Children's Books discussion
Banned Books: discussions, lists
>
Discussion of censorship, equity, and other concerns.
The fuss in Mobile, Alabama is about a lesbian manga. The manga is rated for a YA audience even though it's about a woman in he late 20s but I'll give them the cover is questionable for teen audiences but they're probably watching a lot worse on Netflix and MAX. Graphic book in young adult section of Mobile Public Library sparks controversy
https://www.wkrg.com/mobile-county/gr...
Melissa Gates said a 2017 publication titled “My Lesbian Experience with Loneliness” was among the worst on the list because of its graphic cover and contents. The book is classified as a manga-style autobiography. “Manga” is a type of Japanese comic or graphic novel with a distinct art style. Gates called for the book and others like it to be removed from Mobile Public Libraries.
City council members said they have no say in what books hit the library shelves. Mobile Public Library Public Relations Officer Marcus Mitchelle said a national third party recommends books and reviews requested books before telling the library where to put them.
Gates also confronted the council about funding, pointing to an $8.2 million figure she said the city used to fund library operations.
“The buck stops with y’all because you fund it,” Gates said. “Not to mention the people that you have appointed on the library board are approving this.”
District 4 Councilman Ben Reynolds understood Gate’s complaints. Reynolds also echoed that parents must do their part in protecting their children from potentially offensive books.
“I agree in many respects that, you know, some of this stuff might not be just in plain view for everybody to get,” Reynolds said.
Gates brought a Bible along with her, so she could read a scripture to the city council. District 2 councilman William Carroll also used the Bible to express his views.
“I wonder if there’s a Bible in the library,” Carroll said. “If we’re worried about contents of books; in the Bible you can find [all this stuff] When we talk about information in books, let’s be careful of what we’re asking for, because it sounds like some of us might even want the Bible taken out of a library.”
City council members were left with a list of graphic books found in the libraries. Some council members, like Reynolds, expressed interest in resolving the dilemma but warned that it would take time.
North DakotaBismarck Library discusses how it has adapted to the state book review law one year later
https://www.kfyrtv.com/2024/09/05/bis...
During the last legislative session, two book ban bills were passed. Shortly after the session, Governor Doug Burgum vetoed one but signed House Bill 1205 into law, which requires public libraries to remove explicit materials in the children’s section. It’s been a year since this law went into effect.
Library Director Christine Kujawa shelves books, while also working on her computer awaiting any book complaints that may come in. She said since the law went into effect, nothing has changed.
“We have a collection development policy that has been approved by the Library Board of Directors and mirrors what’s in state law,” said Kujawa.
If the library receives a complaint for a certain book, Kujawa said they have a review committee made up of all the librarians to look at it. She said they take all complaints very seriously.
“We have a whole process that we go through, we follow our policy. We research the item, take time to review it, and provide a response to the patron,” said Kujawa.
The Bismarck Library said they have only received one complaint so far about a book, and it was a children’s book called Abolition is Love
“It usually is taken off the shelf because the librarians want to read it in order to make a good decision about it,” said Kujawa. And in this case, the book remained in circulation.
If a member of the public wants to complain about a certain book, Kujawa said, as part of their collection and development policy, they have a “request for reconsideration” form.
“Both in print and on our website, so individuals can fill that out, and then it goes to our review committee,” said Kujawa.
As far as what the cost is to the library to conduct this kind of book review, Kujawa said the only cost involved is staff time.
Kujawa said, per their collection development policy, the library strives to have information and material from all viewpoints to meet the needs of everyone in the community, but if someone finds something that they disagree with, she said they are welcome to fill out the complaint form.
Grants Pass School District 7 OregonYikes
New proposed Grants Pass School District 7 policies indicate board's shift to the right
https://www.ijpr.org/education/2024-0...
Four school board members who were endorsed by the county Republican party swept the election back in 2023: Dustin Smith, Chad Dybdahl, Nathan Seable and Joseph Schmidt.
In May, the board adopted a more robust parental rights policy, which says parents have a right to "know what their children are being taught", review curriculum materials and have access to reading lists, supplemental materials and books in the library, among other things.
The board has also received pushback from the teachers union over its proposed policy on instructional and library materials. The union said it could lead to censorship and book banning.
...
In 2021, the district fired two employees when they created a video called “I Resolve Movement: Response to Gender Identity Policies.”
In it, they discuss a series of resolutions regarding transgender students’ pronouns, name changes and bathroom access at school that some consider to be transphobic. The employees encouraged viewers to contact political representatives to advocate for their message.
After receiving what the district claimed was nearly 100 complaints, it placed the pair on leave and later fired them for violating district policies. (The board later reversed its decision; one of them is still employed by the district).
The two women sued, claiming their First Amendment right to free speech was violated. In March 2023, the case was dismissed. In June 2024, they took the case to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, where it remains.
Athens-Limestone Public Library (AL) won’t get their funding until they get at least two more people running for the board. As in right-wing anti-library advocateshttps://www.enewscourier.com/news/loc...
During its meeting Tuesday, Sept. 3, the Limestone County Commission announced that it will suspend all funds to the Athens-Limestone County Public Library until they receive at least two new library board representatives.
This decision comes two months after the Commission came to a unanimous agreement on the creation of a joint library board with the city of Athens, and after more than 15 years of no county appointments.
“We’ve had a great working relationship with the city, and the concerned citizens, through this whole situation,” Limestone County Commission Chairman Collin Daly told The News Courier after the meeting at the Clinton Street Courthouse Annex concluded. “We don’t want to get into something that we are going to have to do again. We want to get this thing right the first time, so they will not get funding until we get that.”
The County Commission had previously set Oct. 1 — the beginning of the 2024-2025 Fiscal Year — as the deadline to reach a resolution on the library board with the city. Daly said that the library will still appear in the upcoming budget for the new fiscal year, but all money will be held until they receive appointees.
“Shane Black, the city’s attorney, and our attorney, Drew Dill have been working back and forth on this for the past few months,” Daly said. “There has been a third-party attorney hired, and we’ve got to wait until all of that gets cleared up. It may be a few months, but we are working through it together.”
The third-party attorney represents similar values to the Moms for Liberty .
Elizabeth Stewart, a Limestone County resident who has been outspoken in her stance against those same policies after previously meeting with Alabama Public Library Service Board of Trustees in May, sent a message to the commission that was read on Tuesday.
“Obscenity should be based off of state provided definition APLS provided, and not contextualized,” Stewart stated in her message read by Dill. “Again, APLS, the governor and local citizens are not and have never called for book banning. The request has been for sensible policies that ensure adult material stays in adult sections.”
Roy Mattson, another Limestone County resident who petitioned the APLS board with Stewart, also spoke to the commission during the work session Tuesday and reciprocated that statement.
“This has been taxation without representation for many years now,” Mattson told The News Courier after the meeting. “They’ve been sending in outdated policies to the State and they are getting our county’s money for it. The current library board does not reflect any county representatives, so I commend the commission for holding their money.”
Alaska“Libraries around the state are scrambling after learning a key state grant was being slashed six weeks into the fiscal year. Small libraries stand to be hit the hardest, and in some cases, may be forced to close their doors entirely.
Sen. Jesse Bjorkman, a Republican from Nikiski, went to the meeting as well. He said the legislature fully funded the library division and the decision to cut grant funding was internal.
“We have not been able to identify why that money left that program or where it went to only that the money was not given initially to that grant program.”
Highland Park, TexasThe book banners aren't satisfied and are coming for more
https://www.peoplenewspapers.com/2024...
HPISD’s Board of Trustees voted 5-2 in July to remove the book All Boys Aren’t Blue from the Highland Park High School library, and the memoir’s challengers have suggested that other books should also be pulled from library shelves.
“We have existing libraries, and we have a lot of bad books in them,” HPISD parent Austin Hopper told the board. “This is just the beginning. This is the first one of those books that we’re talking to the board about.”
Just three books — All Boys Aren’t Blue, The Witch Boy, and Ho’Onani: Hula Warrior [NOT pervasively vulgar, unsuitable. IT IS very educational] — are listed on HPISD’s website as having been formally challenged. All Boys Aren’t Blue is the only book that has been removed from shelves.
But districts across the state are grappling with how to implement the requirements of House Bill 900, which prohibits school districts from possessing certain library materials, including those deemed “pervasively vulgar or educationally unsuitable.”
Some districts have developed detailed rubrics outlining specific behaviors that cannot be in library books at various grade levels, while others require that school boards approve all new library acquisitions, or that purchases be posted on the district website for public comment.
“All of this increases the workload on district staff and librarians,” said Shirley Robinson, executive director of the Texas Library Association, “and results in a very cumbersome process for building a library collection to serve the needs of all students.”
81 books removed from school library shelves in Council Bluffs IowaPaywalled
https://nonpareilonline.com/news/loca...
Kelly Jensen of BookRiot reports "Moms For Liberty members in Yolo County (CA) seem to have missed the memo that they aren’t against public libraries because they’re causing a scene about funding the local public libraries."https://www.davisenterprise.com/townn...
IndianaBartholomew Consolidated School Corp. agrees to keep Push in the school library
https://www.therepublic.com/2024/09/1...
The request for review of the book was submitted by local resident Mark Niemoeller.
The 7-0 vote came after a failed motion by District 6 board member Logan Schulz to amend the committee’s findings so that the book could remain on the shelves, but only be checked out with parental consent.
“The motion that has been made is to amend the proposed findings as they were written, it (the findings) just said ‘remain on the shelves.’ This first question is, do you want to add to that ‘available with parental consent,’” BCSC Attorney Michael McIver clarified before members cast votes.
That motion received two votes in favor — one from Schulz and another from District 1 board member Jason Major. After, the motion to uphold the committee’s findings as they were originally written was approved 7-0.
A Beaufort County [SC] parent who threw chicken feed at school board members and harassed two teachers, is just one of five people who were listed in a defamation suit by a Hilton Head Island Middle School teacher last week.” https://ca.news.yahoo.com/beaufort-co...
Attorney Meg Phelan of the Equality Legal Action Fund, a group consisting of volunteer attorneys and advocates who represents educators, public officials, elected officials and members of the LGBTQ+ community against defamation, took on the case pro-bono. Phelan on behalf of Burleson is suing the following for slander and libel:
Thomas Beach — SC State Representative for District 10
David Cook — outspoken critic of book review process
Michael Covert — former Beaufort County Council member who sent the list of books to district superintendent before they were pulled off shelves
Elizabeth (Ivie) Szalai — parent who sent the list of books to district superintendent before they were pulled off shelves
Corey Whittington (Corey Allen) — author of online blog “The Overton Report”
...
The school district is unable to comment on pending litigation, according to Beaufort County School District spokesperson Candace Bruder, but it is known that Cook is not allowed on school property after details of the harassment were made public. However, Cook is still allowed to pick-up and drop-off his children and attend school board meetings. For any additional access to school campuses, he must contact Director of Protective Services David Grissom.
The other defendants, especially Whittington and Covert, used social media and their podcasts to spread defamatory claims...
Whittington published blog posts and social media content, referring to Burleson as a “groomer,” while Covert shared these claims on his podcast and social media. These accusations were repeated by other defendants, including Szalai and Beach, who reposted and commented on the claims.
Burleson alleges that the defendants’ statements were false and defamatory, damaging her reputation as a teacher and causing significant emotional distress. The accusations were made with malice and the intent to harm her, both personally and professionally, according to the court filings. The defendants continued to make these defamatory statements, even after Burleson addressed the concerns raised by Cook and amended the survey to prevent further conflict.
“No American deserves to be the target of disinformation, defamation, harassment and intimidation,” Phelan said. “So, what we are trying to do is show extremists that not all speech is protected under the First amendment. We cannot use defamatory language with impunity.”
In addition to defamation, Burleson argues that the defendants’ accusations of grooming were particularly damaging because they falsely implied criminal conduct involving s---al abuse of minors. The defendants portrayed Burleson as someone unfit to be around children, which could lead to serious consequences, including the loss of her teaching position, damage to her professional standing and even legal ramifications.
The court filings details how the defendants continued their public campaign against Burleson across social media platforms, podcasts and even school board meetings, calling for her removal as a teacher. Burleson claims that these actions have not only harmed her professional reputation but also caused her personal anguish, fearing for her safety and that of her family, especially after her child was mentioned in these defamatory attacks.
Burleson is seeking damages from the defendants for slander and libel, arguing that their false statements have caused irreparable harm to her reputation and well-being, according to the court filings. She is asking for actual and special damages, as well as punitive damages, to deter the defendants from engaging in such behavior in the future.
Some good news in MissouriSt. Joseph Public Schools (MO) will not be banning Crank nor This Book Is Antiracist.
Board members voted 4-2 to retain "This Book is Anti-Racist" by Tiffany Jewell and "Crank" by Ellen Hopkins without restriction.
LaTonya Williams, Mike Moore, Whitney Lanning, and Rick Gehring voted "yes" to retain the books, while Rhonda Chesney and Kim Miller voted "no." Isaura Garcia was not at the meeting.
https://www.kq2.com/news/sjsd-board-o...
Pennsylvania-Lehighton Area High School is considering making some books accessible to students through permission slips only. Still censorship.
https://www.tiogapublishing.com/news/...
Battle over books may be brewing in Carbon County school district, as school board weighs potential audit of some books
here is a list of books that may end up requiring parental permission for students to access them in the Lehighton Area High School library.
A couple of book topics brought up at Monday's school board meeting pertained to human trafficking and sexuality.
It was standing room only at the meeting, where people spoke both in favor of and against the idea of having an audit.
The board's treasurer said that this would not put a ban on the 33 books listed.
...
The board said they would like to know what people's opinion is on all of this and there will be more discussion in the future.
Here’s a video of the school board member who wants to audit the books because they groom children.
https://www.brctv13.com/news/local-ne...
The State Department of Education in Oklahoma has been told by a federal judge they must explain the reason behind revoking Summer Boismier’s teaching license. https://www.news9.com/story/66e04bfaf...
Cy-Fair ISD’s libraries are frequently closed after trustees cut librarian positions in halfThe school board for the Houston-area district has exerted more control over library and instructional materials since politically conservative members won a 6-1 majority last November.
https://www.houstonpublicmedia.org/ar...
More stories I found on GoogleOklahoma City: Court filing reveals former Norman teacher’s certificate revoked over law the state largely cannot enforce
https://kfor.com/news/local/court-fil...
A federal court filing Thursday revealed State Superintendent Ryan Walters and members of the Oklahoma State Board of Education (OSBE) chose to revoke a former Norman teacher’s teaching certificate last month because they believed she violated House Bill 1775—a law the state is, in large part, not allowed to enforce.
Walters and OSBE members voted unanimously on revoking the teaching certificate of former Norman teacher, Summer Boismier, at their meeting on August 22.
At the time, they did not provide the public any copies of their revocation order.
Last week, U.S. District Court Judge, Charles Goodwin, ordered Walters and board members to provide him with their official revocation order and meeting minutes, as well as any other documents to explain why they voted to revoke her license by Thursday, September 12.
On Thursday, Walters and OSBE members partially complied with Goodwin, giving him their revocation order for Boismier’s certificate.
The revocation order indicates Walters and the board revoked Boismier’s certificate because they believe she “willfully violated” Oklahoma laws, including the state’s so-called ‘anti-CRT’ law, House Bill 1775.
The revocation order indicates it was written on June 27, however, it was not approved until OSBE’s August 22 meeting, when they took a unanimous vote.
“She broke the law,” Walters said of Boismier after the meeting. “When you have a teacher that breaks the law, says she broke the law, says she’ll continue to break the law… that can’t stand.”
The order said Boismier “intended to entice her students to seek out and read” inappropriate books by posting a QR code linked to a public library’s website in her classroom back in 2021.
“Boismier willfully violated OAC 210:10-29-2, OAC 210:20-29-3, and OAC 210:20-29-4 by circumventing district policy and 70 O.S. §24-157 (then HB 1775). Such violation supports the revocation of Boismier’s teaching certificate,” the revocation order says.
That paragraph of the order also includes a footnote, indicating Walters and the board believe the revocation order is still valid, despite a federal judge’s order banning Oklahoma from enforcing most of HB 1775 while a lawsuit challenging the house bill is being heard.
The footnote said “nothing” in the order relied on the parts of HB 1775 that the judge ordered, could not to be enforced. It did not cite which enforceable parts of HB 1775 it did rely on.
“They didn’t even dissect anything out of 1775,” said State Sen. Mary Boren (D-Norman). “I think that’s very curious to me that that they think that they can get away with enforcing House Bill 1775 and try to cover themselves in a footnote.”
Footnote or not, Boren says it shouldn’t matter, because a fact-finding investigation by the Oklahoma Attorney General’s office last year found Boismier didn’t “willfully violate” any law at all — including HB 1775.
In that investigation, the state’s fact-finder concluded Boismier’s certificate should not be revoked.
“So now in front of a federal court, they’re persisting to prove or show how a teacher violated House bill 1775,” Boren said. “And as they’re doing it, they’re disregarding fact-finder’s conclusions.”
FloridaPasco libraries ‘suppress’ more than 100 children’s books with LGBTQ+ themes
https://www.tampabay.com/news/educati...
The removals came after a county commissioner requested an audit of materials. Reviews are underway.
Florida’s battle over children’s books with LGBTQ+ characters and themes has landed in Pasco County.
The county’s public library system has pulled 130 books off its shelves after Commissioner Seth Weightman called for an audit of titles that he said have “disturbing” content. The list includes “And Tango Makes Three,” which publishers have sued to get returned to Florida school districts, “Beloved” by Toni Morrison and “The Perks of Being a Wallflower” by Stephen Chbosky.
Weightman told his colleagues he acted after one “customer” [That would be patron... ] raised concerns about the book “Calvin” in the library’s picture book section. The story by J.R. and Vanessa Ford is about a transgender child figuring out how to introduce himself to the world.
It appears “harmless” at first glance, Weightman said during a Sept. 3 meeting. But “it is adult conversation in our kids’ environment about
County libraries have not been as widely involved in the discussion, said Stephana Ferrell, who tracks book challenges for Florida Freedom to Read Project. She said only a handful of counties, such as Citrus and Manatee, have dealt with the issue.
But, Ferrell said, “We knew this was coming.”
Weightman, who has young children, said he asked county staff to look at the library collection using the Florida Department of Education’s annual challenged books list as a guide. That list, released in the fall, names the books that the public has objected to, along with the reasons and the outcomes.
Pasco’s list of 130 books included 100 from the department’s list, Weightman said, along with another 30 that the staff identified on its own. Aside from “Calvin,” none of the books were the subject of a public challenge, a county spokesperson said.
Weightman asked to have the books sent to the county’s library advisory board to determine whether they should remain available.
Why wait, asked commissioner Jack Mariano.
“Why this is in our library is beyond me,” Mariano said. " I don’t think we need to wait on a committee. ... This is absolutely horrendous.”
He was poised to make a motion to unilaterally remove the books until county attorney Jeffrey Steinsnyder cautioned against such an action.
“We have set up a process for these books to be vetted. I would highly encourage the board to allow that process to work,” Steinsnyder said, noting that school districts and the state have faced lawsuits over book challenges. The commission ultimately agreed to let the review process take its course.
Even so, members of the public took note and began to speak out.
Bridget Killebrew, a Pasco mom of 7-year-old triplets, attended the library advisory board’s meeting Tuesday to learn more after seeing Weightman’s comments on Instagram. She said her family has been using library programs more frequently, and she was glad to see the county staff slow the push to ban the books.
“We deserve to have access to books in the public library,” Killebrew said. “We have people in our community who are trans, who are gay. They deserve to be represented. It’s not going to be erased.”
Hillsborough County resident Carmen Alvarez also attended the meeting. Alvarez said she was disappointed to see the county attempting to apply a challenged law intended for school materials to its public libraries. She said she was equally disturbed to see efforts to “other” LGBTQ+ youth.
“They are picking on a marginalized part of the population. They are picking on them, taking books about them out of the library,” Alvarez said. “You’re setting the state up to harm trans people.”
“Calvin” co-author Vanessa Ford said her book, based on her own child’s experiences, has been challenged before, but usually just as part of a list and not held out as the primary example, as occurred at the Pasco County Commission meeting.
Book bans cost Utah taxpayers thousands of dollars. Here’s how much two school districts spent.Two Utah school districts removed all 13 titles now banned in public schools statewide — and collectively spent more than $29,000 to do so.
https://www.sltrib.com/news/education...
South CarolinaControversy over new guidelines for book shelving in Columbia County libraries
https://www.wjbf.com/news/controversy...
Those new guidelines address the age-appropriateness of books. Since they were approved by the county’s board of commissioners, some previously Young Adult or Teen books have been moved to the Adult section.
“The library advisory board is an advisory board, so they sent a draft of some proposed additions to the guidelines for the commission to review and adopt,” said District 4 Commissioner Alison Couch.
Couch said these additions add to the old standards, which were vague and didn’t specifically address what kind of book should be in which sections.
There’s a cataloguer that’s employed under the library staff, and the cataloguer would use these guidelines to determine where the books will be shelved in the library,” Couch said.
Andy Mueller, an Evans resident who’s opposed to the guidelines, thinks this still falls under censorship.
“This has made it harder and more difficult for the teens when they actually do start moving books based on these very, very open to interpretation guidelines, those books they’re gonna be moving,” Mueller said. “Right now it might be LGBTQ books that keep coming up, but based on these guidelines, you’re gonna start seeing all books being under review.”
Some books recently brought to the library board for reconsideration had LGBTQ+ content.
Couch said they were moved to the Adult section based solely on their s---al and profane content. She said one book under review with LGBTQ+ content was a children’s book, and it was not moved.
“Number one highlights under defining what s----ally explicit content is, its (view spoiler) heterosexual or homosexual,” Couch said.
In regard to Mueller’s claims that the new guidelines are not specific and open to interpretation, Couch said, “There is still some subjectivity to this, however the guidelines do provide some additional criteria and information to help define, but I don’t think there’s a way to one hundred percent make this objective. So, I think there will remain some subjectivity to it not matter how hard you try to clarify.”
Mueller believes moving books based on these guidelines violates people’s rights to access information in a public library and will create more issues in the future.
Couch said the new guidelines do not restrict anyone from accessing the books – they just make it easier for cataloguers to categorize them.
“The books are still accessible, we have not banned books or removed books from the library,” Couch said. “Anyone that holds a library card, and there’s not any age limit to that, can access any book or check out any book from any section of any Columbia County library.”
The library has a process for which people can submit books for reconsideration
An excellent letter to the editor in Utah"Here’s what reading banned books taught me"
https://www.sltrib.com/opinion/letter...
https://www.msnbc.com/ali-velshi/watc...Velshi Banned Book Club: Laurie Halse Anderson and the coalition fighting book banning in the courts
And in contrast to the English-speaking countries and our Puritanical hysteria, Japan is handling the issue of sex ed more sensibly. Parents *GASP* ASKED for help educating their children!Midwife in Japan publishes picture book on sex education in response to parents' voices
She says "For a long time in Japan, the idea that "sex" is something that must be hidden or shameful has permeated adults' thinking, but the basis of sex education is dialogue. Instead of talking about the body, we must first teach them (children) that their own existence is very important and that they are loved."
"It's important to talk about this repeatedly, in accordance with the growth and development of the body. Sex education is broad and deep to start with, covering human rights, ways of life, and how to communicate with others."
https://mainichi.jp/english/articles/...
This would so get banned/soft censored in way too many places here in the U.S. and even in Australia, New Zealand and UK.
Ha! Former Oklahoma teacher says board used 'profoundly stupid work of fiction' to justify revoking license
https://www.oklahoman.com/story/news/...
Now Ryan Walters is under investigation for misspent pandemic relief funds. His reign of terror must come to an end soon surely.
This is sad and we need to know which books have been removed, by whom and why!https://www.chalkbeat.org/tennessee/2...
Some books quietly pulled under stricter Tennessee school library law
A recent survey of members of the Tennessee Association of School Librarians found that more than 1,100 titles have been removed under the changes, with more under review. One librarian anonymously reported pulling 300 titles at a single school since the start of the academic year. Only a sixth of the organization’s members responded to the survey.
“We may never truly know the level to which books have been removed from school libraries in Tennessee,” the organization said in a statement, noting that large-scale removals may cause some libraries to fall under the state’s minimum standards for collection counts.
“A literal interpretation of this law may have the unintended consequences of gutting resources that support curriculum standards for fine arts, biology, health, history, and world religions, to name a few, especially in high schools, where AP curriculum and dual enrollment courses require more critical texts,” the group said.
Lindsey Kimery, one of the organization’s leaders, said the law’s rollout has created “chaos and confusion” for school librarians.
“Some librarians have received guidance from their central office; some have not,” she said. “Some boards are updating their policies for handling book challenges to align with the law’s changes. Some districts have interpreted the law to mean they should preemptively go through their collections and pull anything they think has one of the prohibited topics in it.
“It’s all over the map,” Kimery added.
‘Phantom book banning’: Censorship in the shadows
The quiet censorship is being noticed by First Amendment advocates, from the ACLU of Tennessee to Julia Garnett, who graduated last spring from Hendersonville High School in Sumner County, north of Nashville.
Garnett started a free speech club at her high school during her senior year. Now a freshman at Smith College in Massachusetts, she is the youth spokesperson for the American Library Association’s Banned Books Week, Sept. 22-28.
Last week, she searched her alma mater’s online library catalog to look for books by Sarah J. Maas and Ellen Hopkins, whose popular young adult novels are frequently challenged or banned due to their mature themes and sexual content.
None were listed.
“They used to be there, but they’ve disappeared,” said Garnett. “I call it phantom book banning, where libraries are being censored, but not in a public way. I think that’s what scares me the most.”
The law is vulnerable to a federal challenge on First Amendment grounds, said Kathy Sinback, executive director of the ACLU of Tennessee. The statute’s vagueness, a lack of compliance guidance from the state, and the uneven way the law is being applied across Tennessee are among issues that open the door to a lawsuit.
“But we’d love to see the legislature fix the problems next year without having to pursue litigation,” Sinback said. “We’d like to see it made constitutional in a way that will ensure our children have access to the literature they deserve.”
The House sponsor of the law’s recent revisions, Rep. Susan Lynn of Mt. Juliet, did not respond to emails asking if she’d be open to revisiting the law. Some of her critics worry the goal is ultimately to take a legal challenge to the U.S. Supreme Court, where conservatives hold a majority.
The Senate sponsor, Joey Hensley of Hohenwald, said he believes the law is constitutional.
..
In Murfreesboro, a college town that is home to about 50,000 students in Tennessee’s largest suburban K-12 district, most titles removed so far were in high school libraries. They generally were contemporary young adult novels containing s----al content and other mature themes, from child abuse and suicide to substance abuse and LGBTQ+ issues.
The books were flagged as “s---ally explicit” material by school board member Caleb Tidwell and removed this spring without going through the district’s library review committee that includes a principal, teachers, librarians, and a parent.
Xan Lasko, who recently retired as a high school librarian in Rutherford County, said the directives she received from Superintendent James Sullivan bypassed the district’s usual review process for handling complaints. Instead, Tidwell cited a provision of board policy requiring the immediate removal of s---ally explicit material. Sullivan concurred, according to their email exchange obtained from the district through a public records request from Nashville TV station WSMV.
Tidwell, a Republican who was reelected to the school board in August, said he made the requests on behalf of individuals who have expressed concerns but who feared retaliation from the media and individuals in the district.
In his opinion, all of the materials in question violate both the state’s obscenity law and local board policy. Most, he said, have “education value near zero, or very low.” For those that provide historical context, other books that go into those topics — but without s---ally explicit language — are available.
“It’s a very contentious topic,” said Tidwell, who has three school-age children. “But if we focus on the content, most of this stuff is pretty clear. Yes, there is some subjectiveness to it, but there’s also a line. We need to determine what the line is, and then hold it.”
Lasko, the former librarian, said that’s what librarians and educators do.
“My biggest issue is that a small number of people were making the judgment to curtail what students are able to read using a vague law,” said Lasko, who now chairs the intellectual freedom committee of the Tennessee Association of School Librarians.
“We have master’s degrees in library science. We know what we’re doing,” she said. “But a lot of times, we weren’t being consulted.”
In advance of this week’s vote on Tidwell’s latest request to remove more books, the board revamped its library materials policy to add language from the revised state law. It also eliminated the 11-member review committee appointed annually by the board to consider book complaints.
Instead, materials that district leaders deem to be in violation of the state’s obscenity law are to be immediately removed from all school libraries and then reviewed for a final decision by the board.
A second avenue for removal — through complaints filed by a student, parent, or school employee — also requires a board vote after receiving recommendations from the principal and superintendent and a review by an ad hoc committee.
"Before,” said the ACLU’s Sinback, “there was a thorough process where every person on the review committee had expertise and would read the book. They’d look at the questionable content but also the overall quality of the material and how it could impact kids exposed to it in both a positive and negative way.”
Now, she said, the decision rests completely with board members.
The changes concern school librarians like Brian Seadorf, who oversees the collection at Blackman High School in Murfreesboro. He asked board members and parents to “just talk to us” if they have concerns about certain books.
Angela Frederick, a Rutherford County resident and school librarian in a neighboring district, added: “The titles you’re considering removing are for older students approaching adulthood. It is developmentally appropriate for teenagers to mentally wrestle with difficult topics. It is also excellent preparation for higher education. Shielding them from books like these does not prepare them for anything but ignorance.
MontanaSchool board approves new book policy after monthslong saga
https://billingsgazette.com/news/loca...
Billings school board considers library book policies
https://www.ktvq.com/news/local-news/...
New laws involving school libraries led to the School District 2 board to review its library book policies.
The school board looked over some of its policies including the proposed library book policy, which is following the Montana School Boards Association recommendations.
After several months, the school board decided to consider the model policy from the association and approved it its first of three readings.
“It is a review that did two things to make sure that we were meshing with state law,” said Scott McCulloch, Billings Public School board chair.
McCulloch asked the administration to include the correct language to make the current procedure legal.
“They have changed some of the definitions that were involved with the obscenity law and they also changed the applications of purchasing policy,” McCulloch said. “So those kinds of things will be reflected by the work we do.”
Some parents want librarians to choose library books.
“I don't think that we should be going into our schools and libraries and telling our librarians how to do their jobs,” said Clementine Lindley, a parent.
policies, passes first reading
Billings school board considers library book policies
school board meeting_1.18.1.dpx
By: David JayPosted 2:59 AM, Sep 17, 2024 and last updated 8:02 AM, Sep 17, 2024
BILLINGS - New laws involving school libraries led to the School District 2 board to review its library book policies.
The school board looked over some of its policies including the proposed library book policy, which is following the Montana School Boards Association recommendations.
After several months, the school board decided to consider the model policy from the association and approved it its first of three readings.
“It is a review that did two things to make sure that we were meshing with state law,” said Scott McCulloch, Billings Public School board chair.
McCulloch asked the administration to include the correct language to make the current procedure legal.
“They have changed some of the definitions that were involved with the obscenity law and they also changed the applications of purchasing policy,” McCulloch said. “So those kinds of things will be reflected by the work we do.”
Some parents want librarians to choose library books.
“I don't think that we should be going into our schools and libraries and telling our librarians how to do their jobs,” said Clementine Lindley, a parent.
Others have concerns with the proposed policy.
“Exposing minors to s---ally explicit material hurts them,” Addie Bedford, a parent, said in a written statement emailed to Q2. “And I want that to stop and be prevented from occurring in the future.”
One board member offered an amendment and wanted to eliminate the statements about the superintendent delegating the selection of library materials to the principal and the principal delegating that authority to librarians.
“The board may not be permitted to delegate that responsibility as section 204 is currently written, that's per our expert legal counsel,” Brooke Wagner, trustee, read from an email sent to her by the school district’s attorney.
The board voted not to eliminate those statements and also voted against some other proposed changes to the school board's association model policy.
McCullouch wants to leave that selection to the librarians.
“Purchasing policy has to rely on somebody else to review those and the most logical place for that to occur is with librarians,” McCulloch said.
It's a discussion that may continue with two more readings at two more meetings.
NPR storyFighting back on book bans
https://www.npr.org/2024/09/18/120012...
Captain Underpants harmful to minors because there's FARTING?! Kids looveveee fart jokes and make them all the time. They looveee this series!
Watertown, New York school board looking at removing 47 library bookshttps://www.wwnytv.com/2024/09/17/wat...
Tuesday, the school board agenda showed a list of 47 books that were recommended to be taken off the shelves at Watertown High School’s library. (The list is no longer on the agenda on the district’s website.)
It included books like “Immigration and Illegal Aliens: Burden or Blessing,” “Bill Cosby: Entertainer and Activist,” and “Dictionary of Afro-American Slavery.”
In a letter to the school board, Abigail Wilcox, a library media specialist, gave these 5 reasons the books should go:
Objectionable content
Age
Outdated information
Haven’t been checked out in years
Poor condition
It’s a common practice at the school. However, a closer look at the list shows an author whose books have been banned in other states. (the “A Court of Thorns and Roses” series)
Watertown school board member Milly Smith spoke with Wilcox who is making the recommendation.
“I did extensively discuss with her what her position was on these books and did she actually look and review the contents of these books and she’s actually an advocate for some of these books, but not within a school setting,” she said.
National headlines show concern from advocacy groups in various states that banning books from schools can infringe on First Amendment rights. Smith doesn’t see it that way. She simply believes a high school library isn’t the right spot for these books.
“The concept here is are these books appropriate to be available on the shelf of a school library? And the answer to that was no,” said Smith.
The list was set to be voted on at Tuesday’s school board meeting, but as of 4 p.m., it appears the item has been pulled from the agenda.
Today's news brought to you by OregonOregon libraries see record number of book ban requests in 2023-2024
https://www.koin.com/news/oregon/list...
The State received 151 book challenges in public libraries, schools and colleges between July of 2023 and June of 2024, data provided by the Oregon Intellectual Freedom Clearinghouse shows. The previous record was 93, set during the 2022-2023 school year.
The State Library of Oregon defines a book “challenge” as: “Any attempt to remove or restrict access to a library material, service, or program based on the objection of a person or group.”
In total, people challenged 116 books, 30 graphic novels, two magazines, two videos and one pamphlet in Oregon libraries within the last year. The most common complaints against the books stated that they had “s---ally explicit or p----graphic” material or “included content about people who are two-spirit, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, asexual, or other identities related to sexual orientation or gender identity,” the State Library of Oregon said. Other challenges included complaints about profanity or that books were unsuited for the age groups they were written for.
Despite the complaints, Oregon libraries will continue to offer a diverse range of books for all readers.
Roughly 72% of all the books and other materials challenged in the last year were retained, the Oregon Intellectual Freedom Clearinghouse 2024 Report states. Roughly 18% were restricted or removed and more remain under review. The most challenged books in Oregon libraries during the 2023-2024 school year included: “Beyond Magenta” by Susan Kuklin, “Flamer” by Mike Curato and “Heartstopper Vol. 1” by Alice Oseman.
________________________________
THIS is silly. The book is middle grades and the main character's dad is marrying another man. His partner is worried about his own family's reaction to the news . It's perfectly suited for the age group and shouldn't be restricted. The challenger didn't even come forward to say who they are and what they objected to.
List of Things That Will Not Change by Rebecca Stead
Also middle grades
Molly and the Twin Towers: A 9/11 Survival Story by Jessika Fleck and Jane Pica
This should not be restricted either. The girls have two dads which is more unusual for 2001 even in New York.
And the one that takes the cake...
Unknown (Identified only as “MG graphic novel”) challenge reason: Sexism By: Unknown Family member in: School Result: Removed
Florida Attorney General's Office heading out of state to defend Texas library book banshttps://www.tallahassee.com/story/new...
The Florida Attorney General’s Office joined 17 other red states in filing a court brief defending a Texas county's removal of 17 books from its library system. They claim that book removals are "government speech" and therefore don't violate others’ First Amendment rights.
The legal doctrine is essentially a First Amendment exception that says governments can discriminate based on viewpoint or content when they speak for themselves.
Next week, Florida Solicitor General Henry Whitaker will argue that before a federal appeals court in New Orleans. To make this happen, Llano County – located in Central Texas, population 22,540 – ceded some of its speaking time to Florida.
“The county’s decisions over which books to offer its patrons in its public libraries, at its own expense, are its own speech,” the states wrote in their August filing to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, which includes Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas. (Public libraries are publicly funded.)
“The government does not violate anyone’s free speech rights merely by speaking — no matter what it chooses to say or not to say,” they continued.
Texas U.S. District Judge Robert Pitman, appointed by President Obama, ordered the county the removed books last year, writing that those suing “have sufficiently alleged that Defendants’ actions do not constitute government speech and that Defendants unlawfully removed books based on their viewpoint.”
The books removed ranged from ones about farts to ones about racism and LGBTQ topics. County residents who used the local library system filed the lawsuit.
The district court's decision was appealed by the county. A conservative three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit agreed in part with the original ruling, saying eight of the 17 books had to be returned.
“We agree that library personnel must necessarily consider content in curating a collection,” it wrote in its June decision. “However, the Court has nowhere held that the government may make these decisions based solely on the intent to deprive the public of access to ideas with which it disagrees. That would violate the First Amendment and entirely shield all collection decisions from challenge.”
But U.S. District Judge Stuart Kyle Duncan dissented, slamming the other two conservative judges as “Federal Library Police.”
“There is a simple answer to the question posed by this case: A public library’s choice of some books for its collection, and its rejection of others, is government speech,” wrote Duncan, who was appointed by Trump.
A majority of the 17-member appeals court tossed that decision and ordered a rehearing, setting up the Tuesday morning hearing where Whitaker will appear.
“Our office is routinely involved with amicus briefs, especially when they involve state issues,” said Kylie Mason, Moody's spokesperson, in an email. “It is also not unusual for us to appear at an argument when we draft a (friend of the court) brief.”
Mason said the crafting of the court brief came at no extra cost to the state, since “there is no additional cost for a salaried employee to help draft a brief,” but did not answer price questions about travel.
The Florida Freedom to Read Project, a book access advocacy organization, warned the public in a social media post to “pay attention” to this case: “They will keep presenting this ridiculous argument until they find a friendly court,” it wrote.
...
“Regardless of whether book-banning campaigns target the Bible or Judy Blume, politicized efforts to restrict access to information cannot be reconciled with the Founders’ faith in the free exchange of ideas and our national commitment to freedom of expression,” wrote the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression in a brief for the Llano County case.
“These battles will persist until the courts declare that the only way to win is not to play.”
Heading into Banned Books Week, there's TONS of newsThis does not sound like protecting the children to me.
https://www.ksdk.com/article/news/edu...
Francis Howell (Missouri) school board reverses ban on hate speech, false information in educational materials
Francis Howell school board reverses ban on hate speech, false information in educational materials
The Francis Howell School District previously had a policy banning educational materials with hate speech, false science and false historical claims.
Late Thursday night, the Francis Howell Board of Education approved a controversial policy update that's not sitting well with many in their community. It includes allowing hate speech and misinformation in educational materials.
The Francis Howell School District previously had a policy banning educational materials with hate speech, false science, and false historical claims.
The board voted 5-2 to reverse an August vote that banned these materials, citing advice from legal counsel.
"I think it's disrespectful to our students to allow this kind of information within our schools. I don't think it serves anyone in any way," said Harper Schneider, a Francis Howell North High School junior.
"I feel it could be harmful to most students seeing how there's a big diversity in our school. And I feel that some people would be offended by what is being taught in our classes," said Levi Martin, a Francis Howell Central High School junior.
Students Schneider and Martin are frustrated that the school board keeps implementing new policies and not focusing enough on other issues.
5 On Your Side asked the Francis Howell School District for their response on the approved policy and how they plan to proceed.
"The recent changes to Policy 6241 were based on guidance from the district's legal counsel. To be clear, the Francis Howell School District does not condone hate speech or discrimination, and we have policies and procedures in place, including in the Code of Student Conduct, that lay out consequences for those who engage in these activities.
The Francis Howell School District said, "Removing ambiguous terms from a policy about instructional materials should not be misconstrued to suggest that teachers and administrators are selecting materials that are not suitable for the classroom."
Zebrina Looney, NAACP president of the St. Charles County Branch, also weighed in, saying the school district "has continued down their path of hypocrisy and obstruction."
"Months after manufacturing a need to restructure of Black History and Black Literature classes, despite being in the wake of repeated allegations of discrimination we are now seeing the latest attempt to create an unsafe environment for staff and students. FHSD-5 needs to stop with the culture wars and focus on academic excellence," Looney said.
The move comes as Francis Howell has a new book ban in place that prevents students from reading books with references to alcohol or drug use, s-x, or ongoing profanity.
"By refusing to acknowledge the dangers of hate speech and misinformation, our Board of Education is doing a disservice to all FHSD students. We call on our leaders to stop the culture wars and focus on academic excellence," said Jamie Martin, President of Francis Howell Forward.
"I think the racism and the transphobia you all are doing, it's awful," one parent told the board.
"It doesn't serve the students," another speaker said during public comment.
Board member Randy Cook proposed the change, saying students should be exposed to "a wide variety of viewpoints." There was pushback during public comments before the vote.
"I think we should see viewpoints that don't cross the line of hate and discrimination," Schneider said.
Board member Steven Blair was against making this change, saying he doesn't want students to be misinformed.
Beloved and five other library books banned by one of Tennessee’s largest school systemshttps://www.chalkbeat.org/tennessee/2...
Also removed were Stephen Chbosky’s “The Perks of Being a Wallflower,” a coming-of-age novel in which a supporting character is gay, and “Wicked,” Gregory Maguire’s popular retelling of the classic “Wizard of Oz” tale.
But Sherry Shahan’s “Skin & Bones,” which delves into eating disorders, failed to get enough votes for removal and will stay on high school library shelves in Rutherford County Schools, a suburban district south of Nashville with about 50,000 students.
Tennessee legislators recently revised Gov. Bill Lee’s 2022 school library law to expand the definition of what books are prohibited. The goal, they said, is to ensure the materials are appropriate for the ages and maturity levels of the students who can access them.
But instead of holding public votes on questionable material as Rutherford County’s board did Thursday, the revised law has created confusion for librarians and school leaders, prompting many to quietly pull controversial books from the shelves. A recent survey of members of the Tennessee Association of School Librarians found that more than 1,100 titles have been removed statewide under the changes, with more under review.
Rutherford County’s board voted one by one on seven books under review at the request of board member Caleb Tidwell, who cited “s----lly explicit” content that he believes crossed the line of local community decency standards.
The votes came in a packed meeting room after two hours of public comment and debate, with more than a dozen citizens speaking both for and against Tidwell’s proposal. Some who opposed the books read several passages aloud.
Also removed were two novels by Sarah J. Maas, “Queen of Shadows” and “Tower of Dawn,” and Yaa Gyasi’s “Homegoing.”
[One scene in Wicked, folks, one scene! It's not in the musical or upcoming film in case they're wondering. I just checked on the film content earlier today.]
The decisions came after several board members expressed confusion over which state laws and policies to follow in making their decisions: the state’s criminal obscenity law that calls for review of the material as a whole, or the revised school library law that prohibits s---al content either “in whole or in part.”
Members also voted against considering a compromise from Stan Vaught, a newly elected board member who proposed creating mature reading areas within school libraries requiring parental approval for access. The seven books in question would be placed there, he said.
The ACLU of Tennessee, which sent a Sept. 16 letter urging board members to keep all seven books, said Thursday’s votes represented the viewpoints of a vocal minority who wants to ban books that address race, racism, LGBTQ+ rights, and marginalized groups.
“Rutherford County students will pay the price and be at a significant disadvantage compared to their peers across the state and the U.S. who have access to these materials and are developing the critical thinking skills needed for college and beyond,” Kathy Sinback, the organization’s executive director in Tennessee, said in a statement.
But Tidwell, who called for the books’ removal, said the decisions were a “win for the protection of minors,” and he hinted that more library books will be reviewed.
“While there is likely more work to do, tonight was a step forward,” he said after the meeting.
The district already removed 29 titles earlier this year, as well as one last year, Mike Curato’s “Flamer,” a graphic novel about a gay teenager struggling with his identity.
Ontario, CanadaSERIOUSLY?! How stupid do you want your students to be? So To Kill a Mockingbird is banned? Everything else written before the 1960s?
School board bans “white author” John Steinbeck’s book due to N-word
An Ontario school board has taken the extraordinary step of banning all books written by white authors that contain the “N-word” even if they have themes that counter racism.
An administrative procedures directive to educators by the Lambton Kent District School Board instructed teachers to never teach material written by white authors that contains the N-word.
“Written materials containing racial slurs or epithets should never be used in class if they are written by authors who do not belong to the group about whom the material is written (ie. John Steinbeck is a white author and the use of his novel, Of Mice and Men, is no longer acceptable as he uses the n-word throughout his writing),” wrote school board officials.
“There are times when teachers will use materials, that is connected to appropriately aged curriculum, by authors from racial backgrounds that contain racial slurs and epithets specific to that author’s racial group. As said before, great care must be taken in preparing students to encounter such texts.”
The school board emphasized that “teachers should never allow that word to be used aloud in class nor allow anyone to re-write that word out for anyone to see.”
“For clarity, the use of books that include the N-word will only be permitted if the author of the book is Black,” the directive reads.
Teachers are also required to read an in-depth trigger warning explaining that the book was written by a minority should it contain offensive language.
Attempts to ban the book have also been in the U.K. as recently as last year.
https://tnc.news/2024/09/19/school-bo...
Also banned in Surrey school district along with TKAM
https://www.surreynowleader.com/local...
In addition to Harper Lee’s novel, The Absolutely True Diary of a Part Time Indian by Sherman Alexie, In the Heat of the Night by John Ball and Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck were swapped out.
But, “We are not banning books,” Ritinder Matthew, communications director at Surrey Schools, insisted Thursday (Feb. 29).
“These books were reviewed a year ago because parents and caregivers shared experiences that their children had in our classrooms where they felt their child wasn’t in a safe situation. We made an equity scan and we made a commitment to make sure our spaces were equitable and that includes looking at curriculum, it includes looking at the resources we’re recommending.”
While racism is discussed in the four books, the district found that the texts were using harmful stereotypes of marginalized people and were no longer up-to-date, Matthew continued. In particular with To Kill a Mockingbird, which is written by a white person, a slur for Black people is used in the text, but it is normalized as a descriptive term – something Matthew said is “completely inappropriate and offensive.”
Teachers are still allowed to use the four books in classrooms, however, provided they do so “responsibly.”
“This means that they provide the appropriate guidance, context and support to help students understand the historical and social context of a literature, the harm caused by racism to Indigenous and Black communities and the impact on historically marginalized communities,” Matthew said.
While Surrey Teachers’ Union vice-president Lizanne Foster said she supports the district’s decision, some B.C. politicians had a different take on it.
Kevin Falcon, leader of the opposition BC United, called it “unbelievable.”
Premier David Eby, meanwhile, called the decision “crazy” during a press conference in New Westminster on Thursday.
Throughout the district, more than 5,000 copies of To Kill a Mockingbird are available in school libraries for students and in the teachers’ book resource room. If the book being requested is not available in the district but the principal allows the teacher to use it, they will then approve the funding for the book to be ordered, Matthew said.
Foster said the district’s decision felt like a natural step to take after a racial equity commitment was made.
“Twenty to 30 years ago, these books were just used in classrooms everywhere, not taking into consideration how a Black student in the classroom might feel, how an Indigenous student might feel, or how students might feel quite uncomfortable with discussions of the racist terms in this book. Thirty years ago, there was no consideration for that,” she said.
Matthew said updating the recommended-books list happens routinely in the district, and that this particular review and subsequent removal decision took one year.
“There are several teachers in our district who are continuing to use this resource but they’re doing so responsibly,” the district spokesperson noted, adding that some teachers may not have this ability so other books are being recommended instead.
Beloved by Toni Morrison, The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas, Brother by David Chariandy and Bitter by Akwaeke Emezi are among books on the list that have a critical analysis of racism embedded in the text and are explained through the lens of the marginalized person, rather than having them as a secondary voice, she said.
The decision to remove the four books from the list was made by a panel of 12 teachers, led by a group of researchers and experts on racial equity and inclusive education. The teachers did independent reviews of the recommended resources, ultimately determining that the four should no longer be recommended, Matthew said.
Surrey school board and the Education Ministry did not approve the decision to update the reading list, as it was not required, Matthew said.
Opinion pieceFreed Between the Lines: Banned Books Week Reminds Us About What We Lose When Ideas Are Censored
https://shepherdexpress.com/news/proj...
How Black Parents Are Fighting Against Growing Book Bans They Say Are Efforts 'To Evade History'https://www.essence.com/lifestyle/boo...
Scottsbluff Star Herald: Arizona Sherry Preston: Banned Book Week notes 65% increase in challenged books
https://starherald.com/news/community...
paywalled
New England Public Media: When children's books get banned from library shelves, it's not just the kids who are [a]ffectedby Grace Lin
https://www.nepm.org/commentary/2024-...
FloridaAhead of Banned Books Week, meet Tampa Bay’s loudest literacy advocates
https://www.cltampa.com/arts/ahead-of...
Many of the governor-endorsed candidates for school boards lost in August’s primary, but others are headed for runoffs this fall. In Hillsborough, incumbent Democrat Lynn Gray will face Republican challenger Karen Bendorf.
Pinellas County’s District 5 features runoff between Katie Blaxberg and Stacy Geier; both are Republican, but the governor and other notable conservatives have endorsed Geier.
A mom, Rachel, shares her righteous outrage over local book banners to nearly 100,000 followers on Tiktok and YouTube. Some of her most-watched videos are of her speaking at Hillsborough School Board meetings. One shows her calling out the “local moms for ‘liberty’ weirdo” who kept going to meetings to challenge books at schools her kids do not attend. Another shows her reading graphic material from the Bible to point out the hypocrisy of banning “This Book is Gay” by Juno Dawson.
“If ‘This Book is Gay’ violates (Florida statute) 847.001 then so does the Bible, yes? That is my point,” she said.
“There is such a sense of unity among us with actively enrolled kids that we are there advocating for…there is a bond that forms among us that is really encouraging,” Rachel said. “There’s a stark contrast between people who advocate for the removal of books based on no evidence versus people who are parents advocating for their kids with non-hypothetical issues who say ‘books aren’t f-----ing up my kid, policy is.’”
One group fighting to protect students’ access to books is the Florida Freedom to Read Project (FFTRP). The nonprofit organization grew out of concern about coordinated challenges to books in Orange County schools in 2021. One of its founding members, Reagan Miller, raises two children in Pinellas County schools.
FFTRP’s mission is to support and protect the rights of students, parents, teachers and media specialists. It operates locally and shares resources with other parent-led groups across the state. FFTRP also supports school district leaders by holding them accountable to “keep every decision student-centered, especially as they face the ‘Parents’ Rights’ movement.”
“We also decided that we did not ever want to be the antithesis to Moms for Liberty,” Miller said. “We don’t want to cause problems for the district. Our goals are to elevate local voices and do good and do what it takes to keep books on the shelves.”
FFTRP is a collection of true grassroots efforts—from joining local groups to fight for the inclusion of the Essential Voices Collection in Duval County to calling out the absurdity of people without children in public schools trying to ban books. The group keeps tabs on school districts across Florida and provides guidance for anyone interested in advocacy in their community.
Miller said their approach is about protecting kids’ right to access books they want and need. In its tips to address censorship, FFTRP pushes erring on the side of education, writing“banning a book based on its parts rather than the entirety of the work reinforces ignorance over critical thinking.”
Rachel and Miller have worked with their respective media specialists to get their kids reading material that’s right for them. For Rachel, that was letting them know her oldest can’t read “Bridge to Terabithia” and her youngest doesn’t like anything with zombies. For Miller, that was navigating her daughter’s fear of reading books with death and an assignment with a Sherlock Holmes novel.
“Do you really think we’re sitting here very patiently, in this car line, while inside our kids are being indoctrinated and given p------raphy?” Miller said, explaining the lengthy car line she volunteers in every day at her son’s school.
For Carmen Alvarez, a native Tampeño, book bans in local schools have a ripple effect on reading access across the country and the publishing industry.
“As books are banned, one school district will copy what another one did; they will copy and copy and copy. So these books aren’t making it to bookshelves, which is one of the biggest sellers for books,” she said.
Alvarez has built her Tomes and Textiles brand by sharing her passion for reading with her nearly 1000,000 followers on TikTok and Instagram. Over the last nine years, she’s learned a lot about how book challenges and social media influence the publishing industry.
“Publishing follows trends, and if those books aren’t being bought en masse, they’re (publishers) not going to purchase as many queer stories and bring those to light, and it’s going to create this scarcity at some point on shelves,” she said.
When she’s not shouting about LatinX books and reviewing the latest Syliva Moreno Garcia novel, Alvarez keeps tabs on local literacy efforts, including volunteering on the Hillsborough County Public Library Board. She also attends and speaks at school board meetings alongside other families and organizes a local Banned Book Club for Ferocious Floridians.
A big part of Alvarez’s advocacy is educating readers on what it means to be a banned book. Banned books are not a genre, and the point of Banned Books Week—organized by ALA—is to draw “national attention to the harms of censorship.” The weeklong holiday, running Sept. 22-28 this year, calls out efforts to restrict or remove books and provides resources and support to readers, educators, publishers and booksellers.
“It’s not a point of pride to call it a banned book,” Alvarez said. “Banned books exist, and we should read them, but we also should try to make it so that banned books don’t exist. We don’t necessarily want to have Banned Books Week because we just don’t want to have banned books.”
Amnesty International USA: Banned Books Week: The Human Rights of Authors, Journalists, Poets and Others Must Be Protectedhttps://www.amnestyusa.org/press-rele...
Oregon commentaryhttps://eugeneweekly.com/2024/09/19/b...
Also in Oregon
Oregon library book ban requests hit record high; 3 requests in Deschutes Co.
https://www.centraloregondaily.com/ne...
Deschutes Public Library Technical Services Manager Emily O’Neal told Central Oregon Daily the library received two official challenges for Reconsideration of Library Materials and one for Reconsideration of Library Services. All three challenges involved materials with themes around LGBTQ or had characters that identify as LGBTQ.
O’Neal said the reasons stated for the challenges expressed concerns of:
Mature content unsuitable for the age group
General concerns over age appropriateness
Expressed that the materials had no value to the community
All the challenged materials were kept without restrictions, O'Neal said.
Most of the challenged materials statewide (116) were books. Thirty were graphic novels. A total of five magazines, pamphlets and videos were challenged.
https://www.gbnews.com/news/us/florid...Democrat Jennifer Jenkins made national headlines after beating the co-founder of Moms for Liberty
A Florida school board member has hit out at book bannings in her home state, branding the plans as "absolutely egregious".
Jennifer Jenkins is the founder and chairwoman of Educated. We Stand, a group which aims to combat "far-right extremism" taking over American public education.
Jenkins made national headlines for defeating Moms for Liberty co-founder Tina Descovich for school board by nearly 10 points, in a district that Donald Trump won by double digits in 2016.
Now, she is calling out Moms For Liberty's campaign of banning books across schools and "misinformation" surrounding schools curriculum.
She told GB News: "The outright attack on our LGBTQ students and staff was really kind of the catalyst of all of the chaos in the state of Florida, intentionally spreading misinformation and disinformation about the rights and liberties of our students and staff, fear-mongering, pretending that students are at risk.
"The book banning you know - any country that studies history, when we start burning books and banning books, it doesn't end well for us. The state of Florida leads in the country when it comes to book banning.
"Moms for Liberty is one of those organisations that started and it actually started right here in my county, banning books about LGBTQ characters, banning books written by LGBTQ authors, books about the terrible history, African American history."
According to Jenkins, one of the most "egregious" examples involving the teaching of slavery caught the attention of Vice President and Democrat Nominee Kamala Harris.
She said: "It's terrifying because the reality is, what they're trying to do is to scare our educators into pushing only the beliefs and the ideas that the Government wants them to push and believe. What we have in the state of Florida that's really scary is they started creating a list of books that have been banned across the state.
"They don't claim that they need to be banned everywhere, but they're identifying what books have been banned. Really what it's doing is it's trying to encourage other counties to follow suit when it comes to that.
"...in their eyes, I believe that they're looking for ways to legislate whose race, whose religion, whose culture values more, and to them it's white Christian nationalists."
This is dumb. Trust the teachers. None of those books are obscene, explicit or unsuited to the age group. I've read them all and they're fine. https://www.wmar2news.com/local/eleme...
Elementary school parents go to SCOTUS, seeking to opt children out of reading LGBTQ+ books
group of parents have reached their last legal resort in fighting to overturn a Montgomery County School policy they claim tramples on religious beliefs.
The coalition of elementary school parents petitioning the U.S. Supreme Court is made up of Muslims, Christians, and Jews.
All they seek is the right to opt their three and four-year-old children out of reading storybooks about gender transitioning, pride parades, and pronoun preferences. For their efforts, the parents claim the school board accused them of promoting “hate” and compared them to “white supremacists” and “xenophobes."
Becket Fund For Religious Liberty is representing the parents in court. Here is how they describe the books in question.
"One book tasks three and four-year-olds to search for images from a word list that includes “intersex flag,” “drag queen,” “underwear,” “leather,” and the name of a celebrated LGBTQ activist and s-x worker. Another book advocates a child-knows-best approach to gender transitioning, telling students that a decision to transition doesn’t have to “make sense.” Teachers are instructed to say doctors only “guess” when identifying a newborn’s sex anyway."
The Montgomery County School Board previously notified parents when the books would be read in class, allowing them to opt children out of the curriculum if they wished, but they've since changed that policy stripping parents of that right.
Parents say the decision contradicts another school policy where older students can opt out of the sex education portion taught in health classes.
So far their argument's been rejected at the district and appeals court levels.
Some news from BookRiotA report on why youth have signed up for Brooklyn Public Library's Books Unbanned card. "My teacher told me to" is not a reason. Summer Boisimer should take this report and shove it up Ryan Walters' behind.
https://booksunbanned.com/documents/B...
AlabamaAnother library becomes adults only
https://atmorenews.com/2024/09/18/adu...
Effective October 1, Atmore Public Library’s (APL’s) downstairs section will be for adults only. On that date, in an effort to meet the most recent guidelines of the Alabama Public Library Service (APLS), no one under the age of 18 will be able to check out any book, video or other form of media from the local library unless a parent or guardian is present to OK the transaction, or a signed consent form is on file that gives the juvenile permission to borrow any item available for checkout.
Anyone who wishes to complain about the library’s placement of a particular book, video or other medium (E-book, magazine, audio book, newspaper or other) will have to fill out a “reconsideration form” that includes the reason the person is asking for the removal or replacement.
Such a complaint can only be filed by a regular library user of at least three months who has concerns over an entire book or other medium, or parts of it, or who is concerned with the item’s placement.
The juvenile ban also applies to the library’s computers, which already have filters on them to prevent access to many sites.
“If the person is under the age of 18, he or she will still have to have a signed consent form from a parent or guardian to use the computers,” Lassiter said.
The library director pointed out that a parent or guardian must come to the library with the juvenile to fill out and sign the form allowing access to all materials, including those aimed at adults.
She warned parents and guardians that a “full access consent form” gives the library permission to allow a youngster unrestricted access to all library materials. The card may be revoked — by the parent — at any time.
APL’s policy manual now includes a Parents’ Bill of Rights that makes a parent or legal guardian “the judge and maker of decisions as to the level of unaccompanied and unrestricted access a child will have to library services.”
If a parent or guardian executes the consent form allowing a juvenile full and unrestricted access to library materials, the minor will be issued a Minor Access Card that will remain in effect until he or she reaches 18.
Grafton, West Virginia, “concerned citizens” are mad about books for sale at a local bookstore. https://www.wvnews.com/mountainstates...
Members of Grafton City Council heard concern and support for reading material for sale at The Black Cat Rookery and Curiosities bookstore, as well as drag shows being held at the Taylor County Arts Council’s Gallery 62 West, during their meeting Tuesday.
He said that drag shows are not specifically mentioned in the state statue, which was drafted and signed in 1983.
“Concerning books, in order for them to be considered obscene, they would have to be found as having no literary value whatsoever,” Matko said. “And that is an objective standard and not a subjective standard, meaning the community at large would need to find that they would have no literary benefit.”
The concerns were raised by local resident Kittie Deakins, who has made four previous appearances before the council.
Prince William County Schools (VA) are implementing new book “parental control” systems after a made up controversy over a book.https://www.potomaclocal.com/2024/09/...
n the recent Prince William County School Board meeting on September 4, 2024, a concerned parent, Chris Funderberg, challenged the book A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas. Funderberg argued that the book contained s---ally explicit content inappropriate for 13-year-old children, citing a specific passage during the meeting to emphasize his concerns
.
While acknowledging that the book is popular and contains a compelling story, Funderberg insisted that its adult content did not add value to the narrative and should not be accessible to young readers in middle school libraries. The Prince William County School Board reviewed the challenge, with both school-based and district-level committees voting to retain the book, limiting it to high school libraries. The superintendent upheld this decision, ensuring the book would remain available only to older students.
Albany court to hear Clyde-Savannah book disputeA legal battle over five books in the Clyde-Savannah Junior-Senior High School Library is moving to Albany County Supreme Court. The Finger Lakes Times reports Moms for Liberty and local pastor Jacob Marchitell, are appealing State Education Commissioner Betty Rosa’s decision to allow the books to remain.
https://www.fingerlakes1.com/2024/09/...
Prattville, AlabamaFreedom to Read Foundation backs plaintiffs in Prattville Library suit
The lawsuit will be “fully briefed” by Friday for Judge Myron Thompson to consider the issuance of a preliminary injunction that could temporarily strike down the library’s policies.
https://www.alreporter.com/2024/09/17...
The foundation argues in the brief that the current policy requires the complete removal of any books vaguely “recommended for minors” if they contain any s--ual content whatsoever.
“… librarians at the library are effectively prevented from acquiring books that discuss s-- in some form and have been ‘recommended’ for minors,” the foundation states in its brief. “For example, ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’ is recommended by its publisher for ages 11 through 18 and is listed on the library’s website as being suitable for readers in grades 9-12, but its story involves an alleged s---al assault. Similarly, another staple of the high school reading curriculum, ‘The Catcher in the Rye,’ includes many s--ual references, is recommended by the publisher for ages 12 through 17, and is listed on the library’s website as being suitable for readers in grades 9-12.
“As the policy now stands. a librarian could reasonably conclude that these books are ‘s--ually explicit’ and because these books are ‘recommended for minors,’ ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’ and ‘Catcher in the Rye’—not to mention many other classic works of literature, history and so forth—must be pulled from the shelves.”
The APPL board passed policies in February that outright prevented the collection of books “recommended to minors” discussing s--ual orientation and gender identity in addition to s--ual content and requiring that selection criteria to be considered in the process of removing books.
After the filing of the lawsuit, the board passed new policies in June that only bar s---ally explicit content from the sections for minors and shift responsibility for other decisions to the library director. However, an accompanying resolution makes it clear that the board cannot overrule the director’s decision to remove books for minors that discuss s--ual orientation or gender discordance.
The board argues in its filing that the update of the policies in June show makes the claims against the February-passed policies moot.
The plaintiffs argued that the February policy already complied with the new APLS code, weakening the argument that the June changes came to satisfy those requirements. The plaintiffs also cited a Facebook post by Clean Up Alabama leader Hannah Rees in a Moms for Liberty group, stating “Make sure to note that we did not back down, exact same still no gender identity and s---al orientation but presented differently to get a lawsuit dismissal. We have still won and books have been removed from the library and will not be acquired further.”
The board’s motion admits that the February policies “on their face, restrict the Plaintiffs’ access to any constitutionally protected material based on content,” but said the new policies limit content-based restrictions to s---ally explicit and obscene content. With this in mind, the board argues that the plaintiff’s claims are “not ripe” due to a lack of actual injury.
The board’s motion admits that the February policies “on their face, restrict the Plaintiffs’ access to any constitutionally protected material based on content,” but said the new policies limit content-based restrictions to s---ally explicit and obscene content. With this in mind, the board argues that the plaintiff’s claims are “not ripe” due to a lack of actual injury.
“Moreover, the Plaintiffs have not established a sufficient hardship if the Court withholds consideration of these issues in this lawsuit,” the board’s motion reads. “Based on the pleadings, it appears the Plaintiffs have not even attempted to avail themselves of the reconsideration procedures established by the new Reconsideration Policy. Therefore, they themselves are to blame for any hardship they may feel in not being able to check out their preferred reading material, especially since the Selection Criteria policy was adopted over two months ago.”
Plaintiffs argue the removal of the books from the shelves and the limitation on acquisition of books have caused actual and ongoing injuries to them, as they seek to check out materials that are no longer accessible due to the policy.
It is unclear what books, if any, have been removed from circulation since the passage of the June policies. Numerous books that appeared on a list compiled by “mad mommas” that largely include LGBTQ-themed content have been pulled from shelves but interim director Tammy Bear told APR at the time that those books had merely been pulled for review and had not been removed from the collection. Still, the books were not only removed from shelves, but from the library catalog as well.
The back-and-forth filings bring the lawsuit near the end of its current stage as Judge Myron Thompson considers the board’s motion to dismiss as well as a request by the plaintiffs for preliminary injunction.
Unclear what's happening here. Kelly Jensen of BookRiot reports:"Watertown Schools (NY) are in the process of removing 47 books. But the books listed look to be the kinds that would be legitimately weeded from a library—the story kind of touches on that but then throws in a line about Sarah J. Maas’s oft-banned book."
https://www.wwnytv.com/2024/09/18/sch...
The list includes books like “Immigration and Illegal Aliens: Burden or Blessing,” “Bill Cosby: Entertainer and Activist,” and “Dictionary of Afro-American Slavery.”
Popular author Sarah J. Maas’s “A Court of Thorns and Roses” series is also on the list, books that were banned in all public schools in Utah, where district officials claim they contain pornographic material.
The recommendations for Watertown schools come from Abigail Wilcox, a library media specialist.
School board member Milly Smith spoke with her.
“I did extensively discuss with her what her position was on these books and did she actually look and review the contents of these books,” Smith said, “and she’s actually an advocate for some of these books, but not within a school setting.”
National headlines show concern from advocacy groups in various states that banning books from schools can infringe on First Amendment rights. Meanwhile, Smith tells 7 News she does not believe the books on this list belong at Watertown High School.
“The concept here is, are these books appropriate to be available on the shelf of a school library, and the answer to that was no,” she said.
It’s unclear when or if a resolution to ban these books will be back on the board’s agenda.
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...
Check your local listings for place and time. I snapped a picture to remind myself to attend the one here. I attended once or twice before. A historian I know spoke about her childhood favorite classic growing up in the UK, the Noddy series by Enid Blyton, now considered racist and outdated. I don't know yet who is reading here but I will find out. I have my Read Banned Books t-shirt on already!
New Jersey
https://www.towntopics.com/2024/09/11...
Rallying against an uptick in banned or challenged books, community members can stand against restricting access to books when Princeton area leaders, authors, and advocates read aloud from some of these targeted books.
“Stand with the Banned,” a read-out sponsored by Princeton Public Library, Labyrinth Books, and Princeton University Press, with support from the National Endowment for the Humanities, will take place on Monday, September 23 from 4 to 6 p.m. on Hinds Plaza. The library Community Room will serve as a rain location.
“As a Book Sanctuary City in a state where a Freedom to Read Act is advancing through the Legislature, Princeton enjoys strong protections against censorship,” said library Executive Director Jennifer Podolsky. “The library and our community partners believe these protections bring a responsibility to stand in solidarity with communities that are dealing with attempts to ban books and stifle intellectual freedom.”
It is hoped the event will raise awareness and have the feeling of a rally, said library Adult Programming Manager Janie Hermann. Additional events on Hinds Plaza related to Banned Books Week (September 22 to 28) will include a community art project and a selfie station where attendees can affirm their belief in the freedom to read safely.
Some 20 readers will include New Jersey State Sen. Andrew Zwicker, Princeton Councilmember Leighton Newlin, Princeton Public Library Board of Trustees member and Princeton Councilmember Eve Niedergang, Christie Henry of Princeton University Press, Jill Dolan of Princeton University, poet Patricia Smith of the Lewis Center, and artist Marion Davila. Authors Airlie Anderson, whose children’s book Neither is frequently challenged, and Princeton Creative Writing Program faculty member A.M. Homes will read from their own books that have been banned or challenged.
“The freedom to read is the cornerstone of a free society,” said Hermann. “Banned Books Week serves as an important reminder that access to diverse ideas and perspectives is crucial for a thriving democracy.”