schools to allow male-to-female transgender students to compete in girls’ sports and have access to girls’ locker rooms,” Ragsdale said.
Ragsdale has given impassioned speeches reaffirming his commitment to ridding the district of all “s---ally explicit” content at several recent board meetings. More than once, he has called the process a “battle between good and evil,” and in April, made links between the failure to remove the books from children’s hands to child s-x trafficking and childhood s---al abuse.
In last month’s remarks, Ragsdale referenced the documentary “Quiet on the Set,” which details alleged childhood s--ual abuse against Nickelodeon stars. Then, the superintendent stated it was paramount that people learn from these stories to understand the connection between abuse and the s---alization of children.
“One of the lessons of the documentary was the importance of protecting children from being viewed as s--ual objects, as it was often a precursor to s--ual abuse,” Ragsdale said.
Jeff Hubbard, president of the Cobb County Association of Educators, told the MDJ that the book was submitted for review by school staff and is an example of the removal process working well.
“A concern was raised at the school level,” Hubbard said. “... In that regard the process worked.”
But Hubbard added that fear rose among media specialists at the 10 schools where the book was identified when principals came into the libraries demanding copies of the book to turn over to the district.
While Ragsdale has stated that he is not “after anyone’s job,” Hubbard said librarians are still afraid of retaliation if they are found with a book that is later deemed “s---ally explicit.”
He cited the fact that the district failed to guarantee they wouldn’t retaliate against teachers for allowing students to participate in the state-wide Helen Ruffin Reading Bowl in the fall of 2023, which media specialists suspected included books that district leadership would deem inappropriate.
The 10 members of the event’s steering committee voted unanimously to withdraw from the Bowl in fear of losing their jobs.
Moore County Schools (NC) are being sued by PFLAG for Title IX violations following the district's decision to ban and put restrictions on LGBTQ+ books.https://sandhillssentinel.com/mcs-fac...
PFLAG of Southern Pines, a newly formed LGBTQ+ group, and Public School Advocates (PSA) recently filed an official Title IX complaint against Moore County Schools with the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights.
Title IX of the Education Amendments is a federal law against sexual discrimination in schools. Any school receiving federal funding must abide by Title IX.
“Moore County Schools is discriminating by targeting LGBTQ+ content for censorship and removal from instruction, from the classroom and from libraries,” the complaint said. “In doing so, MCS is creating a hostile educational environment. Additionally, MCS has failed to meet its duties under Title IX by not accurately posting the required information, failing to respond to both informal reports and formal complaints of sex discrimination, and failing to recognize that LGBTQ+ students, families, and staff are protected.”
On Aug. 5, 2023, the school board posted the Parents’ Bill of Rights on the board’s website. It allows parents to supervise reading selections, view assessments, make religious exemptions, and view data collection on their children.
On Jan. 16, the board removed books and placed restrictions on others containing LGBTQ+ content.
“Thirteen Reasons Why” by Jay Asher covers a girl with same-sex parents. The board banned it for K-fifth-grade students and made it available for grades nine through 12 with no restrictions. Grades six through eight may view the book with parental permission. The story shows the impact of bullying when a girl dies by suicide.
“The concerns of PFLAG (Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays) and the LGBTQ++(Lesbian, Bisexual, Gay, Transgender, Queer++) communities are being taken seriously,” School Board Chair Robert Levy wrote in an email to Sandhills Sentinel on May 15. “I cannot comment directly on pending litigation. However, the public should be assured that Moore County Schools is dedicated to the excellent education of all students regardless of their station in life.”
After the board passed the new Parents’ Bill of Rights in 2023, the new chapter of PFLAG, a national organization, formed because, according to Erica Street, president of the Southern Pines PFLAG chapter, October emails to the school superintendent went unanswered, and an anonymous group of educators wanted the banned books replaced.
“Imagine being a teacher and having to remove books with gay parents,” Street said about anonymous LGBTQ+ educators afraid of backlash.
Street said PFLAG wants to force the board to uphold Title IX nondiscrimination laws.
“It is discrimination. This is not a war against teachers or schools. It is against our own district and asking teachers and admin to discriminate for them,” Street said about banning LGBTQ+ books from K-4 grades.
“We received vague answers that deflected blame to principals,” Street said about the board banning books with same-sex parents, transgender characters, and LGBTQ+ content. “My oldest child is transgender, and there is nothing obscene about having two moms or two dads.”
On May 15, the school district released a statement about the filed complaint and “its commitment to equality.”
Moore County Schools were advised on Tuesday, May 14, by PFLAG Southern Pines that it was filing a Title IX complaint against the District with the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR),” said Moore County Schools. “The District has not yet received anything from OCR. The District did receive a copy of the Complaint from PFLAG on Tuesday, May 14.
“Several weeks ago, PFLAG filed a separate complaint with the District, which has been under review. PFLAG was advised in writing on May 2, 2024, that its concerns were being considered, that the complained of guidelines were undergoing legal review, and that the District would be back in touch once that review was completed.
“The Moore County Board of Education adopted Policy 5416: Parents’ Bill of Rights on April 17, 2023. Moore County Schools recognize the equality and rights of all persons and seek to ensure that all students, teachers, administrators, and other school employees respect the dignity, rights, and differing opinions of others.
“Our legal counsel will address the OCR Complaint.”
Street said she reached out to the school board for the Title IX coordinator, and when she made contact, she was told the board was following the law.
Huntington Beach (CA) book ban divides communityhttps://spectrumnews1.com/ca/la-west/...
The Council’s main chamber, along with two overflow rooms, were packed with people, many of whom were there to speak out against any privatization of the Huntington Beach Public Library system. The seven-member Council was voting on whether or not to put the question of privatization to a public vote in November — the conservative majority Council did not vote to put the question to the public on the ballot. It’s the latest in a number of legislative actions that have been focused on Huntington Beach’s Public Library system.
Briana Lee, 18, attended the City Council meeting and gave public comment. She believes the Council is attempting to exert control over the library system.
“By refusing to let the citizens of Huntington Beach vote on this measure, you are limiting our political participation and destroying a central pillar of our American Democracy,” she said at the podium when speaking to the Council.
“I think it’s important that the library remains a place for intellectual curiosity,” Lee said, speaking outside the Council chambers.
Late last year, the Council introduced and approved a resolution to form a parental advisory board would determine which books were appropriate in the library. The board members are appointed by the Council members. At the time, many saw it as an overstep by the Council. Many of the books that have caused concern for some members of the Council are focused on sexuality or contain content that is s---al in nature.
Lee sees the approach to restrict access to certain books in the library as misguided.
“There are a lot of ideas in the books that they are trying to relocate that aren’t harmful and are just trying to help people understand their bodies or sexuality. I don’t think they are political [the topics],” Lee said.
But the mayor of Huntington Beach, Gracey Van Der Mark, vehemently disagrees.
“As adults, it’s our responsibility to do what we can to protect children, and I find it troubling that adults think this is OK. If you think it’s OK for your family, fine, you can check these books out for your family. It shouldn’t be in the children’s section,” the mayor said.
The mayor also disagrees with the description of the book restrictions as a book ban.
“It’s a reclassification for these books, cataloging, because they are s---ally inappropriate for children,” Van Der Mark said.
Carol Daus is a board member with Friends of the Huntington Beach Public Library. She said the Council’s actions have gone too far. Some of the books that have been moved, because of the new guidelines and restrictions, include picture books and books on puberty and development.
“In the case of a family they know what’s best for their children, I don’t think anyone wants other people with different religious beliefs, political ideologies, telling them what their family should have access to in a public library,” Daus said.
For Lee, libraries and the books held within them are an essential part of life and learning in Huntington Beach, and she doesn’t want that to change.
“It’s important to be exposed to different ideas because that can help us grow as individuals and help us become more empathetic towards each other,” Lee said.
Arkansas"The 18 plaintiffs challenging an Arkansas law that would alter libraries’ processes for reconsidering materials asked a federal judge Wednesday to make his temporary injunction of the law permanent, according to court documents."
https://arkansasadvocate.com/2024/05/...
Plaintiffs seek permanent injunction of Arkansas’ blocked library obscenity law
Crawford County defendants again ask to be dismissed from the case; federal judge in a separate library-related lawsuit denied the same defendants’ similar motion
The 18 plaintiffs challenging an Arkansas law that would alter libraries’ processes for reconsidering materials asked a federal judge Wednesday to make his temporary injunction of the law permanent, according to court documents.
Sixteen of the plaintiffs sued the state and Crawford County in June over Act 372 of 2023, which would create criminal liability for librarians who distribute content that some consider “harmful to minors” and give local elected officials the final say over the availability of challenged materials.
Two residents of Crawford County, where the local library system segregated LGBTQ+ children’s books in response to public outcry, joined the suit in February.
U.S. District Judge Timothy Brooks temporarily blocked the two challenged portions of Act 372 in July, three days before the law went into effect. The case is scheduled for trial in October.
The blocked Section 1 of Act 372 would have put librarians at risk of being charged with a Class D felony for “knowingly” distributing “obscene” material or informing others of how to obtain it. Knowingly possessing obscene material would risk conviction of a Class A misdemeanor.
The other blocked provision, Section 5, would have given city and county elected officials the final say over whether a book challenged on the basis of appropriateness can remain on library shelves or should be relocated to a place minors cannot access.
Brooks wrote in his 49-page ruling that the two sections were too vague and could lead to arbitrary interpretation and “content-based restrictions” that violate the First Amendment.
A 2003 state law banned displays of reading material deemed “harmful to minors,” a phrase included in Act 372. Then-Gov. Mike Huckabee signed the 2003 law; his daughter, Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders, signed Act 372 in March 2023.
The Arkansas Supreme Court struck down the previous law in 2004, partially basing the ruling on the fact that the law applied broadly and equally to all minors regardless of age and maturity, and Brooks upheld this precedent in his ruling.
The plaintiffs reiterated many of Brooks’ statements in Wednesday’s motion and in a brief supporting the motion. They said a permanent injunction via summary judgment is appropriate because “there are no factual issues that prevent final resolution of this matter.”
“Sections 1 and 5 restrain public libraries and booksellers in Arkansas from making available constitutionally protected books and other materials to their patrons and customers, which burdens the rights of those individuals to read and to receive information,” the motion states.
The motion included several declarations of support from librarians throughout the state who are not plaintiffs...
The case’s defendants are the prosecuting attorneys in each of Arkansas’ 28 judicial districts, as well as Crawford County and its county judge, Chris Keith.
On Wednesday, the attorneys representing the Crawford County defendants filed a motion asking Brooks to dismiss the case against them alone. They filed a similar motion in July, claiming the plaintiffs did not have standing to sue them. Brooks denied the July motion, ruling that the county and its county judge will be responsible for implementing Act 372 if it goes into effect and if appeals of challenged material reach the county government.
Wednesday’s motion repeated the defendants’ assertion that the plaintiffs could not sue them, especially since “plaintiffs seek a statewide remedy” and “Crawford County is not tasked with statewide enforcement of Act 372,” according to court documents.
The Crawford County Library System created “social sections” of LGBTQ+ children’s books at its five branches several weeks before Act 372 was filed as a bill in the Arkansas Legislature, so the two issues are unrelated and the plaintiffs’ case against Crawford County is moot, the motion states.
Attorney General Tim Griffin’s office, representing the state defendants, filed a brief Wednesday in support of the Crawford County defendants’ motion.
The three plaintiffs are suing not only Crawford County and Keith but also the library board and Eva White, the system’s former director who reassumed the role on an interim basis from February 2023, upon Grzymala’s resignation, to January 2024.
In their May 2023 complaint, the three mothers of minor children who are library patrons called the social sections “unlawful censorship” based on “an extreme and malevolent view of the Bible.” This violates the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment, which prohibits government entities from favoring an establishment of religion, the plaintiffs claimed.
In August, they asserted that Brooks’ temporary injunction of the two challenged sections of Act 372 supported their case. U.S. District Judge P.K. Holmes denied their request for a temporary injunction in September.
On Thursday, Holmes denied the two defendants’ request to dismiss the case. The defendants again asserted that the plaintiffs had no standing to sue, but Holmes wrote that the plaintiffs have established their standing on First Amendment grounds.
Holmes also denied the defendants’ motion to dismiss an expert witness called by the plaintiffs, library and information science professor Dr. Daniel Joudrey. The defendants claimed Joudrey’s expertise on library cataloging would be unhelpful, but Holmes disagreed.
“The central issues and disputes in this case concern Defendants’ library cataloging practices, whether or to what extent those practices interfere with Plaintiffs’ First Amendment right to access information, and how (if at all) the Court should order Defendants to modify those library cataloging practices,” Holmes wrote.
Additionally, Holmes granted a motion from the plaintiffs to supplement their case with the Crawford County Library’s material selection policy.
The policy in question, according to court documents, includes “the Library Bill of Rights of the American Library Association.
Dover school officials (PA) have also been meeting with anti-LGBTQ+, right-wing political action groups.Paywalled
https://www.yorkdispatch.com/story/ne...
OregonA recall petition has been circulated against a Seaside City Councilor who has been trying to get "inappropriate" books removed from Seaside Public Library (OR).
https://www.dailyastorian.com/news/lo...
A recall petition has been filed against City Councilor Steve Dillard over his call for age restrictions on books at the Seaside Public Library.
R.J. Marx, a former editor of the Seaside Signal and South County reporter for The Astorian, filed the petition on behalf of Freedom to Read Seaside. Marx’s wife, Eve, serves on the Library Board.
“This is an outside movement,” Marx said of the push for book restrictions. “It’s a national movement, he’s adopted it. And for whatever reason, it does seem to be something that’s happening around the country. And what’s really alarming, I think, is that it puts the local community in the position of upholding the law and American values and the First Amendment and our Constitution overall.
“It’s a very important issue, and that’s why I stepped forward on this and feel so passionately about it.”
The petitioners have 90 days to collect 112 signatures for a recall, according to the city. If the required signatures are gathered — and Dillard declines to resign — a recall election in Ward 1 would be held.
Since last fall, Dillard has raised questions about the library several times at City Council meetings and has said the library provides s--ually explicit material to minors.
A request by residents to reconsider two children’s books over content concerns was rejected by the Library Board in January.
The City Council held a work session in April to discuss the library’s policy manual and other related issues.
Jessica Greenlee, of Freedom to Read Seaside, said she and others met with Dillard to discuss their feelings about the proposed policy changes at the library. She said they agreed that if he did not hear that concerns were coming from a large segment of his constituents, they would move to recall.
“I was actually really hoping that would not happen because we’re a small town and everyone who serves on these boards and commissions are volunteers,” Greenlee said. “And so that’s not an easy thing to begin with.
“He did not take the opportunity to change his perspective or to share that he’d heard what we’d had to say, or acknowledge it in any way that was productive.”
Dillard has been critical of The Astorian’s coverage of the debate over library policies. While he did not respond to a request for comment about the recall petition, he told the newspaper last week that people in the community wrongly believe he was behind the requests for reconsideration of the two children’s books.
In a memo in advance of the work session in April, Dillard wrote that he was “approached by residents who had concerns about the content of books for children in our library. After learning from city staff about our library reconsideration process, I informed these residents of the process; some of these residents then submitted requests to the library for the reconsideration of two books from the children’s section.”
Dillard wrote that he began exploring the topic “and I realized that not only are we providing s---ally explicit books to minors, but we are promoting them as well. Out of all of the things that our library does so well I believe this practice is wrong, so I am asking our City Council to consider whether we should continue to provide sexually explicit material to minors in our library or whether we should impose some restrictions on this access.”
Higley Unified School District (AZ) heard complaints this week over the use of Nineteen Minutes for a class assignment. https://www.gilbertsunnews.com/news/b...
Bob Parrish aired his concerns publicly before the Governing Board May 8. Of the five books in question, he singled out one in particular for its “extremely s---ally explicit” content – “Nineteen Minutes” by Jodi Picoult.
“Studies have found discussing and reading this content can normalize these deviant behaviors,” said Parrish, who read aloud one of the objectionable passages from the book. “Introducing this into our schools only exacerbates the moral decline of our youth.
“Schools should focus on the basics and keep the content appropriate.”
“Nineteen Minutes,” which reportedly has been banned by some 43 school districts, is about a teen who after years of bullying commits a mass school shooting.
Parrish, a retired commander from the Maricopa County’s Sheriff’s Office, and his wife are raising their 17-year-old granddaughter, who is a junior at Williams Field High School.
She came home one day with a permission slip from her English class for the book titles, which also included “Paper Towns” by John Green; “The Perks of being a Wallflower” by Stephen Chbosky; “It’s Kind of a Funny Story” by Ned Vizzini and “The Hate U Give” by Angie Thomas.
These four books also have been banned by some school districts: “Paper Towns” for its use of language and mention of a s-x act; The “Perks of Being a Wallflower” for its topics that include drug use, teenage s--, sexual abuse and abortion; “It’s Kind of a Funny Story” for its content involving teen depression and suicide and “The Hate U Give” for its depictions of racism and anti-police views.
“The assignment required a parent signature but had no content warning for any of the novels,” Parrish said, adding that there were no alternative novels offered.
He said he and his wife became suspicious because they’ve never had to sign a permission slip for their children to read a book. The two then sleuthed out each title and were shocked with their findings.
According to Parrish, his wife met with the English teacher to raise objection to the reading material and she later went and purchased two alternative novels for her granddaughter to read instead.
Parrish then met with the school principal, who he said was unaware of the reading assignment.
“I had him read an excerpt from Nineteen Minutes,” Parrish said later, adding that he told the principal “it’s inappropriate for you guys to be teaching this in school and I’m holding you responsible.”
Two days later the principal called and said that after speaking with “multiple teachers and a director…he felt there was too much good material” in the books and refused to pull them, Parrish said.
“He said the assignment supported a strong reading habit but said nothing about the nasty stuff like what you find in Playboy magazine,” Parrish said.
According to Parrish, the principal also noted that it was an independent reading assignment and that students had a choice.
“To read one of the five books is not a choice,” said Parrish, who also contacted his state senator and representatives about the issue.
Parrish demanded the district revised the permission slips to include more information about the reading material in order for parents to make an informed decision.
Parrish also claimed that the teaching was in violation of House Bill 2495, which was signed into law in 2022. The law prohibits a public school from “referring students to or using any s---ally explicit material in any manner.”
“The book referenced during public comment was not required reading material for 11th grade English students,” district spokeswoman
Jessica Bautista said in an email. “It was presented as one of several options for an assignment, which required parent permission.
“No teachers required the books. What was required was that the students complete an independent reading project. The books were not required but were suggested for an independent reading project. All students had the opportunity to select another novel that was different from those suggested. Parent permission was required for all books, suggested or not.”
The district said that in the 11th grade English Language Arts course, emphasis is placed on reading diverse texts at a more critical level.
That said, the district is considering revising the permission slips to include more details for parents, according to Bautista.
“The district is reviewing policies and procedures associated with independent reading projects and novels,” she said, adding that “Nine [sic] Minutes” will not be recommended moving forward.
Parrish said he was happy that the book was pulled and added that the district needed to better train teachers that these sorts of books lead to “normalization.”
“The more they teach about that stuff, they think it’s OK,” he said.
Six other people at the meeting also took the district to task for the books.
“This assignment featured books that contain s----ally explicit material,” said Tamara Farah, director of Smart Families Network.
According to Farah, under state law “parents are to be granted the opportunity to evaluate whether that content possesses serious educational or literary value for minors.”
“Parental notification and consent were required regarding these books but the school only provided the title and a description that did not include the p----graphic content in the permission slip that went home to parents,” Farah said. “There is no respectable justification for a teacher to present books like this to minors for a reading assignment.
“These books will stir up students s----ally instead of awakening the mind intellectually.”
She cited a study that she said indicated that “early intentional exposure to p-----raphy use in children and adolescence can lead to delinquent behavior, high-risk s--ual behavior and substance abuse.”
“Is that what we want for kids?” Farah said. “Shouldn't students’ minds remain healthy so they can focus on their future aspirations and proficiencies needed to succeed in their careers?”
She urged the board to remove the books from the classroom.
Callie Koons, a registered nurse, said she recently considered switching her children from charter school to an HUSD campus but news about the books made her reconsider.
“I want to send my kids to the public school but these actions leave us with no other choice than to pull our kids out and send them to charter schools or home schools,” Koons said. “Home schooling is becoming so much more popular not because these parents necessarily want to. They don't trust the school systems and they don't feel like they have any other options.”
Koons said that the “last place a child should feel over-s----alized or aroused” is in a classroom.
“Why are we letting books that talk about unhealthy teenage s-x lives and classifying it as literature into our English classrooms?" she asked. “There is a time and place for children to learn about s-x and it isn't from a book about school shootings.”
Koons also referenced studies that showed the detrimental effect on children younger than 18 exposed to “p----graphy.”
“Research indicates that adolescents who consume p---graphy may begin to see it as a realistic representation of s---ual relationships, which can lead to unrealistic expectations and a distorted sense of what constitutes normal,” she said. “There is evidence that repeated exposure to p---graphy can have addictive properties for some individuals. This can lead to issues such as increased anxiety depression self-esteem for example.”
Coons said parents should be able to send their children to school knowing that the district has their best interest at heart and that the material they are being encouraged to read and study are uplifting and thought-provoking.
Donovan Hansen called for the teacher to be fired and the principal reprimanded for allowing the books.
“I pay taxes for the Higley School District,” he said. “We have three children who reside in the Higley School District.
“They will never attend a Higley school unless and until we can rely on administrators to protect children from p----raphic material in school. We’ve removed them and applied their ESA funds elsewhere for this reason.”
The state’s Empowerment Scholarship Accounts gives families up to $7,000 per student to attend a charter, private or home school.
“Higley schools should have a policy preventing students from being given p---graphic material,” Hansen said.
MontanaBillings Public Schools librarians said this week it was ironic they were being recognized for the Pat Williams Intellectual Freedom Award from the Montana Library Association at the same time the school board was considering undercutting their work."
https://dailymontanan.com/2024/05/21/...
Billings librarians speak out on proposed school district changes to book collection procedure
Monday, librarians, parents, teachers and community members lined up to tell school board members to respect students’ rights, the First Amendment, taxpayer dollars, and the expertise of librarians and to oppose changes to a library collection procedure.
The changes — not approved this week — would have added layers of approvals to book purchases, including by the superintendent. They also would have struck out the Library Bill of Rights, including a provision that libraries should challenge censorship and support groups concerned about the free access to ideas.
The conflict pitting parents’ rights against intellectual freedom brings a debate that’s taken place across the country and at the Capitol to the largest school district in Montana.
Parents who are worried about “obscene materials” have raised concerns in Billings this year, and at the meeting Monday, they did so again and called on the school board to follow the law and protect their children.
Holding up what appeared to be a slice of chocolate cake, Sabra Stene said school libraries have plenty of books, and they won’t hurt with more culling of “poop” ingredients from more sets of eyes — “that’s diversity.”
“Keep the manure in the corral. Don’t put it in our schools,” Stene said.
But Denise Grewell, a librarian of 40 years, said a book that had nude drawings and wasn’t an art book had saved a couple of siblings. It had a tip line for children dealing with s---al predators.
Grewell said a girl called the tip line, and she and her sibling were removed from their home. The husband of their mom had been abusing them, she said, but the children were too scared to report it. She said the husband was convicted and sentenced to prison as a result.
“Librarians save lives by handing the right book at the right time to a kid in need,” Grewell said.
Backed by community members, she and other librarians argued the proposed changes would compromise children’s safety, lead to significant delays in librarians’ abilities to buy books that align with new homework assignments, and mean missing out on time-limited book deals for the district.
Opponents of the policy also said the public was given the new procedures at the last minute, on a Friday before a Monday meeting. Plus, they said, it could be a civil rights violation in denying access to students.
One of at least 35 members of the public to comment, Elizabeth Halvorson said it’s always been true that parents and guardians have the right to direct their own child’s reading, and a law the district is analyzing doesn’t affect that right.
A legal analysis reviewed House Bill 234 for the district related to obscenity. (The analysis said confusion around the law exists, but it doesn’t make it more or less possible for a district employee to be convicted of the offense of obscenity.)
But Halvorson said the matter trustees were grappling with in regards to books came from a national group, not from “a reading experience” in Billings.
“This procedure is being reviewed and revised in the context of a national group that has brought its culture wars to Billings,” Halvorson said.
In a Facebook post about the meeting, Moms for Liberty of Yellowstone County urged parents to show support for “those standing against the indoctrination of our children” and oppose “inappropriate s---ual content .... in our public school libraries.”
Some parents in support of changing the way librarians add books and other materials to library collections said the school district should focus on raising low achievement scores for students rather than “gender identity,” and put procedures in place to stop p===graphic and obscene materials from landing in school libraries.
Jessie Browning said taxpayers are assisting librarians in breaking the law by providing obscene material to children, and it needs to stop.
“We strongly support any efforts by the superintendent and others to change current district policy that has allowed this to continue,” Browning said.
At their regular meeting Monday, after much public comment and several failed motions, the school board opted to direct the policy review committee to draft language to update its collection policy to address a recommendation by legal counsel for the board to consider.
Legal counsel Jeff Weldon of Felt Martin said Montana code has long noted library books are selected “subject to approval of the trustees,” but Billings was out of step. He agreed that once the policy was clarified, the board could take up a revised procedure.
Trustee Teresa Larsen said some of the material she heard parents read from at an earlier meeting made her sick to her stomach, but she said small excerpts of a book may not be a fair representation.
Larsen agreed she would not choose some materials as a parent herself, but she said her responsibility as a board member is separate: “Making a decision at a board level for all parents is not something I am interested in doing.”
As it moves forward, community member Jack Hanson urged the board to retain language in the Library Bill of Rights and a Freedom to Read statement, which states reading “is essential to our democracy.” Hanson said removing them would be “frankly un-American.”
Hanson, who identified himself as a proud product of Billings Public Schools, also said if the board approves a new procedure that gives non-librarians the ability to remove material, he and others will insist on knowing exactly what they’ve removed, who authorized the removal, and the reason.
“What staff person is going to perform that work?” Hanson asked.
The procedure related to Billings library materials — where the rubber meets the road — will outline the steps for adding to the collection. Monday, the proposed revision with layers of reviews and drawn out approvals drew the bulk of the opposition from librarians.
The board did not adopt the proposed changes to procedure this week, but revisions may be an agenda item again in the future, and some members of the public urged support for them.
Rep. Lee Deming, a Laurel Republican, told the board it should stick with the revisions being proposed and stick with its guns: “I exhort you to stand your ground.”
The librarians, though, said they have the expertise to manage collections. They said they need to be nimble in responding to students — to help them compare parrot prices or address requests from multilingual students who are English language learners and speak more than 30 different languages.
“Imagine a student asking for a pencil and being told to wait two months?” said librarian Hayley Botnen.
Annie Rice, a librarian and mother, said she knows she’ll need to buy three copies of a certain book because it’s so popular it gets “trashed, and she knows a new nonfiction book about the Nazi occupation of Poland will be popular.
“Did you know middle schoolers are always asking for books about World War II?” Rice said.
She said she won’t be able to buy all of the books the students want because her budget doesn’t allow it, and she suggested the board create fewer barriers to books because students need them and librarians need to respond “in real time.”
“May I suggest you just give me more money?” Rice said.
Tons of news this week. This story is great!
'Under his eye': Student hands superintendent banned book at graduation
During graduation at the Idaho Fine Arts Academy, a student tried handing a copy of "The Handmaid's Tale" graphic novel to the superintendent.
https://www.ktvb.com/article/news/loc...
Three more books banned in Greenville, SChttps://www.wspa.com/news/local-news/...
Three books are being removed from all high schools in the Greenville County School District.
The Greenville County School Board voted to remove three books from its high school libraries despite the fact the committee formed to review the books recommended they stay.
Books titled “Perfect” and “Tilt” by Ellen Hopkins, along with “Empire of Storms” by Sarah J. Maas are being removed from high school libraries in the Greenville County School District.
Board Chair Carolyn Styles said it was clear to the board the three books were not age appropriate for students.
“The books were filled were obscenity, malicious profanity, and graphic s---al content,” Styles said.
One complaint states the book “Perfect” talks about suicide, drugs, racism, rape, as well as questions sexuality.
“I just felt a lot of the things in here were interesting and could provoke other behavior and give you an excuse to do it because I am not perfect,” Representative of Area 22, Lynda Leventis-Wells said. “I am going to tell you; I am not in favor of this book. I will just leave it at that.”
A complaint about the book “Tilt” alleges the book discusses graphic s---al acts.
“The author does not tie up loose ends in any way that is remotely acceptable,” Representative of area 24, Anne Presley said.
Complaints about “Empire of Storms” were similar, suggesting the book could be harmful to minors.
Each book was reviewed by the district material review committee. That committee recommended the books remain in the libraries but the board did not agree.
The board voted 9 – 1, on each book overturning the committee’s recommendations.
The lone vote to keep the books inside the schools was Glenda Morrison-Fair who said she believes parents should make decisions for their children and the policy the school already has in place, which notifies parents of what books are being checked out is perfectly suitable.
According to the school boards discussion, it is believed the person writing complaints to the school district does not have a student at any of the high schools.
“This is something that I need to ponder cause this makes no sense then,” Morrison-Fair said.
At this time Styles says they have not been presented with any other books that are being challenged.
The school district says this year they have received 13 requests for review of instructional material forms, in accordance with the process detailed in board policy.
According to the district, eight books have been through the review process so far. One was removed from all school, one was removed from elementary libraries but not from other levels and six went to the material review committee, which reached a consensus to keep the books in libraries.
Three of those were removed by the board on Wednesday.
How Louisiana librarians are fighting back against book bans https://www.nola.com/gambit/news/the_...
New censors
Citizens for a New Louisiana, and the Facebook account Bayou State of Mind.
Books take center stage again at NHC school board meeting, this time over selections in statewide competition https://portcitydaily.com/local-news/...
North Carolina
NEW HANOVER COUNTY — For 16 years New Hanover County Schools has been involved in the reading competition Battle of the Books. However, some members of the county’s board of education are now speaking out against title selections.
At the board’s May 28 agenda review meeting, a presentation about the Battle of the Books was given. The discussion was an information item on the board’s agenda and no action was taken during the meeting.
BOB encourages reading among K-12 students, with a list of a dozen or so books chosen annually. Its local, regional, and state-wide initiatives invite students to participate in quiz-bowl-like competitions at the elementary-, middle- and high-school levels, to showcase comprehension and test their knowledge.
In the 2023-2024 school year, around 350 New Hanover County students in fourth through 12th grades participated in the program, some making it to regional battles. The elementary team from Bradley Creek Elementary won the regional competition for the second time in the last three years.
Some board members shared testimonials praising the program’s success. Stephanie Walker approved of its inclusion.
Other school board members expressed concern about a perceived lack of content regulation in BOB, Josie Barnhart among them.
“Some of the choices, I question and challenge of why we’re putting this in front of our 9-year-olds,” Barnhart said during the meeting. “One is about a father who’s incarcerated as a murderer. And she finds a letter written by him.”
She’s referring to “From the Desk of Zoe Washington” by Janae Marks, featured on the 2024-2025 elementary student book list.
When asked in an email from Port City Daily why Barnhart deemed the read inappropriate, she skirted the question. [translation: She didn't read the book and doesn't know why it's objectionable except that she saw it on a list of books certain people object to!]
Instead, she clarified: “I openly support a book competition, however my job requires me to also utilize accountability in the district.”
Barnhart’s disapproval was first publicized this month in an op-ed for the Carolina Journal. In the article, she pushes the idea that Battle of the Books utilizes its selections to promote activism among students, particularly by encouraging them to question authority.
“The Battle of the Books content is supposedly highly curated, but my opinion is these titles are intentionally chosen by the political activists at the NCSLMA to influence elementary students,” Barnhart wrote in the op-ed.
In North Carolina, Battle of the Books is managed by the North Carolina School Library Media Association (NCSLMA), a nonprofit that supports, promotes and empowers school librarians. Three NCSLMA committees, for elementary, middle, and high school, make the selections.
Mary Alice Hudson, the NHC schools lead media coordinator, explained at the meeting that when choosing book titles, the committees take into account factors including student grade and reading levels, interests, genres, quality, availability, authoritative reviews, awards, and past book lists. Once finalized, the list of the chosen books are distributed to all North Carolina public libraries and public school libraries to receive copies.
Each NCSLMA committee consists of nine members from different regions of North Carolina, who apply to join. However, anyone can make book recommendations to the NCSLMA, and with a $50 annual fee, anyone that has a job related to the education field can join the association as a member — a matter that board member Pat Bradford raised concerns about during the meeting.
“So anybody off the street could join this organization, start making suggestions on the list of what our kids are going to go to the Battle of Books, and sooner or later, they’re probably going to hit the jackpot,” she said during the meeting. “This seems like a lack of control there. That makes me very concerned from a curriculum standpoint.”
Hudson conceded while it’s true any book can be suggested, being eligible to represent the district or join a committee, who has final say over the selection, is not open to everyone. Additionally, book recommendations are only considered if someone on the committee has read them.
Dawn Brinson, assistant superintendent for technology and digital learning, ensured the board the book-selection process has some teeth to it. She also clarified not all recommendations are automatically chosen for Battle of the Books.
“There’s actually a very thorough, detailed process that the committee does in order to say ‘yes or no, this book is appropriate for the list,’” she said. “And they make sure that the books are for the appropriate age range.”
Stephanie Kraybill took issue with the “tone of the conversation” by some of the school board members.
“That we’re even questioning the Battle of the Books — just kind of seems odd,” she said. “Now we’re saying, ‘We don’t want you to read, you know, books, unless I get to approve them.’”
Port City Daily reached out to the NHCS district to ask if it had received any written complaints by parents regarding BOB selection; an answer was not received by press.
...
Opponents of further regulation on books argue the issue should be left to the discretion of parents. Hudson emphasized during NHCS’s meeting that involvement in the Battle of the Books program is voluntary, allowing students, parents, and the district to collectively determine whether they wish to engage in the reading.
Walker found the solution simple.
“I don’t see a problem here. If a parent doesn’t like the book, they don’t have to get their kid to read it,” she said at the meeting. “I don’t believe in trying to control … other parents’ decisions.”
Texas utterly egregious and unconstitutional! The argument about Steinbeck makes sense in theory but I can assure you I didn't understand the references anyway even after years of CCD and Saturday evening Mass. Like Mark Chancey, I DO advocate for teaching Christianity 101 as a historical subject so students have an understanding of history and literature. https://www.texastribune.org/2024/05/...
Texas education leaders unveil Bible-infused elementary school curriculum
The proposed curriculum overhaul was released a week after the Texas GOP proposed requiring the Bible to be taught in public schools. School districts that opt to use them will get more funding.
Elementary school curriculum proposed this week would infuse new state reading and language arts lessons with teachings on the Bible, marking the latest push by Texas Republicans to put more Christianity in public schools.
The Texas Education Agency released the thousands of pages of educational materials this week. They have been made available for public viewing and feedback and, if approved by the State Board of Education in November, will be available for public schools to roll out in August of 2025. Districts will have the option of whether to use the materials, but will be incentivized to do so with up to $60 per student in additional funding.
TEA Commissioner Mike Morath said the materials are based on extensive cognitive science research and will help improve students’ reading and math scores. In 2019, less than half of students met grade-level standards for reading, and that percentage has declined since the pandemic, based on state standardized test scores.
The new materials have prompted criticism, though. The education news site The 74 first reported the redesign on Wednesday and included excerpts of lesson plans with biblical references. They also reported that a New York-based curriculum vendor, Amplify, opted out of bidding on a contract after the state sought to insert biblical materials, but not other religious texts, into the curriculum. The state education agency rejected those claims, saying multiple religions are included throughout the curriculum. Because of Texas' size, textbooks that are developed for its schools are often used in other states.
Morath told The Texas Tribune on Thursday that religious materials are a “small piece of the content pie.” His office could not quantify what percentage of each grade’s textbook would be devoted to biblical references.
But an initial review of the proposed state textbooks show that religious materials feature prominently, with texts sourced from the Bible as the most heavily used.
“It’s a tiny fraction of the overall fraction — it’s just where it makes sense to do that,” Morath said. “It’s a very small but appropriate fraction.”
The instructional materials were unveiled amid a broader movement by Republicans to further infuse conservative Christianity into public life. At last week’s Texas GOP convention — which was replete with calls for “spiritual warfare” against their political opponents — delegates voted on a new platform that calls on lawmakers and the SBOE to “require instruction on the Bible, servant leadership and Christian self-governance.”
Throughout the three-day convention, Republican leaders and attendees frequently claimed that Democrats sought to indoctrinate schoolchildren as part of a war on Christianity. SBOE Chair Aaron Kinsey, of Midland, echoed those claims in a speech to delegates, promising to use his position to advance Republican beliefs and oppose Critical Race Theory, “diversity, equity and inclusion” initiatives or “whatever acronym the left comes up with next.”
“You have a chairman,” Kinsey said, “who will fight for these three-letter words: G-O-D, G-O-P and U-S-A.”
Mark Chancey, a Southern Methodist University religious studies professor who focuses on movements to put the Bible in public schools, said there is “nothing inherently inappropriate” with teaching the Bible or other religious texts, so long as it’s done neutrally. But he’s concerned by some of the proposed curriculum, including lessons that he said seem to treat biblical stories as “straightforward historical accounts.”
“It serves a civic good for students to be taught about religion,” he said. “But that's different from giving students religious instruction. The question is going to be whether these materials teach about religion, or whether they cross the line into giving religious instruction.”
For example: The curriculum promotes lessons on Leonardo Da Vinci’s “The Last Supper” alongside the Gospel of Matthew, which centers on Jesus’ crucifixion and its atonement for human sin. “These are very strong, central claims of Christian theology,” Chancey said. “And students will have questions about that. How are teachers supposed to respond to those questions?”
It’s not unforeseeable, he said, for those conversations to lead to even thornier areas that are still divisive even among Christians.
If the state education board approves the materials in November, schools will not be required to use them. But a measure approved by lawmakers last year will offer more money to public school districts that do choose to adopt any of the materials.
Some of that content includes a first grade lesson stating the Liberty Bell “reminded [the Founding Fathers] of how God helped free the Hebrew people in the Bible” as well as a fifth grade poetry lesson on “A Psalm of David,” described as “one of the most popular poems ever written.”
Other religions are also included. A second grade lesson highlights the Jewish celebration of Purim. A fourth grade poetry unit includes Kshemendra, a poet from India who “studied Buddhism and Hinduism.”
Some State Board of Education members told the Tribune they had not yet read through the materials and would decide whether or not to approve the content based on standards they’ve already established.
Keven Ellis, a Republican state school board member who lives in Lufkin, said the role of the board is to make sure the materials are appropriate for each grade-level and that they align with the state’s curriculum standards, known as the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills.
“My focus will remain on approving instructional materials that improve outcomes in phonics, language arts and math,” Ellis said.
State curriculum guidelines spell out that “the instructional material should recognize and not contradict that parents have the right to 'direct the moral and religious training' of their children and the duty to support their children’s education.’” Ellis did not respond to inquiries about the religious material.
Staci Childs, a Houston Democrat who sits on the SBOE, said she believes it’s okay to include Biblical references as long as other religions are also introduced to students.
"As a Christian, I think it is okay [to teach the Bible] as long as you’re normalizing the introduction of all religions and all types of mythologies so students have a varied and robust and true depiction of the materials in the text of our past,” Childs said. “To only infuse Bible verses and teachings of the Bible is completely insensitive to all the different types of students we have in Texas and a disrespect to the faiths they may acknowledge.”
.....
In an op-ed published in the Dallas Morning News this week, state Rep. Brad Buckley, R-Killeen, and state Sen. Brandon Creighton, R-Conroe, said the new materials “will provide much needed relief to teachers by eliminating the need to spend dozens of hours outside of the classroom developing curriculum.”
Morath said the materials are designed for Texas students, with references to the state’s geography and industries, as well as Texas-based historical figures like Clara Driscoll, known for her historic preservation work rescuing the Alamo from destruction, decades after the pivotal battle at the former Catholic mission in San Antonio.
“We’ve tried to make it as tightly based on the needs of Texas students as possible,” Morath said.
Soon after the materials were released on Wednesday morning, Gov. Greg Abbott released a statement saying he supported the curriculum.
“The materials will also allow our students to better understand the connection of history, art, community, literature, and religion on pivotal events like the signing of the U.S. Constitution, the Civil Rights Movement, and the American Revolution,” Abbott said in a statement.
When asked directly if Abbott had any role in developing the new content, Morath answered: “I’m not sure any. This was entirely a project of TEA.” Morath added that the governor is keenly attentive to the subject of public education.
“The governor has been very interested in getting back to fundamentals of education for a long time,” Morath said, “and so this is some of the lens that we think about, but he’s not alone in that perspective.”
About 300 people, most of whom are educators, are reviewing all of the instructional materials and will present their feedback to the State Board of Education. TEA did not provide a list of the reviewers but said they were selected by the SBOE.
Members of the public can also weigh in and offer feedback on the materials until August 16 and from there, the materials will go before the state board in November for final approval. If approved, the materials will immediately be available for download.
Chancey, the Southern Methodist University religion professor, said teaching the Bible in any public setting immediately prompts a variety of complicated questions. First among them: Which of the many Bible translations should be used? “The choice of translation brought into the public school has at times proven controversial,” he said.
Meanwhile, Chancey said, the proposed instructions on religious liberty in the original colonies seem to be a “tremendous oversimplification,” failing to note the persecution faced by other religious groups, namely Quakers and early Baptists. Omitting that, he said, misses the real lesson to be learned from studying America’s early settlers: “The dangers of religious favoritism.”
The proposed state textbook calls for excerpts of Martin Luther King Jr.’s “Letter From a Birmingham Jail” to be paired with the Biblical story of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, whose defiance of the Babylonian leader Nebuchadnezzar is cited by King as an example of civil disobedience. And yet, the proposed curriculum does not appear to include any excerpts on the intended audience or a core theme of King’s letter: White moderates and clergy, whom King chastised for critiquing his civil disobedience while remaining “silent behind the anesthetizing security of stained glass windows.”
Morath said the excerpt chosen is the one that would be appropriate for a fifth grader, based on their vocabulary and knowledge-level.
“We would expect students to return to it in deeper and deeper ways,” Morath said. “You have to give him bits of knowledge that build on prior bits of knowledge, and you're steadily giving them more and more and more exposure.”
PennsylvaniaCourt settlement names two Pennridge board members behind book removal
https://www.yahoo.com/news/two-pennri....
Two Pennridge school board members secretly ordered the removal of over a dozen books in 2022 for school libraries, according to a settlement agreement between the district and a parent.
Ricki Chaikin and Jordan Blomgren “ordered staff to remove books from the library” in a legal attestation made by Superintendent Angelo Berrios earlier this month. The settlement also led to other deails showing the district engaged in a cover-up to ban books, and the revelation of which books were removed.
The settlement marks the end of a years-long legal battle between the district and Darren Laustsen, the parent of an elementary school student who first accused the district of “shadow-banning” so-called controversial titles in 2022.
Laustsen believed books were being checked out en masse through non-student library accounts to circumvent a library policy the board passed in September that year.
...
The books ordered removed were:
“Looking For Alaska” by John Green
“What Girls Are Made Of” by Elena K. Arnold
“Sold” by Patricia McCormick
“Lawn Boy” by Jonathan Evison
“Breathless” by Jennifer Niven
“Allegedly” by Tiffany Jackson
“The Haters” by Jesse Andrews
“A Court of Frost and Starlight,” “A Court of Mist and Fury,” “A Court of Thorns and Roses,” and “A Court of Wings and Ruin” by Sarah J. Maas
“Neanderthal Opens the Door to the Universe” by Preston Norton
“The Art of Racing in the Rain” by Garth Stein
Tennessee Lookout: Williamson School Board member balks at “age appropriate” book lawhttps://tennesseelookout.com/2024/05/...
A Williamson County School Board member is questioning the state’s updated law on “age appropriate” school books, calling it an unfunded mandate and likely unconstitutional.
Board member Rick Wimberly, who is not seeking re-election after 13 years, told the Tennessee Lookout that as the Williamson County board tries to adhere to the law, it is finding the measure “impractical.” He made calculations showing if librarians spend 15 minutes each on just 15% of the district’s 600,000 selections, it would take up 30% of their time for the year.
“It’s quite cumbersome, and as our lawyers say, it’s constitutionally suspect. … It’s pretty clear that it is,” Wimberly said.
He expects the law to be challenged in court, even though the Williamson County School Board is trying to put together a policy to meet the requirements.
The House initially approved the bill in April 2023, and Gov. Bill Lee signed the measure sponsored by Republican Rep. Susan Lynn of Mt. Juliet and Republican Sen. Joey Hensley of Hohenwald this April 23 after the House passed amendments adopted by the Senate in March 2024.
It’s a terrible idea, and I think it’s very unfortunate that we’re putting our librarians and teachers in a position where they’re having to work so hard to figure out how they need to interpret this kind of legislation.
– Sen. Heidi Campbell, D-Nashville
The new law is more stringent than the measure passed in 2022 because it targets materials that “in whole or in part” contain nudity or descriptions or depictions of s--ual excitement, s---al conduct, excess violence, or (view spoiler) and are inappropriate for students in K-12 schools. Items deemed “patently offensive” or that appeal to “prurient interest” for age and maturity levels won’t be allowed either.
Schools are required to keep a list of all materials in the library and post it on their website, and school boards must set a policy for reviewing books and other library items.
If a parent raises questions about a book or library material, the school board is required to evaluate the item within 60 days and decide whether it’s appropriate for students who have access to it. Otherwise, a parent or guardian can ask the state’s textbook and instructional materials quality commission to evaluate the item.
....
Critics of the law contend some items approved this year as Tennessee’s official books, such as the Bible and “Roots,” the classic novel written by Alex Haley about his ancestors’ life in slavery, could be removed from school libraries because they are filled with s-- and violence.
Lynn, though, scoffed at opposition, saying the bill requires only that “s---ally explicit” books must be removed.
“It’s a pity they feel there are so many s---ally explicit books in their library that it’s gonna be an unfunded mandate for them,” Sen. Susan Lynn said.
She contended libraries containing “s---ally explicit” books are an “insult to taxpayers.”
“It’s shocking they would have such a struggle with this new law, but I guess that’s why we need it,” she added.
The veteran Republican lawmaker initially said in an interview the law doesn’t deal with books that contain “violence,” although it specifically pinpoints “excess violence.” She added, however, that the new law should “clear up a lot of problems” and said it should ensure schools have a “wholesome environment where anybody could look at the library books and not be embarrassed.”
House Speaker Cameron Sexton defended the bill that passed in 2022, at one point asking reporters to read portions of “Me, Earl and the Dying Girl,” a story about a teen boy who befriends a girl suffering from cancer. The book contains some graphic words, and Sexton said books with that type of language shouldn’t be allowed in school libraries.
Opponents of the legislation argued this year that the updated law, which bounced off a bill proposed by Gov. Lee, is a form of book banning that could put the Bible at risk for “censure.”
After meeting with a group of librarians this session, Democratic state Sen. Heidi Campbell said she’s worried the new law could force librarians to clear their shelves because the law could affect more books. The bill’s language was changed to deal with selections that contain s---al references, nudity or violence “in whole or in part.”
Campbell is concerned changes in the law are putting Tennessee in the same category as dictators who burned and banned books over the course of history.
Democratic Rep. Sam McKenzie of Knoxville also believes the new law goes too far and accuses Republican lawmakers of being “hell-bent” on clearing libraries of any books they don’t like.
Chilling Editorial Cartoons About Book Banning: Book Censorship Newshttps://bookriot.com/category/literar...
‘Burn the freaking books:’ Alabama libraries under fire from witch hunters
https://www.al.com/news/2024/03/burn-...
https://www.al.com/news/2024/03/insid...
The villains: Clean Up Alabama, Moms for Liberty, Eagle Forum, Gov. Kay Ivey and State Sen. Chris Elliott. You’re welcome, y’all.) Others, such as Alabama GOP Party chair/Alabama Public Library Service board member, John Wahl, 1819 News guy Bryan Dawson and Alabama AG Steve Marshall
Texas“At 3:27 p.m. last Friday, McAllen ISD Superintendent René Gutiérrez and then-Board President Debbie Crane Aliseda received a not-so-subtly threatening email with a demand: purge your schools’ libraries of 676 books or else.”
https://www.progresstimes.net/2024/05...
Conservative book ban activists target Rio Grande Valley school districts.
The threat was delivered by local representatives of Citizens Defending Freedom and the Remnant Alliance, associated conservative advocacy groups founded outside of the Rio Grande Valley that have made waves elsewhere across Texas and the nation by successfully forcing school districts to ban books.
Those group’s efforts locally gained ground in Cameron County earlier this month under the leadership of Luis Cabrera, the pastor of City Church in Harlingen.
“It’s time to hold the ISDs responsible and it’s time to hold them accountable, because we are trusting them to educate our children, not indoctrinate them with p----graphy,” he told the Progress Times Monday.
The list of 676 books Cabrera’s group sent to McAllen ISD and other Valley districts includes a suggested age range for readers that appears to be based on the recommendation of a book rating website that may have ties to another conservative advocacy group.
Most of the books seem to have made their way onto the list because they include race, drugs or s-x. S-x seems to be the most prevalent theme.
Many of the books have already made headlines around the nation for being banned, like “Push,” which deals with s---ual abuse.
Also included are works by fairly well established literary icons like Maya Angelou, Margaret Atwood, Oscar Wilde, Toni Morrison, Vladimir Nabokov, Sylvia Plath, Kurt Vonnegut and Sandra Cisneros.
Cisneros couldn’t Wednesday quite puzzle out why somebody felt like “The House on Mango Street” needed to be ripped from the shelves of high school libraries, though she’d like to find out and said she’d be willing to come to town to do so.
“I was an educator, so the last thing I want to do is cause any offense or harm anyone — certainly not students,” she said. “And I’m willing to get on a plane and meet with whomever I have to meet.”
Cabrera said he doesn’t see how Cisneros’ classic could contribute to his child becoming a “productive citizen in society.”
“That book contains violence involving child abuse and domestic violence and s--ual assault,” he said. “How is that educational for a middle or high schooler?”
It’s not clear whether Cabrera’s read Cisneros’ book; he said it takes 10 to 15 minutes to research a book and decide whether it should be removed from a school library— which adds up when there’s almost 700 you want banned from school libraries.
“The House on Mango Street” is rated as being appropriate for an adult on Cabrera’s list, although he explained to the Progress Times Monday that it doesn’t matter what audience the list describes a book as being appropriate for.
He wants the whole list out of local schools altogether, permanently.
“The idea was to get those books pulled. Removed completely,” Cabrera said. “That’s the idea behind us doing everything that we’re doing. There’s no point of doing all of this if those books remain on the shelves. If they remain on the shelves, then we come in with our lawyers and pursue legal action against them.”
That threat isn’t necessarily an idle one. Citizens Defending Freedom has followed through with litigation over books it feels should be banned elsewhere in the nation.
The tactics that Cabrera and his group use don’t start with lawyers though. Those tactics start with demanding an audience with district leadership and threatening to cause a ruckus if one isn’t granted quickly.
The email McAllen ISD received from Remnant Alliance representative Martha Garza-Johnson last Friday capitalizes on concessions Cabrera’s group has obtained in Cameron County so far.
That email includes the list of “awful” books the group wants banned from school libraries and claims that Brownsville ISD Superintendent Jesus Chavez and Harlingen CISD Superintendent J.A. Gonzalez are “diligently working to remove” them because they agree they “have no place in the hands of our children because they are filthy and evil.”
The email says the group didn’t even have to reach out to Weslaco ISD. It says that district contacted the activists proactively to avoid activists showing up at a board meeting.
On May 7, Cabrera and 10 supporters showed up at Brownsville’s school board meeting to read expletive-ridden passages from books they said the district has in its libraries during public comment.
It got thoroughly out of hand.
There was shouting. People quoted the Bible and George Washington in between readings of s---ally explicit scenes that the school district’s attorney tried — in vain — to tell them they weren’t allowed to read.
Bonnie Wallace of Llano, Texas, whose efforts at getting books banned in her hometown resulted in litigation and national media attention, showed up.
“It’s already off!” Wallace yelled at the board after someone called for her microphone to be cut off. “I don’t need a mic because God gives me power!”
Cabrera says he didn’t even preface the display with any demands for Brownsville ISD.
It didn’t matter. The district gave him an audience after the meeting anyway.
Cabrera also showed up for the Harlingen school board’s May 14 meeting... he told the Harlingen board books in the district’s libraries belong at Pokey’s Planet, a well known Valley purveyor of [adult entertainment].
Harlingen’s superintendent met with him too.
Cabrera claims Brownsville and Harlingen agreed to remove any of the 676 books on his list that the schools found in their libraries.
Superintendent Chavez from Brownsville told the Progress Times that he agreed to remove five books from the district after meeting with the activists, who also presented him with a shortlist of books they oppose.
“From my perspective, yes, some of the books I would not want in our schools,” Chavez said.
Brownsville agreed to remove “Jay’s Gay Agenda,” “It’s Perfectly Normal,” “Juliet Takes a Breath,” “Flamer” and “The Big Question Book of Sex and Consent.”
Chavez said those books likely would have been weeded out through the district’s normal review processes.
Cabrera says Harlingen also agreed to remove some books immediately, though that district declined to comment.
Weslaco ISD’s board president, Jacky Sustaita says she has talked to Cabrera but denied doing so to avoid him showing up at public comment. She says the district’s reviewing Cabrera’s list of books to see if they’re compliant with state law.
Despite Cabrera’s group gaining some ground, it’s not clear how likely those districts are to take significant action on his longlist of books.
Chavez didn’t indicate that his district would take any immediate action on that list other than reviewing them along with the rest of its collection.
“I mean, this is ongoing work,” he said. “So no, I’m not prepared to say that we’ve taken out 676 books. The five books that they were opposed to, yes, those books are no longer in our collection. We felt that we needed to take immediate action.
Chavez also said he doesn’t approve of the group’s tactics but he’s still open to their feedback.
He said he doesn’t endorse the group, despite posing for a picture with them that the activists are sending to other districts.
Chavez said he made an effort to make that distinction with area superintendents this week.
...
Cabrera says he means to pressure every large district in the county.
...
Cabrera dislikes the term “ban” because he feels like it implies that he’s attempting to have the books on his list prohibited society-wide, which he says isn’t the goal. He couldn’t explain how his group’s demands don’t constitute a ban for books in school libraries.
After Cabrera stopped answering questions on the phone, he sent the Progress Times a lengthy statement reacting to this story — which had neither been written nor published at the time — and threatened to release it if the Progress Times described him as attempting to ban books in school libraries.
“The portrayal of my efforts as a blanket attempt to ban books is misleading and unfair,” part of the statement said. “It is easier to cast me as an opponent of free expression rather than engage in a nuanced discussion about age-appropriate material. Protecting children from exposure to harmful content is a matter of safeguarding their well-being and development, which aligns with the moral compass of any conscientious adult.”
Cisneros, the author, is more open to conversation. She says she really stands by her offer to book a plane ticket on her own dime, fly to the Valley and meet with the activists for an open discussion about her book and their efforts. The offer stands for local school districts considering Cabrera’s demands as well.
“To ban the book, I think, is a frightening thing,” Cisneros said. “To call them awful and evil is offensive — I felt like someone punched me in the gut when I read that letter, when they said they were awful and evil. You know, it was the farthest thing from my heart when I wrote this. I wrote this with puro amor, mi amor puro.”
Cisneros is skeptical that Cabrera’s group has actually read her book. She’s skeptical that the actual content of many books on their list is really the point of the push.
“I think it’s about power and control. I’m just guessing, I don’t know — I haven’t met any of the individuals — but I really think it’s about power and control,” she said.
Cabrera’s group has certainly found a degree of influence in a fairly short time: Brownsville ISD is the largest traditional school district in the Valley, and Cabrera has access to its superintendent now.
Ironically, despite the apparent divide between Cabrera and Cisneros, they likely have some common ground.
Cisneros is religious herself. She thinks there’s value in young people reading about controversial topics, an opinion Cabrera likely wouldn’t agree with, but she doesn’t disagree that there’s books that aren’t appropriate for all ages.
“I didn’t write the book for little ones,” Cisneros said about her book Cabrera wants removed. “I wrote it for high school students. I didn’t write it for middle school or little, younger ones.”
Cabrera, though, doesn’t seem likely to take her up on the offer.
“I’m done speaking,” he said after the Progress Times texted him about it. “Bless you!”
The above mentioned group plans to sue if they don't get their own way.https://myrgv.com/local-news/2024/05/...
MarylandHarford County Public Schools (MD) will have 27 people on their committees deciding the fates of several challenged books.
https://www.baltimoresun.com/2024/05/...
Harford County Board of Education Vice President Melissa Hahn last September identified six books in county schools that she and other parents deemed inappropriate.
When asked why the reconsideration committee was created, Lader said it is a response to the American Library Association’s recommendation that every library have a “current and comprehensive written policy.”
Lader explained that the recommended policy led to Harford forming a Library Planning Workgroup tasked with reviewing the school’s existing practices, which she said resulted in the evaluation procedure outlining the reconsideration committee.
This move comes as challenges to books in schools and public libraries nationwide and in Maryland are rising. In Carroll County, officials have been evaluating 58 books the system’s superintendent ordered removed from school library shelves last September amid challenges.
Once the new committee is established, it will be divided into three subcommittees charged with evaluating “challenged” materials across all grade levels. Subcommittees will not be specific to topics, medium or grade level. Each nine-person subcommittee will consist of two parents of HCPS students, one community member, one HCPS teacher, one HCPS administrator, one HCPS librarian, two HCPS students in grades eight through 12 and one HCPS curriculum specialist.
If the committee finds material to be inappropriate for schools, a recommendation for removal will be presented to the system’s supervisor of innovation in learning. Within 30 days, Superintendent Sean Bulson will review and render a final decision regarding the material.
Members will be appointed by a committee created by the system’s executive director of curriculum, instruction and assessment.
Lader said the sub-committee composition is meant to draw “various viewpoints and individuals who can bring diverse perspectives to the table.”
Committee members will be appointed in June to serve one-year terms. Members will meet once in September, up to five times between Oct. 1 and Dec. 15, and up to five times between March 1 and May 15, 2025.
Committee meetings will not be open to the public or recorded but the results of each reconsideration will be posted on the HCPS Library Media website.
Summer Boismier, the high school English teacher in Norman, Oklahoma, was fired for giving her students access to a QR code that would let them get books from the Brooklyn Public Library two years ago, finally got a trial date set for June to find out whether or not her teaching license will be revoked. https://www.oklahoman.com/story/news/...
Thursday the state board voted to set a June 27 hearing date. Both sides have until June 13 to submit filings in the case. The hearing would come about a year after an assistant attorney general ruled the Oklahoma State Department of Education failed to prove Boismier had violated any state law.
Boismier's attorney, Brady Henderson, told The Oklahoman in January that he expected the matter to eventually find its way to district court.
On Thursday, Henderson said he wasn't surprised that a hearing date had been set.
"There's nothing surprising there," Henderson said. "They still seem to be doing the same thing. There is no real apparent reason why this is still out there. There never seemed to be anything to this in the state, beyond a political statement."
Boismier now works at the Brooklyn Public Library and continues to fight her revocation proceedings
More chilling news from AlabamaSix people abruptly fired from library positions in Baldwin County
https://www.al.com/news/2024/05/six-p...
The Baldwin County Public Library Cooperative board fired all employees last week, delaying essential library services.
The cooperative’s board held an emergency call May 22 and fired everyone “effectively immediately,” according to Baldwin County Administrator Roger Rendleman. He told AL.com he doesn’t know “exactly what’s transpired” or the reason for the terminations.
Public records indicate the public meeting was called “to discuss [the cooperative’s] future.” Six positions were eliminated.
The cooperative provides library support services throughout Baldwin County such as a joint catalog system, interlibrary loan, book courier service and the bookmobile.
Local library operations at individual branch locations will continue as normal. Rendleman said he spoke with library directors Friday and his main priority is to “make sure we get these joint services back running.”
Rendleman said the board, not the county commission, made the decision and that funding from the county to the cooperative will continue. He said the only actions the county was working on was ensuring the cooperative’s 501c3 status was set up properly.
Alabama againResidents affiliated with Moms for Liberty and Clean Up Alabama called on the Madison City Council Tuesday to withhold funding to the Huntsville Madison County Public Library [AL] system unless it updates policy to restrict LGBTQ books.”
https://www.alreporter.com/2024/05/29...
Residents associated with Moms for Liberty and Clean Up Alabama called on the Madison City Council Tuesday to withhold funding to the Huntsville Madison County Public Library system unless it updates policy to restrict LGBTQ books.
The residents argued that the library’s current policy runs afoul of new requirements from the Alabama Public Library Service and will therefore cost the library more than half a million dollars in state funding. The overall operating budget for Huntsville last year was $8.2 million, of which Madison plays a large role.
The residents said the policy needs to be changed to prevent “s---ally explicit” books from being available in the children’s and young adult sections, but focused heavily on “transgenderism.”
“I went into the library and looked at a book and it’s called When Aiden Becomes a Brother,” said Kathy Young. “When you look at the book … you find out that Aiden was actually born as a girl—and he decided that he didn’t like pink and he didn’t like frills, so he must be a boy. [QNPoohBear's Note: No not exactly. He acknowledges there are other types of girls who don't like girly girly stuff. He doesn't AND he's a boy. He rebels against his parents' obsession with froo-froo girly girly stuff.] And that’s at a very young age to be exposing children to transgenderism, in my opinion.”
Emily Jones, founder of Madison County Moms for Liberty, said the new APLS policies are “common sense” and make it so that her 9-year-old son can’t check out Gender Queer, a graphic memoir originally intended for adults that is sometimes placed in young adult sections for older teens.
Jones highlighted the controversial sex education book It’s Perfectly Normal which includes childlike illustrations of body parts and s--ual acts and accurately names genitalia and other body parts.
Carissa Callan insinuated that allowing the library to continue its current policies will lead to “p--n-addicted, s---ally obsessed people in your city.”
Callan also compared the library’s current availability of books to the actual solicitation of a minor.
“We still recoil when we see a news report of someone arrested for electronically soliciting and grooming a minor, it happened last week … but that’s happening in the library with the books on the shelf,” Callan said.
Callan also mentioned It’s Perfectly Normal as well as another sex education book The Boy’s Guide to Growing Up—which she noted includes an illustration of (view spoiler) [Note: happens to all boys, even babies] The book is intended as a book to inform younger readers about the onset of puberty.
She also hit on gender ideology, again bringing up When Aiden Becomes a Brother and Being You: A First Conversation About Gender—neither of which have any s--ual content.
Two other books she mentioned—The Big Bath House and Fine: A Comic About Gender do contain nudity. The nudity in The Big Bath House is nonsexual in nature...
Callan also complained about the calendar soon turning to June and how the library might engage in “Pride Month.”
“Will your publicly-funded library have these books that go against the APLS code out for minors on display,” Callan asked.
None of the books she mentioned clearly violate the APLS code, which states that libraries must adopt policies to keep s---ally explicit books out of sections for minors.
The LGBTQ books lack s--ual content, and the other books could be classified as age-appropriate materials concerning biology and human anatomy.
The state code includes vague language that libraries should adopt policies to keep “materials deemed inappropriate for minors” out of those sections as well, but it is not defined. APLS board member and ALGOP chair John Wahl told APR that he is unsure whether that determination would be made by APLS or local library boards.
Amy Minton, the new APLS board member who offered the amendment to the code changes pursued by Gov. Kay Ivey, made it clear that she wants LGBTQ content kept out of children’s sections. But the originally proposed language to prohibit books with “sexual orientation” and “gender identity” were cut out of the final APLS code changes.
Rachel Homolak, who is facing a defamation suit in Missouri for accusing a librarian of grooming children, told the council that the “children of Alabama” are looking to the council for protection from “targeted, groomed and s---alized by the books that are in the Madison library.”
Multiple residents told the council they simply wanted the books moved to a parenting section or adult section.
Homolak asked the council to “put these books where they belong—the garbage, but for now we’ll say the adult section.”
The APLS code changes will not be confirmed until July, and no indication has been made by APLS at this time that HMCPL is in danger of losing state funding.
OklahomaState investigates two books after complaints about critical race theory teaching
https://www.okcfox.com/news/local/sta...
On Thursday, OSDE's General Counsel Michael Beason announced three instances of possible violations of House Bill 1775, a law that bans race and sex discrimination in schools, including the teaching of critical race theory.
Beason described one complaint filed against Union Public Schools in Tulsa.
He said the complainant claimed the "school was indoctrinating children on how to become social justice warriors through a Social Problems class."
Beason noted the district was quick to hire counsel to investigate the incident. The district reported no in-person class dubbed "Social Problems" was found, but the district did report two virtual classes that possibly matched the complaint.
The attorney said the district then changed the "offending language," and the situation was resolved.
FOX 25 first reported the complaint in December, while it was still under investigation.
It's unknown if the violation will result in action against Union Public Schools.
Two other complaints submitted to OSDE are still under investigation—both pertaining to certain books.
In one instance, a parent in Norman complained that a student was required to write a poem based on the book Woke.
Beason said officials are looking into the language in the book and its context and are investigating.
Beason said he became aware of the complaint into Woke and another book involving Luther Public Schools entitled Dear Martin last week.
The attorney said officials researched the book and found it was banned in three areas across the U.S.
Among the content certain school officials took issue with was how the work discusses race, according to Beason.
Beason also talked about being able to investigate HB 1775 violations more swiftly.
"We are developing new processes to identify these so that they can be investigated more quickly, and so that we can have a more thorough report to the school board in advance," Beason explained.
Rules banning the teaching of critical race theory and concepts around race and gender were adopted by OSDE in 2021 after the legislature passed HB 1775.
Only a handful of complaints have been investigated since then, with at least two resulting in accreditation downgrades.
Virginia2 fresh Hanover School Board appointees replace experienced mainstays
https://12ft.io/proxy
Two new Hanover County School Board members are set to take over from longtime seat-holders when their terms expire at the end of June.
Bob Seifert, a U.S. Air Force pilot and Hanover native, will represent the Chickahominy District, and Karen Lynne, a former teacher, will represent Ashland on the board. Both have countless hours of volunteering experience in the schools and children in the school system.
The two appointees were chosen from a pool of 23 people who nominated themselves for selection at a public meeting on April 10. Hanover is one of 13 school districts in the state that appoints school board members, rather than elect them.
Hanover supervisors recommend a nominee from their respective district to be approved by vote from the entire board. Rarely, if ever, do Hanover board members vote against another supervisor’s pick.
The quality of the applicant field was continually referenced throughout the appointment process, with many nominees holding advanced degrees, having years of teaching or administration experience, backgrounds in finance, and children enrolled in the schools.
...
Seifert says his reasons for serving on the board stem largely from waning performance he sees children experiencing both in Hanover and across the country.
He referenced a U.S. Department of Defense report that says only one in five of America’s youth are eligible for military service. That report cited issues with obesity, drug abuse, mental health, aptitude or combinations of those factors.
“While I’m not advocating for Hanover children to serve in the military, it’s very indicative because these children are not physically healthy, mentally healthy, academically prepared and they’re emotionally unhealthy,” Seifert said. “They are not where they need to be.”
Seifert was one of three candidates from the pool of 13 candidates eligible in the Chickahominy District who donated to Floyd’s election campaign in November. Seifert contributed $350.
Seifert defended a question about the contribution being a possible conflict of interest, saying that his views align with Floyd's and the amount was small.
"The donation seems pretty understandable to me, especially in light of the relatively small amount that I donated and how important it was to me to have a board representative who shared many of my priorities," he said.
Two other candidates, Mindy Ruggiero and Keith Shumaker, made contributions of $2,200 and $516, respectively.
Ruggiero became a controversial nominee due to her leadership of the “Vote NO” campaign, which fought against a November referendum to change the School Board from an appointed body, to an elected one. She also caught criticism for choosing to home-school her children, being the only candidate without current or graduated Hanover students.
Ruggiero later posted to Facebook that she decided to step back from the School Board selection process due to “unwarranted backlash and false accusations.” She also wrote that the “infiltration” of “non-natives” into Hanover was causing her to leave the county where she was raised.
....
Both first-time School Board members will be replacing experienced members. Ashland board member Ola J. Hawkins did not seek reelection after eight years on the board. Robert Hundley Jr. will also leave the board’s Chickahominy seat after 20 years when his term expires in June.
Both Hawkins and Hundley were the two dissenting votes against last summer’s controversial 5-2 School Board decision to rewrite its library materials policy, which paved the way to remove dozens of books from the school system.
Louisiana Legislature passes ‘Don’t Say Gay or trans’ bill Horton’s bill also prohibits “covering the topics of sexual orientation or gender identity” during any extracurricular and athletics events.
https://www.losangelesblade.com/2024/...
Discussion of gender identity and sexual orientation in Louisiana’s K-12 public schools could soon be restricted after the state Senate approved a far-reaching anti-LGBTQ+ bill Thursday.
Senators sent House Bill 122 by Rep. Dodie Horton, R-Haugton, which limits discussion of gender and sexuality in public schools, to Republican Gov. Jeff Landry, who is expected to sign it into law. It passed on a 28-7 vote, with Democratic Sens. Katrina Jackson-Andrews of Monroe and Regina Barrow of Baton Rouge joining Republicans in support of the bill.
The Legislature approved the same bill last year. Then-Gov. John Bel Edwards, a Democrat, vetoed it, and Republicans were unable to overturn his action
Horton’s bill restricts discussion of gender and sexuality in schools, except for topics in approved curricula. This would allow discussion of a romantic relationship in a book but not mentions of a teacher’s family, for example. Horton said in committee her bill would also block discussion of heterosexuality and cisgender identity. Cisgender refers to anyone whose gender identity aligns with their sex assigned at birth.
...
Horton said she didn’t believe teachers should discuss their “lifestyle choices” with students.
“Having sexualized personal discussions between educators and students in our classrooms are not appropriate, and they can rob our children of their innocence while imposing suggested influence over their developing young minds,” Horton said when her bill came up in committee.
When asked whether the bill would have a negative impact on LGBTQ+ students, Sen. Beth Mizell, R-Franklinton, who was tasked with carrying the bill in the Senate, said that was not the intent of the proposal.
It’s good to have a safe place where parents can have some confidence, for instance, if there is an LGBTQ employee, I think letting parents know ‘OK, I’m fine with that person, because I know they can’t talk to my child about their sexual orientation, no more than I would want a promiscuous male or female teacher to talk to my child about their s--al partners,’” Mizell said.
Horton’s bill would not just apply to classroom instruction. It also prohibits “covering the topics of sexual orientation or gender identity” during any extracurricular and athletics events, meaning it could potentially hinder student chapters of the Gay-Straight Alliance and other LGBTQ+ student organizations.
The Senate rejected a series of amendments Sen. Royce Duplessis, D-New Orleans, proposed that would have restricted the bill’s limitations to only K-8 grades, defined the terms “sexual orientation” and “gender identity,” excluded extracurricular activities, and limited the effect to only classroom instruction rather than discussion between teachers and students. Jackson-Andrews also sided with Republicans in rejecting the amendments.
Also in La.The Louisiana Senate gave final passage Tuesday to a bill that would allow parish library systems to hire directors who are not certified librarians — after senators added in language a House committee rejected that would allow library board members to be dismissed without cause
https://lailluminator.com/2024/05/28/...
Louisiana senators revive at-will dismissal of library board members
The Louisiana Senate gave final passage Tuesday to a bill that would allow parish library systems to hire directors who are not certified librarians — after senators added in language a House committee rejected that would allow library board members to be dismissed without cause.
House Bill 974 by Rep. Josh Carlson, R-Lafayette, passed the Senate on a 27-9 vote. No senators objected to the adoption of the controversial language after Sen. Blake Miguez, R-New Iberia, briefly explained the amendments as clarifying language and codifying an attorney general’s opinion, which he did not explain.
Before it was amended Tuesday, Carlson’s bill was designed to remove the requirement that directors of parish library systems receive state certification, which requires librarians to pass an exam and hold a master’s degree in library science. Libraries currently have the ability to hire non-certified librarians as directors after obtaining a waiver from the State Board of Library Examiners, but they can only hire them for a four-year contract that can then be renewed. This time limitation is maintained in Carlson’s bill.
The new language is similar to that in House Bill 946 by Rep. Jay Gallé, R-Mandeville, which is a refiling of House Bill 25, from 2023 by former Rep. Paul Hollis, R-Covington. Both bills were killed in the House Committee on Municipal, Parochial and Cultural Affairs with bipartisan opposition.
Library board members removed in Gallé’s St. Tammany Parish have sued the parish and David Cougle, the councilman who initiated their removal and worked with Hollis last year on the rejected bill.
Conservative activists in the parish, led by the far-right St. Tammany Library Accountability Project, have attempted to ban more than 150 books they deem s--ually explicit. Most of the titles challenged have LGBTQ+ themes. The library board repeatedly refused to limit access to the books, rejecting arguments that they are s--ually explicit. Their refusal put them crosswise with the new, more conservative parish council that took office earlier this year.
St. Tammany Parish and Carlson’s Lafayette Parish have been venues for high-profile clashes over book content.
Carlson’s bill stemmed from the search for the next Lafayette Public Library director. Its parish library board illegally fired the previous director, Danny Gillane, in executive session after a years-long contentious relationship with some of its members. The board later rescinded the illegal termination, allowing Gillane to resign. In an unusual move, the board later hired Gillane as the interim director while they searched for his permanent replacement.
The Lafayette library board’s search committee wants to remove the requirement that the director have an American Library Association-certified degree because its library is no longer affiliated with the organization, The Acadiana Advocate reported.
Carlson disputed rumors that he sponsored the bill because he wants the library board to hire somebody he has in mind who does not hold a degree in library science. The bill would actually put the state closer in alignment with the American Library Association, which lays out recommended qualifications for library directors on its website, he said. The recommended educational requirements range from a bachelor’s degree to multiple master’s degrees.
This week, St. Johns County Schools (FL) are considering banning four books, Slaughter House Five, The Freedom Writers Diary, L8r G8r, and A Stolen Life. They’ve elected to not ban them outright but restrict them to 11th and 12th graders only.https://www.wokv.com/news/local/slaug...
“I’m very concerned about the book banning that’s going on in our county,” Hazel Robinson said at the hearing. “Our kids are already exposed to stuff so let them have access to literature,” Michelle Jennings added.
“Freedom Writer’s Diary”, “L8R, G8R”, “A Stolen Life”, and “Slaughterhouse Five” were previously restricted to high school students. After Tuesday’s hearing, they will be restricted to just 11th and 12th graders.
“Freedom Writer’s Diary” and “L8R, G8R” will also require parental permission.
“We have to be cautious about what someone can turn around and pull off the shelf. I think it depends on someone’s maturity,” Kelly Barrera, a St. Johns County School District board member, said.
Books can be objected to if the material is p____graphic, describes s___al conduct, is not suited to student needs, or is inappropriate for the grade level.
As of the end of last month, there were more than 100 books that had objections in the district.
“Overtime it becomes unmanageable. And over time, the books become inaccessible,” Superintendent Tim Forson warned during the meeting.
Alachua County Public Schools [FL] https://www.wusf.org/education/2024-0...
Book challenge policies continue to consume Alachua County school employees' focus
Two meetings this week put the focus on the amount of time and resources Alachua County Public Schools employees are spending on book challenges.
The Alachua County School Board on Tuesday postponed the removal of two books from public school libraries. The board intends to revisit the issue in a public hearing on June 18.
Subsequently, the district’s Library Advisory Committee on Thursday voted to keep two books on the shelves.
The books whose removals were postponed on Tuesday are “FADE” by Lisa McMann and “Empire of Storms” by Sara Maas. The books that were voted to remain on shelves Thursday afternoon are “Julian is a Mermaid” by Jessica Love and “Storm and Fury” by Jennifer L. Armentrout. Olivia Haley petitioned for the removal of all four of these books.
Haley, an undergraduate student at the University of Florida, has challenged 13 books since late February.
In an amendment this year to a law passed in 2023, HB 1285 added restrictions to how often books can be challenged. Residents who do not have children within their respective school districts will not be allowed to petition more than one book a month. Limits on the petitions of parents at least one child in the school district have not been specified. The law will go into effect July 1.
District Media Specialist Patty Duval said she hopes to see fewer petitions in the coming months.
“It has taken up at least 90% of my time. In doing the research, and interpreting the law, and, you know, putting together the reviews, and the meetings, and the hearings, and reading the books,” Duval said after the Thursday advisory meeting.
Duval said the real purpose of the law, which is to allow parents to air genuine concerns with what is in school libraries and on their children’s curricula, hasn’t seemed to be fulfilled.
“I don't know that this is true, but I feel that some of the objections that are submitted are just — they didn't read the book. There’s a list. And they're just going down the list,” Duval said.
Petitioners like Olivia Haley have challenged books like “FADE” and “Empire of Storms” with objections such as:
The material depicts or describes s---al conduct as defined in Section 847.001(19)
The material is not suited to the student needs and their ability to comprehend the material.
The material is inappropriate for the grade level and age group for which it is used.
In the library advisory committee meeting, Duval and committee members considered what Duval called “suitability and appropriateness.” Committee members and the school board have agreed that s---al content in literature is not inappropriate in all cases.
As seen in this most recent advisory meeting, committee members have to consider what s---al references are appropriate for the age group in which the books are intended. The committee saw no specific references to sex or gender in “Julian is a Mermaid” and voted for it to remain. “Empire of Storms” was deemed appropriate for the middle-to-high school age range.
The library advisory committee meetings are open to the public, but there is no public comment. Petitioner Haley was not at Thursday's meeting.
Current state law and board of education policy also has no way for someone to object to having a book removed. According to Duval, the only voices being heard about book removals from school libraries are those who want the books removed.
Duval has spent most of her time in the past year managing the reviews of the 41 book petitions Alachua County has received in the past year. She said before the challenges she used to do more work with school-level media specialists in creating curricula and planning tools.
School Board Member Dr. Sarah Rockwell proposed at the Tuesday night meeting to add to current policy a way to trigger a revision of removed books each time the Florida Department of Education passes a new rule or change in guidance to all school districts.
“This is relatively new legislation that was not written with a great deal of specificity. It’s been very confusing,” Rockwell said.
She added, “I want to make sure that that's just automatically triggered by our policy so that we don’t have books removed from our shelves in error.”
Good news CaliforniaCalifornia’s Freedom to Read Act, which would ban book bans in public libraries, is moving now from the Assembly to the Senate.
https://www.courthousenews.com/califo...
Assembly Bill 1825 — written by Assemblymember Al Muratsuchi, a Torrance Democrat — is titled the California Freedom to Read Act. It would prohibit a library’s governing board from discriminating against materials based on criteria like race, gender identity, sexual orientation and religion.
Libraries would have to create a policy that, among other items, acknowledges the public’s right to access materials that include a range of social, political and moral experiences. They also would develop a method for people to challenge what’s in a library.
The bill focuses on public libraries. School libraries aren’t included in the legislation.
The bill passed 49 to 3. It now advances to the Senate.
Assemblymember Sharon Quirk-Silva, a Fullerton Democrat, said that the city of Huntington Beach — almost 30 miles by vehicle from her town — is moving forward on book banning and privatizing its library. That will lead to librarians leaving because they’ve lost their autonomy.
Huntington Beach Councilmember Dan Kalmick, who watched the Assembly proceedings online, told Courthouse News he was pleased to see the bill pass. Kalmick said a local group already is circulating a petition for a vote that would repeal a local ordinance that created the Parent/Guardian Book Review Committee.
That committee, created last year by the City Council, reviews proposed and new children’s books and materials that might have sexual content before they’re put on the shelf.
“And starting next week, other residents will start circulating petitions for a ballot initiative to require a vote of the people in order to change the wholesale management structure or outsource management of the library,” Kalmick said in an email.
Quirk-Silva said that in some cases one person petitioning a city council or school board has gotten a book banned.
Scary neighbors to my north. Sad because I liked visiting New Hampshire. No more, sorry family!New Hampshire is close to legislating book banning and also allowing unlicensed educators to be at the front of classrooms.
https://www.concordmonitor.com/book-b...
Bow resident Christopher Lins has never shied away from speaking his mind, which is why he agreed to lead the challenge last year of the book “Gender Queer: A Memoir.”
Other parents asked him to be the face of the issue because of their fear of backlash and it turned out their worries were warranted, Lins said.
“I got a lot of blowback,” said Lins. “Based on what I experienced, oh, heck yeah, I can understand why people shy away from it.”
In Hillsborough-Deering, parent Betsey Harrington questioned the use of Sora, a library app that offers access to books like “Lesbiana’s Guide to Catholic School,” by Sonora Reyes, and “Flamer,” by Mike Curato. She said that as a mom, therapist, and a sex offender counselor, she was concerned that the administration didn’t know about the material on the app that she felt was not appropriate for kids, and would expose them to predatory content.
She said parents are rightfully worried about challenging material they don’t think is appropriate for a school library.
“I'm nervous too, I don't want the people around me to get shamed because I have an opinion,” said Harrington. “I just wanted to tell [the principal] that I wasn't in love with this library, and it turned into, now, ‘This lady is a book banner,’ and my identity changed overnight.”
Julie Porter, a Dover resident who filed a challenge late last year against “Boy Toy,” a book about a child being groomed and s---ally assaulted by a teacher, declined to comment on the record due to fear.
In the State House, both the Senate and the House of Representatives dealt with similar bills on the issue this spring. One, HB 1419, was ultimately postponed indefinitely, and another, SB 523, which had similar language, passed the Senate but failed to garner the three-quarters majority in the House necessary to bring it to a floor vote.
A third bill HB 1311, the so-called Freedom to Read Bill, would require districts to adopt a policy outlining how a school library selects materials and provide parents a clear path to challenge books and other material. It passed the Senate this week with an amendment.
“When it comes to addressing controversial materials in our school libraries we have a choice,” said Rep. David Paige, a Conway Democrat, who introduced the bill to the House floor. “We can retreat to our corners, try to score points, and make accusations against one another, or we can agree to turn down the temperature and ask whether we might actually share the same values and goals.”
When Bow school board members met in April 2023 to discuss “Gender Queer,” they ultimately supported the district’s Media Review Committee’s report that the book was appropriate to stay in the high school library. School board members emphasized the importance of context in understanding the book’s illustrations and content.
Bow had updated its media review policy in November 2022, the same month that the original challenge was made against “Gender Queer.” The policy had not been reviewed since 1994, according to district Superintendent Marcy Kelley.
Kelley said the policy was based on American Library Association guidelines. It can be accessed on the district website and outlines a process where initially there is an attempt to resolve the complaint informally by the principal. If the complainant is not satisfied, a completed Form for Reconsideration of Materials should be filed within two weeks, which is then forwarded to the library and school board, and the principal will put together the Media Review Committee.
The committee is made up of a school librarian, school principal, two teachers, and a PTO representative. The committee first reads the book and reviews the challenged material, and the challenge itself made by the parent before releasing a report.
Kelley asserted that complaints are thoroughly investigated.
“The committee spent many, many, many hours reviewing, first, of course, the book and then there are things that need to be considered within it,” said Kelley.
Kelley acknowledged that there were some comments from challengers about the makeup of the committee during the school board meeting, but that they hadn’t received any formal complaints about the school’s book challenge policy. She mentioned one change they made since the meeting based on community feedback.
“If a parent called us and said, ‘I don't want my child to check out this book,’ in this moment we are complying with that request,” said Kelley. “I don't know if you could call it a resolution or not, but the school board definitely heard families who wanted to be able to do that.”
But for Lins, a Republican who has unsuccessfully ran for a seat in the State House, it seemed as though the committee had decided before he and other parents could express their concerns.
“We were given our time out of obligation, and it felt like it was all for nothing,” he said. “The actual librarian that put the book in the library being on the review committee, give me a break. Are you serious? I mean, that's like in your face unfair.”
Outside of Bow, parents who have made challenges elsewhere also have felt that they weren’t heard.
Dover updated its policy about a year ago, and last November, the school board ultimately voted to allow “Boy Toy” by Barry Lyga to stay in the high school library.
“This is a slow train to nowhere,” said Sally Staude, a Dover resident in favor of the challenge. “And it’s been designed that way.”
However, when asked about the policy complaints, Superintendent William Harbron explained that those against the decision wouldn't think it's fair.
“You know, I think that's a natural human reaction to do that, but that's also why you have a policy that clearly outlines the stages that you're going to go through, or the steps and the processes you're going to follow and you need to adhere to those steps and procedures that you've outlined,” said Harbron.
In Hillsboro-Deering, the school board met with Harrington, and she said that the only solution proposed was that she could opt her children out of the Sora app that caused her concern.
While she felt vilified in the community, she said she was satisfied with part of the district’s response.
“To give the school some credit, they did go and change their policies, they did improve them,” said Harrington. “I feel like they were responsive, I'm not going to say like, ‘Oh, they're horrible, they're not doing anything,’ they have done some things, but they haven't really addressed the fact that there are books that are age-inappropriate.”
the book banning law in Tennessee allows a book to be removed if there is even a passage that contains “obscene language or images?” The Miller Test no longer applies.https://fox17.com/news/crisis-in-the-...
New Tennessee law on banning obscene book content sparks controversy, legal concerns
Under the law, if a book contains obscene language or images, it would be outright banned from a school library no matter the context.
The law states if books contain sections of nudity, descriptions of s-x, excess violence or abuse then those books could be banned out right.
This is a change from the original state law, which judged the entirety of the work, not just sections.
“When you think about taking a book and judging a small part of it and making a determination based on a paragraph or a sentence or a single image, it creates a lot of gray areas,” Lindsey Kimery explained.
Lindsey Kimery, co-chair of the legislative task force for the Tennessee Association of Librarians, explains this impacts a lot of the classic books that children read like the picture book, "No, David!"
“David is illustrated, so he’s a cartoon character, and you see his bare bottom, so it calls into questions things like that, is that nudity according to this amendment,” Kimery said.
FOX 17 News reached out to Representative Susan Lynn, the House bill sponsor, and she adds this plan will hold school boards accountable for not addressing complaints in a timely manner. Representative Lynn explains they will have to address complaints within 60 days.
Eric Welch, Williamson County school board member, says this new law is nearly impossible to follow.
He explains it restricts a lot of the higher level books as well for AP classes including Hemingway and Shakespeare.
MissouriKelly Jensen reports:
"The proposed closures of libraries and laying off of nearly 40 library workers in St. Charles (MO) points a finger right back at the board’s ineptitude, including their desire to focus on banning books, rather than on solving the problem they should have seen coming years ago. If digital materials are eating the budget because people are accessing digital books, audiobooks, and films more than print material, a responsible, adult leadership team would update their budget to reflect this. But alas, we have to ban an adult book in the adult section, among other things."
https://12ft.io/proxy
St. Charles library board admits it ‘fell short’ as pressure mounts to reverse closure plan
As criticism mounts, including from city officials, over a plan to shutter three struggling library branches, board members have acknowledged that they “fell short on communicating the seriousness of our situation.”
In a statement Thursday by the St. Charles City-County Library Board, officials promised to hold public listening sessions on the proposed closures. And the statement came just hours before the O’Fallon City Council unanimously approved a resolution urging the library’s trustees to reconsider its planned closure of Kisker Road, McClay, and Deer Run library branches.
“This shows a total lack of leadership and insight to actually close libraries in a growing county like we are,” said Jim Ottomeyer, an O’Fallon council member who previously served as a board member for the library system’s foundation board, which fundraises on behalf of the library.
O’Fallon is the first city in St. Charles County to oppose the closure, but more may follow suit. The St. Charles County Council has a similar resolution on the agenda for its May 28 meeting.
“We vow as a city to do everything we can to oppose this plan,” Ottomeyer said.
The closure plan, announced last week by St. Charles City-County Library District CEO Jason Kuhl, also calls for laying off 39 — mostly part-time — employees and leaving 25 vacant positions unfilled. It was met with swift and vocal opposition from residents. Library trustees ultimately voted to delay any action on the proposal for 30 days.
The resolution adopted Thursday by the O’Fallon council noted that closure of Deer Run would would adversely affect families with children and O’Fallon residents with mobility issues.
“Several of us have heard from constituents who are angry with what the library is doing,” said councilwoman Linda Ragsdale.
Kuhl said last week the changes were necessary because the library system is facing financial problems caused in part by the rising costs of electronic books and streaming platforms that are increasingly popular with library patrons. The library pays $50,000 to $60,000 a month for streaming services due to user demand, Kuhl said.
In the statement Thursday, Kuhl and board president Staci Alvarez reiterated the changing financial outlook for the library system.
“We have seen changes in how our community uses our branches, the types of resources they seek and request, and the services they need from the library. We have seen a significant shift in how patrons are using our collection; specifically, an increase in the use of eMedia and a decline in the use of our physical resources,” the statement reads. “These changes in preferences of our patrons have impacted our financial resources and use of our facilities.”
And the shifts come as libraries are navigating a challenging landscape of lending and licensing e-books from book publishers and distributors. According to the ALA report, libraries typically pay three to four times the consumer price for an ebook or audiobook license of a popular title, even if that license later expires and needs to be renewed.
“These costs make it very expensive for libraries to license digital materials,” according to the report.
In the statement, Kuhl and Alvarez said the library’s leadership would be taking a “deeper look at expenditures, particularly electronic resources, to identify opportunities for cost savings” over the next month and beyond.
Both Kuhl and Alvarez say they are “committed to taking more time to make a decision that is the best interest of the library district and those we serve.”
St. Joseph Board of Education discussing recent events and budgethttps://www.kq2.com/news/st-joseph-bo...
The St. Joseph Board of Education met for their monthly meeting, and addressed some concerns about book bans, the budget deficit, and teacher repercussions following the case at Robidoux Middle School.
During this monthly meeting, the Board of Education met to congratulate students on some of their educational achievements, including FBLA, sports, and other extracurriculars.
They also addressed the issue arising regarding book bans within the student/parent handbook, with Superintendant Gabe Edgar stating they are following policy.
"We'll have a committee look at the book a bit, Central and Lafayette will come back with a decision on whether we want to take that book out of the library or not." Said Edgar. "So I would anticipate yes, some of them could be taken out of the library, and some of them could stay just depends on what that committee decides."
Children's Books
Books mentioned in this topic
Out of the Blue (other topics)The Princess in Black and the Prince in Pink (other topics)
My Rainbow (other topics)
Butt or Face? Volume 3: Super Gross Butts (other topics)
The Day the Books Disappeared (other topics)
More...
Authors mentioned in this topic
Jodi Picoult (other topics)Sarah J. Maas (other topics)
Ellen Hopkins (other topics)
Jodi Picoult (other topics)
Scott Stuart (other topics)
More...
Maybe library patrons against this should simply invade the library en masse with a huge sit-in (and also bring children and teenagers, as well as tv stations etc. Because it would look pretty vile and embarrassing if the police were to be arresting young children. I know that the library's hands are being forced, but it is time to fight fire with fire and to also force the library to take action in order to protect their reputation.