Children's Books discussion
Banned Books: discussions, lists
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Discussion of censorship, equity, and other concerns.
QNPoohBear wrote: "Elon Musk will defund libraries to undermine democracy. EveryLibrary has issued a statement on defunding the South Dakota Library
Its impact is already evident as Trump's agenda plays out across..."
What is their alleged reason for defunding libraries? Smart people are less likely to vote Republican?
Ivonne wrote: "What is their alleged reason for defunding libraries? Smart people are less likely to vote Republican?"Officially... budget reasons. Cut government spending waste and trim the fat. Unofficially? Readers think, thinking leads to voting AGAINST fascism and authoritarian regimes and makes people develop empathy. OMG LGBTQ+ people and people of color are HUMANS too?
Florida is an excellent case study.
Watch this video on Christian Nationalism and the influence on American politics.
https://redwine.blue/easy-a/?utm_camp...
Now TexasEveryLibrary reports:
On January 14, 2025, the Texas Legislature commenced its 89th regular legislative session to set policy goals and it now leads all other states in pre-filed legislation that would ban books and incarcerate librarians.
The pre-filed legislation reveals that members are prioritizing vouchers that would reduce funding for public schools, criminalization bills that would punish librarians and teachers by eliminating affirmative defenses against prosecution, and legislation that targets booksellers by redefining “harmful materials” in the Texas Penal Code.
During the last legislative session, lawmakers passed HB900 to create a vendor rating system for school library materials and revise school library collection development standards.
If the past legislative session is any indication of how this session will proceed, Texans can expect a lengthy session of infighting and bureaucracy that will attempt to defund libraries and politicize reading.
GAAAHHH and New Hampshire! New Hampshire! I'm questioning my uncle's decision to move there and refuse to set foot in the state unless I'm going to protest. And NH is VERY hard to give up. Oppose NH HB324 - Another Attempt to Criminalize School Libraries and Reading in New Hampshire
https://www.everylibrary.org/oppose_n...
Scary, scary news from Texas.Now Texas
EveryLibrary reports:
On January 14, 2025, the Texas Legislature commenced its 89th regular legislative session to set policy goals and it now leads all other states in pre-filed legislation that would ban books and incarcerate librarians.
The pre-filed legislation reveals that members are prioritizing vouchers that would reduce funding for public schools, criminalization bills that would punish librarians and teachers by eliminating affirmative defenses against prosecution, and legislation that targets booksellers by redefining “harmful materials” in the Texas Penal Code.
During the last legislative session, lawmakers passed HB900 to create a vendor rating system for school library materials and revise school library collection development standards.
If the past legislative session is any indication of how this session will proceed, Texans can expect a lengthy session of infighting and bureaucracy that will attempt to defund libraries and politicize reading.
And New Hampshire. I flat out told my parents no I won't be visiting my uncle even if it means not getting to go to the maple barn. We have maple here too. https://www.everylibrary.org/oppose_n...
EveryLibrary stands firmly in opposition to HB 324 (2025), another attempt by regressive politicians in New Hampshire to criminalize K-12 and target school libraries for state-sponsored censorship.
This bill is a dangerous kind of overreach into the operations of schools in towns across the state. It undermines both the quality of education, the rights of families, and the local decision-making authority of school boards.
We are urging library stakeholders, parents, free speech advocates, and everyone worried about government overreach to send a message to your state Representative that you oppose HB324.
HB324 would allow the following:
The prosecution of K-12 educators
Removing decision-making from local school boards
Redefine the phrase “harmful materials” relative to educational materials
All right, here we go. First week of the new regime and there's lots going on and it's VERY VERY SCARY! House bill in Alabama that could have led to the arrest of librarians narrowly missed becoming law last session. They plan to try again in February.
According to EveryLibrary:
"House Bill 4 has been sponsored by Rep. Arnold Mooney, R-Indian Springs.
It also has 49 co-sponsors, including the House Speaker Nathaniel Ledbetter, R-Rainsville.
With nearly half the House signed on as co-sponsors and the bill filed more than six months in advance, it appears poised to pass through the lower body in the upcoming session.
While this bill is similar to its predecessor, it has been streamlined to better detail the procedure for charging librarians with a crime.
From BookRiot's Literary Activism Newsletter Kelly Jensen reports:Las Cruces Public Schools (NM) heard complaints from the local far right contingent over 95 books in the district.
https://www.krwg.org/krwg-news/2025-0...
At the Las Cruces Public Schools board meeting Tuesday night, the topic of allegedly “objectionable” books available in LCPS libraries was again presented to the board.
During the public comments portion of Tuesday night’s LCPS board meeting, Sarah Smith from the Coalition of Conservatives in Action, presented each member of the board with an illustrated booklet titled “Parent’s Guide to 95+ Explicit Books in Las Cruces Public Schools: How to Protect Your Children from P---n in New Mexico School Libraries.” The spiral-bound booklet lists titles that she feels contain graphic content that are age-inappropriate for LCPS libraries, in addition to which specific LCPS library carries them.
“Protecting children from age-inappropriate, explicit content is not ‘book-banning.’ It’s just common sense,” Smith told the board. “Instead of taking common-sense steps to ensure that the school district is not providing children with age-inappropriate content, LCPS has chosen to take no action on this issue. School board members: it is not too late for you to consider this issue seriously and take action to make sure your schools are not exposing children to age-inappropriate content.”
[Some of the books are adult books and yes Wicked is very much an adult book and very much not age appropriate. I'll give them that one and probably Game of Thrones too].
...
Patrick Nolan, the newly-elected vice-president of the LCPS board, had looked through the booklet provided by Sarah Smith and had this to say afterwards.
“I think to call any of those books ‘p----graphy’ is a big reach,” Nolan said. “I haven’t read all of them, but there are a few I have read—‘Kite Runner’ specifically, is a really powerful book that I don’t think is inappropriate at all.”
Nolan also responded to Smith’s comments about the LCPS board not taking any action against what she feels are age-inappropriate books.
“That choice around these books is an individual choice for families and students,” he said. “So it’s really on them. Like if a parent wants to (not have) their child read a specific book, there’s a method and a way for those parents to do that, and it’s not up to us (the board) to make those choices for other families.”
Kelly Jensen reports: "In Eagle, Idaho, a bigot who complained about an LGBTQ+ event flier—for an event not sponsored by the library—managed to get a community bulletin board removed from a completely different public library over their complaint."https://www.idahostatesman.com/news/l...
An LGBTQ group’s flyer posted in a Nampa library drew fire. What Eagle’s library just did
Some people express concern about children's books containing se--al content at a meeting of the Meridian Library District trustees in August 2022.
Eagle’s library board has voted to take down the library’s community bulletin board, a move that followed a controversy at the nearby Nampa Public Library surrounding a poster advertising a LGBTQ+ youth group. The Eagle library board has received attention in recent months for relocating 23 books within its collection deemed “harmful to minors” and for the unexpected — and still unexplained — removal of two members from its board by the City Council in October. The board is now “in limbo” as it waits for the city to fill the vacancies, according to Trustee Brian Almon. At the request of library Director Steve Bumgarner, Almon said the board voted Wednesday to remove the bulletin board, a space where members of the public could post community events in adherence with the library’s policies. Guest Services Manager Sacha Timmons told the Idaho Statesman that the library staff had experienced “issues” with the bulletin board when it came to decision-making around posters. She said the wording of the library’s board-posting policy was “open to interpretation,” and that decisions sometimes confused patrons. For example, community members couldn’t advertise events that cost money, unless those events were for nonprofits. Timmons also said the library could be forced to post something that gave the library a “bad image” under the policy, such as an advertisement for a “white supremacist group ... rally.” “Acceptance or rejection of material for display does not imply approval or disapproval by the library of the ideas or opinions expressed,” the policy, which has now been revoked, said Almon linked the decision more directly to concerns raised by staff regarding a controversy involving an LGBTQ+ youth club’s poster on the bulletin of the Nampa Public Library.
State Sen. Brian Lenney, R-Nampa, had reached out to multiple officials and took to social media in November to complain about the poster, calling the Nampa youth group a (view spoiler) the Statesman previously reported. Groups including Idaho Liberty Dogs and Idaho Mass Resistance also took issue with the poster. Nampa’s library director told Lenney that the youth group’s poster was in line with the organization’s posting policy, which is to provide a public bulletin board but not to imply endorsement of what is posted, the Statesman reported.
The library also sent a letter to the community saying, “The calls to action by the Mass Resistance and those who amplified their message had a damaging impact on Nampa Public Library management, staff, and library users.” Almon told the Statesman that the board’s unanimous decision to remove the bulletin board at Eagle library was intended to help the staff “get ahead of” issues like that. In a text message to the Statesman, Almon clarified that the decision was supported by the city attorney, Victor Villegas, and Mayor Brad Pike, according to what he heard from the library director in the board meeting. In a Substack article explaining the decision, Almon emphasized his support of library staff in avoiding “backlash ... rather than making judgment calls,” he wrote. He also made a “caveat that we might consider bringing it back with a more narrowly tailored policy in the future.” Almon also connected the issue to a recent bill introduced by state Rep. Ted Hill, R-Eagle, to ban most flags in state-funded public classrooms, including LGBTQ+ Pride flags.
[Harmful comments ahead]
(view spoiler)
The bulletin board was removed as of Thursday. Timmons told the Statesman that at the time it was taken down, it was about half-full and there were no posters similar to the youth group poster in Nampa.
The library board’s vacancies were expected to be filled Tuesday when the City Council voted on two candidates Pike recommended for appointment, Eagle residents Ashley Schreiber and Brett Patterson. Instead, City Council Member Melissa Gindlesperger, the council’s liaison to the library board, said she was left out of the final decision-making process. She made a motion to deny Schreiber and Pattersons’ confirmations, saying there were “better candidates.” Her fellow council members unanimously supported the motion. Disruption of the board follows the board’s 3-1 vote in September to relocate 23 books in the library’s collection, moving 20 to the adult section and placing three behind the circulation desk, the Idaho Statesman previously reported. That decision followed a series of 25 requests for reconsideration that the library received from an Eagle resident, Angela Russell, after a new state law went into effect July 1. The law governs how libraries must respond to material deemed “harmful to minors,” giving libraries 30 days to relocate such materials after receiving a complaint from a parent or guardian of a minor who obtained the materials — or risk being sued.
Almon joined fellow board members Sarah Hayes and Kelsey Taylor voting in favor of the relocations. Less than three weeks later, Hayes and Taylor were removed from the board, while Almon remained.
Ban TikTok not books!From Kelly Jensen of BookRiot: "Legislators in Connecticut are proposing protections for library workers related to book censorship and were subsequently attacked by LibsofTikTok."
PAYWALLED
https://www.registercitizen.com/polit...
Some new damaging bills are being proposed in Oklahoma this legislative session. The usual rhetoric about you know what in schools. (i.e. LGBTQIA+ content)https://okcfox.com/news/local/not-the...
'Not the state's job': Norman bookseller objects to proposals on educational materials
Ahead of Oklahoma's upcoming legislative session, lawmakers have filed bills seeking to intervene on what library and instructional materials are available to students.
Senate Bill 19 from McCurtain Republican Warren Hamilton requires school districts to submit a list of library books available to students to the Oklahoma State Department of Education.
It also bars schools from making, "p----graphic materials or s---alized content accessible to students under the age of 18."
Districts that violate the law could have their accreditation downgraded to deficient and lose five percent of their state funding.
Senate Bill 348 from Adair Republican Micheal Bergstrom requires districts to be responsible for classroom and library materials and have a process to handle complaints about instructional materials.
The legislation would remove resources that face objections for five school days.
The proposal also stipulates that such materials must be "free from p---graphic or obscene material."
Heather Hall, owner of the Green Feather Book Company in Noman, argued that there's more to the story.
"When I first saw it I thought 'Oh, okay... these are legislators trying to overcome the judges' objections," she noted.
In June of 2024, the Oklahoma Supreme Court sided with Edmond Public Schools over a dispute with OSDE on library selections.
Hall has been a vocal critic of efforts from the state superintendent and lawmakers to intervene on what's available on school bookshelves.
"That's my job as a parent. It is not the state's job," she asserted.
As a bookstore owner, she shared that "It's important that I have books available for them when they come in and say 'Oh my gosh I can't believe that this one's been banned, I need to buy this one.' I have to make sure that that's available."
Kelly Jensen argues : "The right-wing packed Keller Independent School District (TX) school board wants to split their district into two, [in order to] make sure poor kids and kids of color don’t intermingle with their wealthy white kids."https://www.dallasnews.com/news/educa...
Parents slam Keller ISD board over district split idea, superintendent floats resignation
Enraged parents addressed school board as it mulls plan to split into 2 school districts.
Keller families lambasted their school board on Thursday night during a heated meeting about a proposal to split the district in two.
The idea, which the board discussed but took no action on, has so inflamed the community that Superintendent Tracy Johnson said she was prepared to resign.
“I don’t agree with this,” Johnson said of the proposal.
So many people showed up to demand that Keller ISD trustees scrap the idea that dozens had to crowd outside the administration building because district officials said the facility had reached its capacity. Parents held their phones to their ears so they could listen to the meeting’s livestream as the sun went down.
“It seems like they are just limiting our voice,” parent Vanessa Odom said.
Parents learned about trustees’ private discussions about the split in recent days after rumors began spreading in group chats and on social media.
Two trustees, Joni Shaw Smith and Chelsea Kelly, later confirmed in Facebook posts that discussions took place among a group of three other board members regarding “a plan to detach a portion of Keller ISD and form a new school district.”
Kelly said she learned about the idea in December. She echoed many parents’ concerns about a lack of transparency.
The process “raised more red flags than I can count,” Kelly said. “Decisions this big should never be made in secret.”
Trustee John Birt, meanwhile, criticized the leak of the idea. He said it was inappropriate for someone to prematurely release “incomplete information.”
School board president Charles Randklev — repeatedly shouted down by the crowd for his involvement in the discussions — tried to focus on the district’s budget challenges.
The state has not increased the base amount of money it provides per-student since 2019 despite inflation and other pressures. Several other districts had to close campuses or cut programs to deal with the financial burden.
“All I can tell you is we are looking for ways to basically get in front of this,” Randklev said.
Parents said they did not understand how dividing the district would save money.
After hours of tense public testimony from parents, Randklev committed that the board would get more community feedback and create a webpage to share information. He described the split proposal as far from finalized.
As the board took community questions, tensions repeatedly flared between trustees and parents.
A district division would have major ramifications for students and families. Community members asked how it could impact property values, school funding, building usage, feeder patterns and more.
Several parents said they chose their homes just to send their children to the highly-regarded Keller ISD.
...
Keller ISD’s more than 33,000 students live across a broad swath of Tarrant County, often considered a political battleground.
The potential district divider could be Denton Highway. Most top-rated campuses are concentrated on the east side of that line. Schools to the west have a higher average rate of low-income families.
Opponents of the plan who live on the west side repeatedly introduced themselves as being from “the wrong side of the tracks.” They worry a split would exacerbate inequities.
Alison Haygood is a former teacher at Keller’s Fossil Ridge, which has the highest rate of low-income families among the district high schools.
“It seems like this board is trying to split and throw the ‘lessers’ in another district,” Haygood said. “They’ve done all this behind our backs. That’s a clear message.”
For Haygood, the detachment discussion ties into broader changes she’s observed in the school system since a wave of new trustees was elected with the support of a conservative PAC.
Trustees have since championed policies targeting library books, as well as placing restrictions on transgender students’ use of preferred pronouns and which bathroom they use.
Wallace, the Keller parent, said she’s confused by how a district split could have potentially helped with money problems.
“Splitting the district would significantly increase administrative costs — such as duplicate leadership positions — and divert critical resources from classrooms,” she said. “It would also require costly, time-intensive efforts to separate IT systems and financial assets, taking focus away from our students.”
Parents said they want trustees to pause and listen to them. They want any discussion of this magnitude to take place in public, and asked to not find out about such proposals through Facebook. Many hope the trustees will put the question to a vote.
Goodish news in Little Miami, Ohio schoolsLittle Miami School Board (OH) will not be imposing strict display rules in the schools.
https://www.wcpo.com/news/local-news/...
HAMILTON TOWNSHIP, Ohio — In a tight 3-2 vote, the Little Miami School Board agreed not to proceed with controversial new rules limiting what can and cannot be displayed in classrooms across the district.
After a back-and-forth between board member David Wallace, who proposed the rule changes, and member Diane Horvath, who said she supported the intention of the change, Horvath cast the deciding "no" vote that removed the them from consideration at the Jan. 28th regular meeting.
Horvath said she needed more time to consider the rule change and observe how similar rule changes play out in other districts when explaining her hesitancy.
"I want to make sure that we give it due time. If you're going to have a policy or expand the policy we have we're going to do it the right way," she said.
Horvath joined Wayne Siebert and Bobbie Grice in voting no. Mary Elmer joined Wallace's yes vote.
Wallace argued "social issues" shouldn't be on display in classrooms.
"We should not have to worry about our children being subjected to materials that go against your household's values and beliefs," Wallace said.
Wallace didn't specify what was in the Little Miami classrooms that he found objectionable, and declined an interview after the meeting concluded.
"It's shameful that the influences are going to be there," he said. "As a parent, I see the material just get to these children constantly inside of school, outside of school."
The more than 800 people who signed a petition urging the district not to limit classroom decorations believed the rule changes to be a thinly-veiled attempt to limit LGBTQ visibility in schools.
...
displays
In a tight 3-2 vote, the Little Miami School Board agreed not to proceed with controversial new rules limiting what can and cannot be displayed in classrooms across the district.
Little Miami School Board
By: Sean DeLancey
Posted 10:39 PM, Jan 16, 2025 and last updated 11:23 PM, Jan 16, 2025
HAMILTON TOWNSHIP, Ohio — In a tight 3-2 vote, the Little Miami School Board agreed not to proceed with controversial new rules limiting what can and cannot be displayed in classrooms across the district.
After a back-and-forth between board member David Wallace, who proposed the rule changes, and member Diane Horvath, who said she supported the intention of the change, Horvath cast the deciding "no" vote that removed them from consideration at the Jan. 28th regular meeting.
Horvath said she needed more time to consider the rule change and observe how similar rule changes play out in other districts when explaining her hesitancy.
"I want to make sure that we give it due time. If you're going to have a policy or expand the policy we have we're going to do it the right way," she said.
Horvath joined Wayne Siebert and Bobbie Grice in voting no. Mary Elmer joined Wallace's yes vote.
Wallace argued "social issues" shouldn't be on display in classrooms.
"We should not have to worry about our children being subjected to materials that go against your household's values and beliefs," Wallace said.
Wallace didn't specify what was in the Little Miami classrooms that he found objectionable, and declined an interview after the meeting concluded.
"It's shameful that the influences are going to be there," he said. "As a parent, I see the material just get to these children constantly inside of school, outside of school."
The more than 800 people who signed a petition urging the district not to limit classroom decorations believed the rule changes to be a thinly-veiled attempt to limit LGBTQ visibility in schools.
Lebanon Pride Co-chair Leslie Nahigyan came to Thursday's special meeting despite no opportunity for public comment to show the board opponents were still worried about its implementation.
"We're concerned for youth safety," Nahigyan said.
Nahigyan said the removal of welcoming messages could be troubling for LGBTQ youth who already often struggle with belonging and mental health issues.
"The impact of having one adult who is supportive and non-judgmental is so very powerful. I would hate to see that go away," she said.
Members of the Warren County Republican Party Central Committee declined an interview at the meeting and, instead, sent video statements to WCPO hours later.
In his statement, Chairman Pete Mengel argued the policy targeted no particular group or ideology.
"This is a neutral policy," Mengel said. "It's for the betterment of the kids. We need to focus on education."
The board could reconsider the rule changes and bring them back up for a second reading and passage, but if the text of the proposal is changed in any way it would need to be brought back for a first reading essentially starting the process from square one.
Bible Back in Texas Schools After Being Pulled for Sexual ContentCanyon Independent School District pulled sections of the Bible from its library shelves over concerns that its "s--ually explicit" material violated Texas law.
https://reason.com/2024/12/31/bible-b...
The district pulled the Bible from school library shelves earlier this month as part of a review of potentially "s--ually explicit material."
According to Superintendent Darryl Flusche, the district was worried about running afoul of a new Texas law known as the Restricting Explicit and Adult-Designated Educational Resources (READER) Act, or House Bill 900.
"House Bill 900, which passed during the last legislative session, establishes library standards that restrict content in school libraries," Flusche wrote in a leaked email to parents, citing the section of the law defining s--ually explicit material (that which "describes, depicts, or portrays s--ual conduct"). "This standard for library content prohibits books that have one instance of s--ual content" that meets the definition.
As a result, "numerous books, including the full text of the Bible," were verboten in school libraries, Flusche continued, pointing out that portions of the Bible were still available to students. "We are more than willing to assist a student who would like access to a Bible by arranging this from one of our partnering churches," he added. Flusche also asked parents to "share their voice with the legislators concerning HB900."
...
according to the Texas state Rep. Jared Patterson (R–Denton), who sponsored the bill:
"Let me be very clear: the Bible, and other religious texts, are protected under HB 900…. Any assertion to the contrary is either rooted in ignorance of state law or an open hostility to the will of the people." [Patterson claims attempts to ban the Bible are illegal].
Patterson cited a part of the Texas education code that requires schools to carry "religious literature, including the Hebrew Scriptures (Old Testament) and New Testament."
... the Bible is now back on Canyon Independent School District library shelves, the school district said in a statement. Furthermore, it was never removed from schools entirely. "The Bible has always been, and continues to be, available in our schools to support instructional resources and meet all [statewide education] requirements," said the district. "This longstanding practice has not changed. Additionally, our libraries contain books about the Bible, including Bible stories, which remain available to our students."
"Following the passage of House Bill 900, Canyon [school district] conducted a comprehensive review of library materials to ensure compliance with updated state guidelines," the district explained. "After receiving clarification from Representative Patterson regarding library content, we reevaluated the guidelines and are pleased to have the Bible available in each of our Canyon [school] libraries."
Darrien, Conn.Darien schools remove book from curriculum after review
https://connecticut.news12.com/darien...
The Superintendent's Review Committee made this determination citing that the book is not developmentally appropriate for teaching.
The Superintendent of Schools in Darien has announced that a challenged book, "Mama's Nightingale: A Story of Immigration and Separation," has been removed from the school curriculum.
The Superintendent's Review Committee made this determination citing that the book is not developmentally appropriate for teaching.
The book was previously used to teach the feeling word "anxious" to 4th-grade students as part of the district's Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) curriculum.
Although it has been removed from the curriculum, the superintendent says the book is still accessible in school libraries.
Kansas‘A harmful message’ — Speakers decry Gardner Edgerton’s vote to remove book from school library
https://johnsoncountypost.com/2025/01...
Dozens of community members, including a high school librarian and a former mayor, packed the Gardner Edgerton School District board room Monday night to voice their opposition to the board’s recent vote to remove a book featuring a transgender character from district library shelves.
In a vote last month, the board by a 4-2 margin approved removing a copy of the book “Lily and Dunkin” from circulation, and Monday’s meeting was the first the board had held since that decision.
Amanda Byrd, the library media specialist at Gardner Edgerton High School, said the board’s decision to remove “Lily and Dunkin” disregards the work of a special book review committee, which had previously recommended the book be kept in circulation.
“The decision undermines their expertise and sets a concerning precedent,” she said, adding that that the board’s decision “sends a harmful message to students like [the character] Lily who already face significant challenges” like discrimination, family rejection, mental health and anti-transgender legislation.
Former Gardner Mayor Dave Drovetta echoed Byrd in expressing his disappointment in the school board’s decision.
“Sometimes as leaders we have to set aside our own fears and biases and make decisions based on the advice of those to whom we’ve delegated that responsibility, even if it doesn’t align with our expectations,” he said.
Drovetta said that after the board removed the book last month, all forms of it have been on a waiting list at the Johnson County Library, with multiple requests pending.
As of Tuesday afternoon, Johnson County Library recorded 19 holds on four digital copies of “Lily and Dunkin” and 23 holds on the four physical copies.
A spokesperson from the Johnson County Library told the Post it zero holds on all copies of book in November. Meanwhile, in December, it recorded 16 holds of all physical copies as well as 28 holds on all digital copies.
The four board members who voted to remove the book last month expressed their concerns with the novel, including repeated mentions of “puberty blockers” in the book and that the content of it could cause harm to students.
“It shocked me that so many staff members were on board with this book and praising it so heavily,” board member Greg Chapman had said last month.
“Where do we draw the line with mental health and which ones we are going to glorify and which ones we are going to help them get the assistance they need?”
The district’s review of the book was prompted by parent Carrie Schmidt’s complaint, who first challenged the book last year.
Schmidt’s challenges to books over the past two years have prompted the district to review at least ten other titles. Often she has objected to what she sees as inappropriate s--ual content in books and has also complained about books’ depictions of drug use and self-harm.
At the meeting last month where the board ultimately voted to remove “Lily and Dunkin,” Schmidt spoke, saying, “School districts shouldn’t have any propaganda to children that glorifies drugs,” a reference to the book’s depiction of Lily’s use of hormone blockers in the novel. “Please protect the children.”
Speakers on Monday had a much different view.
Former school board member Kristin Schultz said the board seemed to have acted on their own personal biases by voting against the committee’s recommendations and that they spoke “from a fear of the unknown” in dismissing the rights of students.
She added that parents are often less equipped now to help their children outside of their homes.
“When students think they are the only ones going through something they tend to not seek out people to talk to or get help from,” she said. “This is how kids can begin to feel alone, weird or bizarre. This is how kids become hopeless.”
Parent Emma Jones said what bothered her most about last month’s decision were comments made by board member Chapman, who suggested “Lily and Dunkin” sent a negative message to men and boys.
Jones responded Monday, saying “real men” are taking care of their families and supporting their children who may be struggling with their gender identity.
“Parents of trans children easily have to be the toughest people I know to have to take on fearful people like you day after day,” she said directly to Chapman. “So, if what you are actually scared of is trans kids and the parents of trans kids, it would just be easier to say that next time.”
Cammie McIver, president of LGBTQ advocacy group Gardner Pride, said kids that check out the book are looking for acceptance, familiarity, knowing someone else with a similar life experience or have a genuine curiosity to learn.
“Trans kids exist, and they exist in this district,” she said.
Former student JJ Briscoe said he now attends New York University and one of the most apparent things about attending that institution after graduating Gardner Edgerton High School in 2019 was the “stark difference” in the quality of education students receive throughout the country.
The New York State United Teachers Union Files motion to intervene in book caseNew York’s public teachers’ union filed several motions Jan. 9-10 in the case of a minister’s continuing attempts to overturn the state Education Department’s decision to leave five books in Clyde-Savannah’s secondary school library.
The plaintiffs are the Rev. Jacob Marchitell and the Wayne County Chapter of Moms for Liberty, which say the books are pornographic and the Education Department overstepped parental rights by leaving them on the shelves.
The motions, including a district request to dismiss the case, will be heard Feb. 14. So far, no judge has been assigned, case records indicate.
New York State United Teachers filed paperwork in State Supreme Court in Albany last week to intervene as a respondent in the matter.
“Were petitioners to be successful in this proceeding, the policies, laws, rules, and regulations upon which NYSUT members rely will be readily replaced at the behest of ill-informed community members and/or partisan organizations,” NYSUT’s most recent brief read.
The union asserted its support — again — for the district’s library specialist, Emilie Bastian. In her own motion, Bastian last week said she should be a respondent, too, since she has a vested interest in the matter as the author of the district’s book policy.
Marchitell and Moms for Liberty initiated an Article 78 proceeding in Wayne County in August, appealing the Education Department’s April decision affirming the school district’s choice to have the books remain in the library. Marchitell and Moms for Liberty contend the books, which include Colleen Hoover’s mega-best seller “It Ends with Us,” are p----graphic.
The union previously supported Bastian and another teacher when they brought a complaint to the Education Department regarding the books, which had been removed from the library’s shelves initially at Marchitell’s request. The district’s school board voted to return them before the Education Department could intervene.
Marchitell and Moms for Liberty appealed. Meanwhile, NYSUT filed an amicus brief “opposing the book ban and supporting intellectual and academic freedom.”
State Education Commissioner Betty Rosa dismissed the appeal in April, upholding the decision of the Clyde-Savannah Board of Education to retain the five challenged books in the school library’s collection.
Indiana - good newsDespite a petition signed by hundreds ... the Middlebury Public Library (IN) will not remove books that some people think are inappropriate. This has been a fight going on for months in Elkhart.
Paywalled
https://www.goshennews.com/news/middl...
OK here's one for you Gundula to answer your question:Utah students can no longer bring personal copies of banned books to school
https://www.kuer.org/education/2025-0...
according to updated guidance from the Utah State Board of Education, banned books have been added to that list. This change was not due to action by board members. Instead, it is staff members’ interpretation of the law.
There are currently 15 books banned statewide under a 2024 law. Individual school districts and charter schools have also banned additional books at the local level.
If a school or district determines a book is “p----graphic or indecent,” as defined in state code, that title is labeled “sensitive material.” The new law breaks that down further into “objective sensitive material” or “subjective sensitive material.”
Schools are not allowed to have any instructional materials in their libraries or classrooms that meet the criteria of “sensitive material.” But since students are still legally allowed to get these books from the public library or bookstores, they were previously allowed to bring a banned book to school if they got it somewhere else.
While the 2024 law focuses on materials that schools own or use, one line in the state code explicitly states, “Sensitive materials are prohibited in the school setting.”
According to the state board’s updated FAQ, any books banned statewide are prohibited on any school property. Similarly, those banned by a local school district for being “sensitive material” are prohibited on any of that district’s school grounds.
“These titles should not be brought to school or used for classroom activities, assignments, or personal reading while on school property,” the FAQ page states.
It also has guidance for approaching students who bring one of these books to school. That includes avoiding public confrontation, maintaining a calm demeanor, validating the student’s feelings, explaining the state law and encouraging students to talk with their parents about this. It also suggests notifying the administration so they can contact parents to explain the policy.
The state board’s Library Media Specialist Davina Sauthoff said the staff and their attorneys have had ongoing discussions and investigations into what the law explicitly requires. She said they want to make sure they’re providing the best guidance to schools and districts so that they are in legal compliance.
The updated guidance addresses that initial conversation a staff member has with a student, Sauthoff said. It doesn’t wade into whether students should be disciplined or what should happen if a student brings the book again.
It would be up to individual schools and districts to create policies about how these situations are handled. Sauthoff said the state’s guidance merely encourages schools to have those conversations and to involve parents.
“We're not asking teachers to search out these books, you know, dig through backpacks and lockers. But if they become aware of it, then, gently ask the student to take the book home,” Sauthoff said. “We don't want there to be any confrontation or a space where students don't feel welcomed and included in their school community.”
Gretchen Zaitzeff, president of the Utah School Library Association, said she’s concerned about how schools will interpret this and students potentially being punished for bringing a book to school.
FloridaManatee library advisory board set to reconvene
https://www.yourobserver.com/news/202...
After a public protest, two rounds of applicants, and commissioners who refused to make appointments since April 2023, Manatee County’s library advisory board will reconvene by April just as it was two years ago — a five-member board with no authority to oversee the county’s book collections.
“Unfortunately, what we didn’t realize is that (the advisory board) is governed by state law,” Commissioner Amanda Ballard said. “We didn’t have that information at first. Somebody in the legal department found the statute, and so we had to revert due to that.”
Ballard’s idea to increase the board to 15 members to oversee the book collections in April 2023 was seen by some citizens and members of the library community as an attempt to control the collections, or a book ban in a different form.
The plan came with genre labels and parental consent forms and was initiated just as the Lakewood Ranch Library began choosing which books to include in its over 40,000-piece collection.
The move caused protesters to line the sidewalk outside of the Administration Building, waving signs and chanting, "Trust librarians to do their jobs."
A compromise was made.
The labels and consent forms were scrapped, and instead of a whole new board, the existing board was expanded and its duties included “collection development process review.”
It took a dozen professional librarians seven months to curate Lakewood Ranch’s collection.
Library Services Manager Tammy Parrot said it was too much to ask of volunteers to choose what was in the collection, but asking them to review the process was appropriate. The purpose of the advisory board is to recommend policies to commissioners and update them on the state of the county’s library system.
Even those opposed to the expanded board overseeing the book collection, like Sue Ann Miller, president of the Friends of the Lakewood Ranch Library, liked the idea of adding more members to the existing board, making it nine instead of five.
Mod
Utah students can no longer bring personal copies of banned books to school
https://www.kuer.org/education/2025-0......"
Well, I would (if I were a student) keep bringing banned books to school and be extremely vocal and use the German N word (Nazi) on anyone trying to take my books away. I would rather be suspended or expelled but I would also very publicly and openly make a huge fuss and I would keep on making a fuss over and over and over again. Students need to rebel and to shame EVERYONE involved in this repeatedly and nastily.
An Indiana republican wants to revoke the rights for libraries in the state to levy taxes for their institutions. (It will defund public libraries.)https://indianacapitalchronicle.com/2...
Libraries fire back on bill to remove taxing authority
[Library] boards overseeing the entities have a unique position in Indiana because the appointed members can impose a tax levy for certain needs — a funding option not available to other public services.
A proposal from Republican Sen. Gary Byrne, of Byrnesville, would remove that authority from the public board and give it to the county — a process he said “works very well” with other services, like public parks.
“The primary goal is to have the elected fiscal body have a … review of the unelected or appointed boards,” Byrne said Tuesday, adding that he believed it would have a “neutral” revenue impact.
“I actually had a constituent come up to me and ask about the library tax when I was on the (county) council and said, ‘Well, that board is appointed. We really have no binding review over what would happen,’” he continued. “(This) just would allow the elected bodies to have a little more say or control and be able to answer to the constituents in their district.”
But librarians, five of whom appeared to testify in opposition, believe it creates “an additional layer of bureaucracy” and said that counties, schools and cities work together to appoint board members.
“Library boards operate openly and transparently so the public can be as engaged as it wants,” said Vanessa Martin, the co-chair of the advocacy committee for the Indiana Library Federation. “Public libraries are also regularly audited to make sure that funds appropriated are being spent as they are meant (to be).”
No one testified explicitly in support of Senate Bill 283.
David Bottorff, executive director of the Association of Indiana Counties, said it is his group’s policy that taxation should be approved by an elected body. But he added that he is glad the bill is being held as there are concerns about which fiscal body would be in charge — counties or cities — and what would happen to existing debt.
According to the Indiana State Library, roughly 237 libraries throughout the state have the power to introduce a levy on property taxes, an authority overseen by the Department of Local Government Finance. Then the board justifies the levy in a public hearing before the state can certify.
But Byrne seemed to find support among his Republican colleagues. During his time in local government, he said finding people to serve on the board could be a challenge — something Sen. Mike Gaskill said he’d also seen.
“Both as a school board member and as a county councilman, my experience was that there wasn’t a lot of thought and competition,” said the Pendleton Republican. “… those people end up basically having taxing authority over residents.”
But not all of Byrne’s colleagues agreed.
Sen. Fady Qaddoura, D-Indianapolis, wondered what problem this bill was trying to solve and questioned whether there were other ways to meet that goal.
“I think it might be helpful to have a deep dive into current operations and, if the issue is accountability or transparency, I think we can look at — ‘Are they publishing their annual audited reports? Are they communicating that information to the citizens, if they have concerns?’” Qaddoura said.
Very bad news coming up. Supreme Court Agrees to Hear Montgomery Parents’ Challenge to LGBTQ+ Book Rules
https://www.the74million.org/article/...
A Montgomery County schools spokesperson said Friday the system would not comment on the court’s decision to take the case.
The U.S. Supreme Court agreed Friday to hear an appeal from a group of Montgomery County parents challenging a school system policy that does not let them opt their lower elementary school children out of classes that use LGBTQ+ books.
Parents, who have lost repeatedly in lower courts, have argued that the books interfere with their religious liberty rights by exposing their young children to gender and sexuality norms that conflict with their religion.
Their Supreme Court appeal has drawn supportive legal filings from a range of religious groups and conservative legal scholars.
But the county said in filings with the court that the books were not part of a coercive effort, but were merely available in the reading materials available to children in lower grades.
The lower courts that sided with the school system were simply upholding “decades-old consensus that parents who choose to send their children to public school are not deprived of their right to freely exercise their religion simply because their children are exposed to curricular materials the parents find offensive,” the county said.
The court, without comment, said in an order released Friday afternoon that it would hear the case, Mahmoud v. Taylor. No hearing date has been set, but arguments are likely to be scheduled for later this spring...
School officials said in court filings in lower courts that the books were not part of “explicit instruction on gender identity and sexual orientation in elementary school, and that no student or adult is asked to change how they feel about these issues.” The books were merely added to the county’s list of reading materials to better represent the county’s entire population and to “include characters, families, and historical figures from a range of cultural, racial, ethnic, and religious backgrounds,” documents say.
School system officials have said that teachers are expected to make the books available in the classroom, recommend them as appropriate for particular students or offer them “as an option for literature circles, book clubs, or paired reading groups; or to use them as a read aloud” in class.
Parents who objected were originally allowed to opt their children out of lessons that included the books. But the school system in March 2023 said opt-outs would not be allowed, beginning in the 2023-24 school year. Parents are allowed to opt their children out of parts of sex education, but not other parts of the curriculum, like language arts.
The parents sued, arguing that refusing to let them take their kids out of the classes infringed on their First Amendment freedom of religion rights.
In their petition to the Supreme Court, they said the policy exposed the children to gender and sexuality norms that contradict their religious beliefs. The policy gives parents — who include Muslim, Catholic and Ukrainian Orthodox families — “no protection against forced participation in ideological instruction by government schools,” the petition said.
The parents said they are not trying to ban the books in Montgomery County schools, but merely seeking the ability to keep their children out from being exposed to ideas that conflicted with their firmly held religious beliefs.
So far, the underlying elements of the case have not been heard, merely the parents’ request for a preliminary injunction of the school system’s opt-out policy, which the parents have repeatedly lost. That fact was noted by the county, which said “there is no pressing issue here” that can’t be worked out by letting the case proceed in regular course through the lower courts.
A federal district judge in August 2023 denied the parents’ request for a preliminary injunction and a divided panel of the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld that ruling in May 2024, writing that the parents had not met the high burden of showing that they were likely to win on their claim that the lack of an opt-out policy was actually coercing them to abandon part of their faith.
The majority opinion, written by Circuit Judge G. Steven Agee, said that because the record in preliminary injunction hearings was extremely sparse, the parents had not been able to “connect the requisite dots” to show that a burden on their First Amendment rights existed.
While the parents had shown that the books “could be used in ways that would confuse or mislead children and, in particular, that discussions relating to their contents could be used to indoctrinate their children into espousing views that are contrary to their religious faith. … none of that is verified by the limited record that is before us,” Agee wrote.
“Should the Parents in this case or other plaintiffs in other challenges to the Storybooks’ use come forward with proof that a teacher or school administrator is using the Storybooks in a manner that directly or indirectly coerces children into changing their religious views or practices, then the analysis would shift in light of that record,” Agee wrote.
The fact that parents might feel forced to forgo a public school education and pay for private school was not sufficiently coercive to be a burden on the parents’ First Amendment rights, based on the record so far, he wrote.
In a dissent, Circuit Judge A. Marvin Quattlebaum Jr. said parents had met their burden for a preliminary injunction while the case was heard.
Kelly Jensen of BookRiot reports: "A resident of Ferry County, Washington, believes that all children in her county are heterosexual, and thus, flags on display in the library constitute grooming. She is, of course, performing complaints about it."PAYWALLED
https://dominickb.substack.com/p/ncw-...
Oklahoma BATTLES ON BOOKS: S.B. 19 redundant, according to local school districts
https://www.tahlequahdailypress.com/n...
A recently filed piece of legislation would require public and charter schools in Oklahoma to submit a list of library materials to the State Department of Education by Oct. 1 each school year, and school officials say it’s unnecessary.
This bill, Senate Bill 19, will be eligible for consideration in the 2025 legislative session, which begins Feb. 3. It was authored by Sen. Warren Hamilton, R-McCurtain. The bill aims to prevent school libraries from having “inappropriate materials,” according to a press release sent out by Oklahoma Senate Communications.
The legislation would also require schools to implement policies for evaluating educational relevance of materials, and for managing and responding to complaints about library items.
“Oklahoma students should be able to read and learn in a safe environment, free from exposure to explicit materials. Parents should also have peace of mind knowing their children are not able to access inappropriate content while at school,” Hamilton said. “This bill ensures that parents and the State Department of Education can hold schools accountable for exposing children to inappropriate materials, while also putting parameters in place to ensure such content isn’t available in the first place.”
However, this watchdog program is already in place in many districts, such at those of Tahlequah Public Schools, according to Superintendent Tanya Jones.
“I agree that student safety and parental peace of mind is very important,” Jones said. “TPS revised board policy 5075 in September 2023 to outline a policy to address library material selections.”
Policy 5075 states the district already submits a list of materials to the State Department of Education by Oct. 1 each year, and offers a form wherein residents or employees can challenge materials found in the library.
TPS policy states that material selected shall be reflective of the community standards for the population the library media center serves when acquiring an age-appropriate collection of print materials, non-print materials, multimedia resources, equipment and supplies adequate in quality and quantity to meet the needs of students in all areas of the school library media program. A book shall not be excluded because of the race, nationality, political or religious views of the writer or of its style and language.
Policy also states every effort will be made to provide materials that present all points of view concerning the problems and issues of current times. International, national, local and books or other reading matter of “sound factual authority” shall not be proscribed or removed from library shelves or classrooms because of partisan, doctrinal, approval or disapproval.
Hulbert Public Schools Superintendent Jolyn Choate said her district also provides a library catalog to the State Department of Education.
“The district has policies in place for the evaluation of library materials in compliance with the State Department of Education,” Choate said. “There have been no concerns about inappropriate library materials brought to my attention.”
At Keys Public Schools, Superintendent Vol Woods said the submission of library materials would be a “resource intensive” task for his district, and may divert time and effort from other critical educational priorities.
I don't understand how these people have so much time on their hands to formulate and listen to conspiracy theories! I've read every one of the books in question, except Teddy, and found nothing wrong with any of them except that I don't care for Maya and Matt's illustration style. Only Maya and Matt discuss pronouns and gender spectrum in their books and It Feels Good is also a non-fiction book about kids being themselves. The rest I read are about kids feely expressing themselves through style choices. Vermont
Addison County schools weigh parent complaints, controversy over gender-related children’s books
https://www.middleburycampus.com/arti...
In early December, two parents at Middlebury’s Mary Hogan Elementary School filed a complaint against the school regarding the implementation of gender-related materials and books used in the kindergarten curriculum. The initial complaint has sparked fierce debate at recent school board meetings and further review by the superintendent and school board, who are still in the process of weighing a potential ban.
The books cited in the complaint included “They He She Me: Free to be!” by Maya Christina Gonzales and Matthew Smith Gonzales, “Bodies are Cool” by Tyler Feder, “It Feels Good to Be Yourself” by Theresa Thorn, “Julián is A Mermaid” by Jessica Love, “Introducing Teddy” by Jessica Walton, “Sparkle Boy” by Lesléa Newman and “Fred Gets Dressed” by Peter Brown, according to the Addison Independent.
“Challenges to books and other instructional materials come along periodically and are processed carefully,” wrote Emily Blistein, the ACSD director of communications and engagement, in a Dec. 9 email to the Addison Independent.
In response, members of the local transgender community and allies rallied against the proposed book ban in an effort to urge the Addison Central School District (ACSD) board to deny the request to ban several books that allow for kindergarteners to understand gender identity, according to the Addison Independent. Community members, parents and students at Middlebury College expressed strong emotions as they presented their own perspectives on the potential ban.
Members of the local Middlebury community were able to contribute public comments at a recent board meeting on Jan. 6. Several attendees expressed concerns about the possible medical and legal ramifications of allowing these books to remain in classrooms.
“My concern is certainly for the health of the individuals, but also for potential liability for the school district in the future, especially if a policy is followed that would encourage the use of these agents without obtaining proper informed consent from the parents,” said Mario Capparuccini, a physician at Porter Hospital who did not mention any current experience with treating children or transgender people.
Board member Steve Orchez and Superintendent Wendy Baker pushed back on the idea that Addison County schools are teaching students about their gender, or trying to encourage gender transitions.
“There is a conspiracy theory that is currently floating around out there, that schools are administering hormone injections for students that are unsafe,” Orchez stated. “We don’t have enough nursing resources to hand out aspirin. We’re not changing people’s genders.”
“Or even talking about it,” Baker added.
Physicians, Addison County students, parents of transgender individuals, local activists and other people from the Middlebury community previously spoke at a Dec. 16 meeting, with most advocating in favor of keeping the books available to children at Mary Hogan....
John Watson of Middlebury, Vt., shared his observations on raising a now-grown child who identifies as transgender.
“My child didn't grow up thinking that she was born in the wrong,” Watson shared. “We need not have a curriculum that advances transgender ideology simply to recognize that there are people with different positions on the spectrum of gender identity.”
Some public comments disagreed on the necessity for books to be included in school curriculum, arguing that families are responsible for conversations about gender and identity with their children.
“Vermont Family Alliance believes that the family is a sacred institution,” said Renee McGinness, a resident of Moncton, Vt. and member of the Vermont Family Alliance. “It’s not a question of whether or not parents and children need to have these kinds of discussions over gender… but it’s about who should be directing these conversations.”
Social media has been a focus for the different narratives represented in the conflict. Memes and Facebook pages have been used for the dissemination of the different arguments on both sides, according to the Addison Independent.
MiddPride, a local LGBTQ advocacy group, also attended the ACSD meeting and voiced their opposition to the ban.
“Book bans that target gender diverse storylines are a blatant attempt to erase trans and gender diverse people from our classrooms. Our community is clear: trans people belong, and these books do too,” MiddPride wrote in a Dec. 14 Instagram post.
Other local activist groups have weighed in as well on the contentious topic in recent weeks.
“The NAACP strongly condemns any attempt to ban books, especially for elementary students, as it undermines students’ fundamental right to access diverse ideas and perspectives,” wrote Mia Schulz, president of the Rutland Area NAACP in a Dec. 9 statement. “We strongly urge the Superintendent and the school board to deny this request and make clear their support for a diverse and welcoming learning environment for all students.”
The appeal has not yet been decided by the superintendent, but when a decision is reached, the parents may appeal again, which will go to the ACSD school board for the final decision.
Kelly Jensen of BookRiot reports:"Seaside School Board (OR) heard complaints over the use of The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian in one of their high school classes. You may recall Seaside, Oregon, dealt with complaints at the public library last year, thanks to the conspiratorial thinking of one of the community’s city councilmen. What happens in the public libraries moves to the schools if it’s not the other way around first."
https://www.dailyastorian.com/news/lo...
Paywalled
You go girl!A Pine-Richland 11th grader has gathered nearly 1,900 signatures for an online petition against the Pine-Richland School Board’s controversial library policy revisions.
Elise Duckworth said she created the change.org petition on Jan. 12 as an outlet for those in opposition to the board’s proposed policy changes and to insist the board change its course. The petition comes amid a yearslong battle in the district over its Library Resources policy.
Previously, the district formed a committee for the review of 14 books challenged by parents in 2023, many of which focused on LGBTQ characters.
The committee offered recommendations to Superintendent Brian Miller, who ultimately decided the titles should remain available. Last year, board members began to discuss a revised policy that would give them the final say over library books rather than the superintendent.
The proposed policy has encountered stark resistance in the community as many equate the revision to a “book ban.” A heated meeting on Jan. 9 ran nearly seven hours as the public, administrators and the board struggled over the wording and intentions of the policy.
Duckworth spoke that night, but she said she realized that many simply didn’t have the time to attend drawn-out meetings even if they opposed the policy.
“I think the idea behind the petition was, ‘How can we show (the board) the number of people who are against this?’ ” Duckworth said.
Though she said she was worried the petition would not amount to much, Duckworth said she was happy to see it rapidly spread through social media and word of mouth.
Duckworth, the junior class president, said conversations about the proposed policy changes have been “hard to avoid” among her classmates, but she said many of her peers are “nervous” to speak out.
She said students aren’t necessarily seeking out explicit content in books, but sometimes mature themes arise in the context of some texts.
“I think the misconception is that students are going and they’re looking for the most p---graphic, s--ual content possible,” she said. “But the more likely scenario is students are picking up ‘To Kill a Mockingbird.’ ”
For Nedda Immen, a Pine-Richland senior, it is not so much a matter of access but a matter of principle.
If they cannot find the books at the school library, Immen said students could just view them online or at a public library. But she signed the petition because she said the books have value in the school.
“By taking these books away, they’re essentially making a statement that all of these books that they’re banning don’t have educational value,” Immen said.
Though the board may have the votes to pass a revised policy, she said she hopes the petition keeps “pressure” on the board and forces it to hear students’ voices.
Immen said she is happy to see students opposing the board in a “mature way” by signing the petition and addressing it directly at meetings.
Jake Pazin, president of the senior class, said he is disappointed in the proposed policy change but remains optimistic.
“I believe that the books represent the people in our community, and having them banned is essentially erasing the very real experiences that people have,” he said.
Pazin said he signed the petition soon after Duckworth posted it, and he said it has been successful in spreading awareness of the controversy among students.
Tracy Howe, Duckworth’s mother, said the proposed policy change has been the topic of many dinnertime conversations at her house, but she said she is “psyched” that others may start paying attention because of the petition.
A former teacher, Howe said her family is no stranger to political discussions, but the recent library controversy “lit a fire” under her daughter.
“When it turned to the books, it became really personal for her because she loves books, and she’s been given a lot of latitude in her selection of books,” Howe said.
Both Howe and Duckworth spoke at the board’s last meeting on Jan. 13. Howe said they “feel a complete dedication” to opposing the proposed changes.
..
School board member Ashley Fortier, who has spoken out against the proposed policy changes, said she thinks the petition is “great.” She said it’s good to see Duckworth involved with a policy that has “a direct impact on her and her peers.”
Amy Terchick, a board member who also has positioned herself against the policy changes, said Duckworth and other student speakers have shown “clarity and courage.”
“Our whole community should be proud as they assert their First Amendment rights,” she said.
Longtime board member Marc Casciani said the board has handled the revision process “poorly.” He said he believes it is “wonderful when students get involved in the political process.” However, he said it is still too “premature” to say whether he will ultimately vote for the revised policy.
Other board members did not respond to requests for comment.
According to change.org, 63% of petition-signers come from the ZIP codes 15044, 15090 and 16066. The former two ZIP codes cover much of Pine-Richland School District while the latter serves nearby Cranberry Township.
But the petition also has caught the attention of those further afield. Duckworth read comments from supporters in Florida and North Carolina at the last board meeting.
“This is not just a local fight. This is a fight for freedom and a fight to read and believe what you want to believe and that education should never be censored,” Duckworth said. “And I think that’s just a common belief throughout the U.S.”
https://community.triblive.com/c/pine...
AND the news is predictably only getting worse by the day.Trump's U.S. Dept of Education released a statement calling book bans a hoax!
Yes there's a database with thousands of titles removed from schools and libraries across the country. How is that not banning?
Also in case you can't stand to look at the news, they've cancelled DEI programs and limited gender to a set organs and sex assigned at birth based on those organs. AND that will lead to MORE book banning.
Here's the link if you can stand to look.
Department of Education dismisses book ban complaints, ends guidance
https://abcnews.go.com/US/department-...
The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights has announced that it is rescinding all past guidance issued against the removal of books and will no longer employ a coordinator to investigate instances of unlawful book removals.
The department also announced that it has dismissed 11 book ban complaints and six pending complaints. According to the DOE, the complaints alleged that the removal of these books "created a hostile environment for students."
...
The Trump administration's Department of Education states that the books were targeted because school districts and parents "have established commonsense processes by which to evaluate and remove age-inappropriate materials."
The statement continued, "Because this is a question of parental and community judgment, not civil rights, OCR has no role in these matters."
"The department is beginning the process of restoring the fundamental rights of parents to direct their children’s education,” said Acting Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Craig Trainor in a statement on the move. “The department adheres to the deeply rooted American principle that local control over public education best allows parents and teachers alike to assess the educational needs of their children and communities. Parents and school boards have broad discretion to fulfill that important responsibility."
EveryLibrary has issued a response:The facts surrounding the Forsyth County situation are clear and concerning. In May 2023, the OCR investigation found that the district's removal of books featuring LGBTQ+ and racial minority characters was found to have created a hostile environment for students. Students' families reported that the bans made their school environment feel harsher, with LGBTQ+ students expressing fears over losing their previously safe spaces. Students of color indicated that the removal of books with diverse characters made it difficult for them to see themselves represented in their school libraries. The OCR concluded that the district's actions, along with insufficient communication with students and community members, created a racially and s--ually hostile environment that violated Title VI and Title IX.
Title VI and Title XI are foundational civil rights laws enacted to ensure that students in educational settings are free from discrimination. Title IX prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex, including protections for sexual orientation and gender identity, ensuring equal access to education and school resources. Title VI prohibits discrimination based on race, color, or national origin, safeguarding students against racial bias and fostering equitable access to educational programs. Together, these laws are important tools to ensure that schools remain settings where all students can learn and thrive without fear of exclusion or harassment.
Instead of addressing these documented harms, the Trump Administration has dismissed this case and 11 other similar ones, labeling such complaints as "meritless" and ignoring the documented instances of censorship, harassment, and discrimination in schools. Why is censorship, which silences students and restricts their access to education, not a priority for the administration? Why is the Office for Civil Rights being stripped of its capacity to hold districts accountable for these actions?
EveryLibrary echos PEN's condemnation of the administration's dismissal of these documented realities as a "hoax" and its decision to eliminate the OCR's "book ban coordinator," a role established to combat this rising tide of censorship. These actions are detrimental to students, educators, librarians, and families who have fought for a fairer, more inclusive education system.
We urge the public, educators, and lawmakers to remain vigilant and continue to stand against the discriminatory impacts of censorship. Title IX and Title VI were enacted to protect children in schools, and those protections must not be undermined by political agendas or dismissive rhetoric. EveryLibrary will continue to advocate for those who challenge discriminatory book bans and to uphold the freedom to read for every student in every school.
EveryLibrary
https://www.everylibrary.org/
Sarah Jessica Parker Has ‘Great Concerns’ for the Future of Public Institutions Like Libraries, Says Book Bans ‘Feel Like a Virus’https://variety.com/2025/film/news/sa...
Sarah Jessica Parker stopped by the Variety Studio presented by Audible at Sundance and expressed concern over how the future of public institutions like libraries. The “Sex and the City” icon is an executive producer on the documentary “The Librarians,” which is directed by Kim A. Snyder. The filmmaker was just nominated for an Oscar with in the best documentary short category with “Death By Numbers.”
The doc follows a group of librarians, dubbed FReadom Fighters, who have resisted book bans in Texas, Florida and beyond. Texas school librarians founded the group after lawmaker Rep. Matt Krause targeted 850 books to be removed from the state’s libraries, leading to bans on books such as “Catcher in the Rye” and “The Handmaid’s Tale.”
Parker told Variety’s co-editor in chief Ramin Setoodeh that she was compelled to sign on to the film as an executive producer because she grew up in libraries as a young girl and “understood immediately” that book banning “feels dangerous and like a virus.”
“The idea of these librarians being in the crosshairs, it felt really scary and wrong and absolutely misunderstood,” Parker said. “By allowing [book banning] to take place, we’re allowing something dangerous to happen to all of us. Not just to our children but to us as a community, as Americans. It’s a disaster. The consequences are so serious for these librarians.”
When asked about her concerns about the Trump administration potentially impacting libraries, Parker said “I have great concerns about what happens to these kinds of public institutions. They are the gateway to safety and understanding for families actually coming together and finding a bridge.”
“I have faith that we can allow our librarians to do their jobs and for people to calm down,” she added. “I am going to focus my efforts on these people and what’s happening in our states.”
Snyder previously told Variety that her message with the documentary is “not just about the brave librarians but also the everyday Americans who flank them. They are just regular Americans who are saying, ‘I’m going to stand in a place of power until I can’t.’
ALA to U. S. Department of Education: Book bans are realThe American Library Association released the following statement in response to the January 24th announcement that the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) is arbitrarily dismissing student and parent complaints arising out of public schools’ documented acts of censorship and discrimination:
https://www.ala.org/news/2025/01/book...
EveryLibrary has issued yet another statement in response to the Trump administration's latest directive:"Trump has demanded a freeze on all federal grants and for all agencies to “temporarily pause all activities related to obligations or disbursement of all Federal financial assistance.”
The memo also calls for each agency to perform a “comprehensive analysis” to ensure its grant and loan programs are consistent with President Donald Trump’s executive orders, which aimed to ban federal diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives and limit clean energy spending.
Programs affected are “including, but not limited to, financial assistance for foreign aid, nongovernmental organizations, DEI, woke gender ideology, and the Green New Deal.”
While this "pause" will negatively impact millions of Americans, it will also considerably impact libraries.
Federal funding for libraries, museums, and archives is guaranteed each year by Congress and authorized under law. The Trump Administration’s January 27th “pause” on distributing federal grant funding to authorized recipients will negatively impact those institutions and their communities.
The administration says it will conduct a comprehensive review of grant recipients' political and social ideology before resuming any funding.
Essentially, Trump is requiring a loyalty test from government agencies before he allows them to resume their work. This is undoubtedly un-American. This action to withhold funds to grant recipients authorized by Congress is also likely illegal.
As a 501(c)4 organization, EveryLibrary does not apply for or receive federal grants. This order from the Office of Management and Budget does not directly affect us. This is about how this order negatively impacts libraries, museums, and archives. State Libraries use federal LSTA funds to support interlibrary loan services, educational databases, and their staff, which supports all the libraries in their states. Many public libraries receive direct grants for programs, collections, and staffing that enable them to serve their communities. Because of these grants, archives and museums across the country are able to do their important work. And numerous library non-profits and associations have to suspend or halt their activities because of this freeze.
EveryLibrary stands with our colleagues in libraries, archives, museums, and the non-profit community, whom this freeze will hurt.
What will happen to America when libraries are subject to politically motivated scrutiny to win back funding already obligated under law by Congress? If the idea that “a good library has something in it to offend everyone” is true, will President Trump and Project 2025 find enough fault in libraries to shut off their funding forever? As library stakeholders, we cannot let this OMB order remain in effect. EveryLibrary calls on library advocates in red and blue states to contact Congress today and demand that they step in and reverse this OMB hold. The Trump Administration cannot be allowed to hold this funding hostage."
I know I don't have to email. MY Reps have already issued a statement against this directive as it negatively impacts a whole bunch of necessary projects in our state!
How do SC book bans actually work? Here’s what happens in Beaufort County schools, librariesThe Beaufort County School District outlines its policy regarding book bans in its Administrative Regulation IS-38.1.
The Beaufort County School District states that they uphold the principle of intellectual freedom, promote academic freedom, the student’s right to read and the fair and reasonable competition of ideas and information.
BCSD officials are not permitted to remove any book from a school library but the district administrators have the right to institute an Administrative Review Committee to conduct a review if deemed appropriate.
When challenging a book, any student, employee, parent or legal guardian has the right to challenge a book. Once the challenge is submitted, the BCSD review committee will analyze the complaint and decide within 15 business days of the challenge being filed.
If the committee recommends any changes regarding access to the material in question, such as the addition or removal of the material, the Superintendent is responsible for implementing and communicating those changes.
If the committee recommends the book in question should be removed, the BCSD must ensure no other copies exist in school library circulation within the BCSD for the school level it is being removed from.
If the committee recommends the material in question is acceptable and can stay in schools, the BCSD must immediately place such materials back into circulation. If anyone who files a challenge would like to appeal their request after a final decision is made by the BCSD, they must do so within seven days to the Board of Education.
Parents and guardians do have the option for certain materials not to be available to their specific child and can do so by submitting the “Request to Opt-Out of School Library Materials Form,” available on the BCSD website.
The Beaufort County Public Libraries are thorough and thoughtful and take on each removal request carefully. According to their website and library managers, The Beaufort County Library firmly endorses the Library Bill of Rights, the Freedom to Read Statement, the Freedom to View Statement and the American Library Association Code of Ethics.
Collection development in each library is carried out under the guidance of established policies based on the needs of user groups, service objectives, collection specifications and current selection needs. The choice of whether to read library materials is entirely an individual and confidential matter.
If a library member wants the library to reconsider any material they have, they must also go through a challenge request called a Request for Reconsideration of Library Material form.
Library staff members review the completed reconsideration request and then give it to the branch manager, who will then contact the library director. The director will appoint a committee of at least three staff members and/or area specialists to evaluate the material. The committee will examine the material in question and will determine whether the item in question meets the criteria to stay or be removed from the library’s collection within 30 business days. The title under reconsideration will remain available for circulation while under review. If anyone who files a challenge would like to appeal their request after a final decision is made, they can do so by writing to the Library Board of Trustees within 10 business days of the decision. It’s important to note that for both Beaufort County Schools and Beaufort County Libraries, a challenge report must be filled out in its entirety with all required information to be taken under proper consideration.
Read more at: https://www.islandpacket.com/news/loc...
Read more at: https://www.islandpacket.com/news/loc...
Read more at: https://www.islandpacket.com/news/loc...
Disturbing news. Remember Florida? Now national. White Christian Nationalism, Project 2025 it's real, it's happening now. Trump’s orders take aim at critical race theory and antisemitism on college campuses
https://apnews.com/article/trump-crit...
President Donald Trump is ordering U.S. schools to stop teaching what he views as “critical race theory” and other material dealing with race and sexuality or risk losing their federal money.
...
His order on K-12 schools declares that federal money cannot be used on the “indoctrination” of children, including “radical gender ideology and critical race theory.” It says civil rights laws barring discrimination based on s-x and race would be used to enforce the order, calling critical race theory an “inherently racist policy.”
Examples cited in the order include a policy at Harrisonburg City Public Schools in Virginia requiring teachers to use students’ preferred names and pronouns. Another policy at Madison Metropolitan School District in Wisconsin says schools should “disrupt the gender binary” by teaching students to embrace different gender identities, according to the order.
The Education Department’s Office for Civil Rights investigates allegations of civil rights violations and can impose sanctions up to a total loss of federal money, though that penalty has almost never been used and must be approved by a judge.
The order unfairly tarnishes teachers and makes it harder for them to do their jobs, said Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers.
“Today is a sad day because the Trump administration is doing exactly what it accuses others of: creating division and fear in classrooms across America,” she said.
Trump also directs the education secretary to craft a strategy within 90 days to “end indoctrination in K-12 education.” Trump has appointed billionaire professional wrestling mogul Linda McMahon as his education chief, but her Senate confirmation hearing has not been scheduled.
During his campaign, Trump said he would sign an order “on day one” to cut federal money for schools that push critical race theory or other “inappropriate” content. The federal government provides billions of dollars to schools every year, though the vast majority of their money comes from state and local sources.
Opponents say the rules impose vague restrictions on teachers and create a chilling effect on discussions about history and other subjects.
The term “critical race theory” is used by conservatives as a catchall for subjects they don’t want to be taught in the classroom, though, in reality, it refers to a complex academic and legal framework centered on the idea that racism is embedded in the nation’s systems.
Trey Walk, a researcher and advocate with Human Rights Watch, said students have a right to learn about how discrimination can be entrenched in law and society. “If the US denies young people this knowledge, it has little hope of eradicating racism,” he said.
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The White House on Wednesday also reinstated an order from Trump’s first term establishing the 1776 Commission to promote “patriotic education” in U.S. schools.
Biden revoked the order and the commission’s guide for teaching history. The guide played down America’s role in slavery and argued that the civil rights movement ran afoul of the “lofty ideals” espoused by the Founding Fathers. It was widely panned by historians, who said it was outdated and ignored decades of research.
Mod
So Donald Trump is blaming people of colour for that air crash, just like Adolf Hitler blamed everything bad in Germany on Jews, Communists etc. And frankly, it is looking more and more like it was the military's fault as that frigging helicopter was flying too high, but of course the Red Menace (Trump) will never accept that.
Manybooks wrote: "https://www.cbc.ca/player/play/video/...So Donald Trump is blaming people of colour for that air crash, just like Adolf Hitler blamed everything bad in Germany on Jews, Communists etc. And ..."
Trump blamed Obama, but somehow he forgot to blame the president that came immediately after Obama. If Obama did something wrong, wouldn't a competent successor have fixed it? Just sayin'.
And he also banned DEI/Critical Race Theory/Black History Month and declared gender is biological based on sex and there's only two sexes. Also, school vouchers get his approval. EveryLibrary has issued a statement on Project 2025, now Trump 2025.
EveryLibrary opposes the Project 2025 framework by the Heritage Foundation because it would dismantle important parts of how public libraries build communities, how schools support students and families, and how higher education supports the next generation of scholars.
https://www.everylibrary.org/statemen...
From Book Riot's Literary Activism newsletterSusquehanna County Library’s administrator was fired for standing up to demands to remove LGBTQ+ books from the public library collection. This led to some board members resigning in protest, putting the entire library at stake.
https://www.wvia.org/news/local/2025-...
Hundreds of people on Monday protested the termination of the Susquehanna County Library’s administrator and demanded for the protection of LGBTQ+ books.
A majority argued that Administrator/Librarian Kristina Ely’s termination was a political move to enable library board members censor books they feel are inappropriate or offensive.
On Dec. 16, the Board of Trustees of the Susquehanna County Historical Society and the Free Library Association laid off Ely by a 6-4 vote during an executive session. Their decision sent shockwaves through the board, as several members were absent that day due to illness.
Two of the absent members and the four who voted to retain Ely resigned from the board over the following weeks. President Stephen Spero also resigned effective Jan. 27.
How the board voted on Dec. 16
Members’ votes are supposed to be kept private when in executive session, but that information was leaked to the Rocket Courier newspaper and the board acknowledged it on Monday:
Voted to lay off: William Squier, Dawn Augenti, Lorraine Chidester, Craig Benson, Fred Cicilioni and Angela Zick.
Voted to keep: Jim O’Pecko, Rob Vermette, Joann Reimel and Vickie Calby.
Did not vote: outgoing president Stephen Spero.
Absent: Eileen Baessler, Cathy Harter and Kathryn Matis.
Squier, the board’s new president, said its decision was due to “budgetary reasons.” When asked what those reasons were, he said he couldn’t talk about it due to “legal reasons … outside of anybody on this board’s control.”
Library supporter Bruce Baessler spoke on his wife Eileen’s behalf during Monday's public comment. Eileen Baessler was one of the board members who was absent during the Dec. 16 vote.
He said she was indignant after the decision, adding that it was worse than any health issue she faced.
“She said, ‘I had cancer. We both had COVID. The biggest problem in my life is the coup that had taken over this library.’ And that's what it was. Call it what you want — it was a coup because [the board] said, ‘Aha, there are six of us and only four [in opposition], we can get this vote done. It wasn't tabled when there wasn’t a full board of members here,” Baessler said.
Ely said the vote came out of nowhere. The board had been running a regular meeting, when it went into executive session and Ely was asked to leave the room. Afterwards, she was told she had been laid off.
Her relationship with the board had been “tense … behind the scenes,” she added.
Ely explained she had “made a point” of showing that the “library is an accepting place” by purchasing queer books, and said the board “got rid” of her to limit materials.
The board has not banned any books, but Ely worries the board will censor LGBTQ+ content.
During public comment, she railed against the board for appointing current board member Lorraine Chidester as the library’s chief operating officer to serve as an interim administrator.
Chidester has never worked as a librarian and does not have the required master's degree, according to Squier.
Ely argued that the library could lose out on $280,000 in state aid because of its decision.
“You're talking about restructuring the organization to have a director that oversees the business of the organization and then another person with an MLIS (master’s degree in library and information science) to head the library side, but that is going to blow your budget up, not fix it. You would be paying for two high level employees instead of one and that puts a huge hole in your budget deficit,” said Ely. “...You don't really care about this library being run at a professional level. You'd rather spend your time trying to trick the system.”
Chidester is not being paid by either the library or the board, said Squier, and he added that her position will be temporary.
Ely also criticized the board for not meeting its yearly book purchase requirements and for not aggressively fundraising for the library despite the alleged budget deficit.
Northeast Library District coordinator Michele Legate said the board needs to act fast to protect its funding. If the board wants to continue to receive state aid, it must hire a librarian with the required degree and follow other state standards.
The district acts as a liaison between libraries and the Office of Commonwealth Libraries.
In an interview after the meeting, she estimated that the board has six months to hire a master’s level librarian before becoming at risk for losing its funding. The library could face legal action.
Another director, this time in Texas, fired for not complying with demands to serve just one part of the community, rather than the whole of the community.https://communityimpact.com/houston/c...
Montgomery County officially terminated Rhea Young, who served as executive director over the Montgomery County Memorial Library System, following concerns from the public voiced at Commissioners Court meetings regarding the availability of "conservative literature."
Following a lengthy executive session Jan. 28, commissioners voted to have County Judge Mark Keough oversee the county library operations without formally terminating Young. However, in a news release to Community Impact, Keough's office confirmed Young was officially terminated from her position Jan. 29.
In October, the county revisited its policy for reviewing library books for content inappropriate for children due to concerns the existing policy was not structured properly and allowing nonresidents to report books to the review committee. According to previous Community Impact reporting, the committee is comprised of five citizens appointed by the county judge and commissioners for four-year terms. Books within the county library system will be able to be submitted for review before the committee by library users. Under the new policy, any cardholder of the Montgomery County Memorial Library System will be able to submit a book for review.
"I urge you to not pursue genderifying [not a word] the children's section, it doesn't work in public libraries and will only delay change further," resident Michelle Knuckles said at the Jan. 28 meeting, regarding books that deal with topics such as gender fluidity. "Additionally, none of the lost or damaged grade [conservative viewpoint] books have been replaced despite fees collected for this purpose and their popularity."
"I'm on the library reconsideration committee. I believe that Ms. Young is doing a great job," resident Suzanne Soto said during the Jan. 28 meeting. "I would like to let you know that I truly appreciate it, and I do appreciate Ms. Young's work there and keeping it engaging and interesting for all citizens."
The Livingston Parish Public Library (LA) is “temporarily” relocating every one of its YA books to the adult section. Still censorship.https://www.wafb.com/2025/01/30/livin...
[T]he Livingston Parish Library Board of Control voted to temporarily relocate all the books in the young-adult section to the adult section. This is just until the library staff has the chance to review all the young adult books. That includes about 30,000 books and materials. The decision drew some praise and some criticism.
This discussion has continued for years, often becoming contentious. That’s according to Bob Seals, who has been to every meeting in the last two years. Seals says SB 7 by Senator Cloud helped clarify the library’s role in limiting minors' access to certain materials by defining s---ally explicit and implementing additional barriers for young adults accessing certain content.
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Others were not as pleased with the resolution for a multitude of reasons.
“How much time and labor is this entailing? And for what reason? To prohibit access to young adult books to the very audience that these books were written for? If that’s not censorship I don’t know what is,” One community member said during public comment, showing her disapproval of the idea to move the books and potentially reclassify them. “Professional librarians have already vetted the books, despite what some claim - books in the juvenile section are not obscene, there’s a legal definition of obscene.”
Another community member disapproves of the decision as well but for a different reason. “What the library is considering ‘young adult’ I think is pretty pathetic, because the stuff that I’ve been pulling as young adult I would never let my teenagers, as teenagers read,” another community member said. “Having YA (young adult) and saying let’s go put it in the adult section or even if they say teen, what is in YA should not be in a teenager’s hands period.”
The library currently has a policy in place where library cards for minors are restricted unless a parent signs off on giving their child more access, or unrestricted access. Another community member, Sherrard Crespo, says to her, the move doesn’t seem necessary because of that policy.
“You’re stopping access to young adults and teens to literature that might be making them feel like they’re a part of something, and might be helping them to understand themselves, might be helping them to feel like they’re not alone,” Crespo says.
Crespo says it also doesn’t make financial sense. The budget was recently cut, but the library staff plans to do all the work in addition to their current duties. The board members mentioned not being able to single out specific genres or authors, which is why they are taking on the entire young adult section.
The books will be moved by the end of February and sorted between the teen and adult sections by the end of May.
CT bill would defend libraries, librarians from book bans and challengeshttps://www.wshu.org/2025-01-23/ct-bi...
A bill introduced in the Connecticut General Assembly seeks to prevent censorship in the state’s public and school libraries and immunize librarians from civil and criminal liability stemming from challenges to library materials.
The so-called “Don’t Ban Library Books” act was introduced by Senate Majority Leader Bob Duff (D-Norwalk) and Sen. Ceci Maher (D-Wilton). At a Thursday press conference at the state Capitol, Duff said the bill comes at a time of rising challenges to library materials across the country, particularly those items concerning “race, gender identity and sexuality.”
“Proponents of banning books use the excuse of protecting children from lewd material, but this is a cover to ban freedom of thought, endangering tolerance and weakening democracy,” Duff said.
Duff and Maher were joined at the press conference by Ellen Paul, executive director of the Connecticut Library Consortium, and Melissa Combs, founder of the LGBTQ+ student advocacy group Out Accountability Project.
Paul said that in 2023, there were more than 100 challenges to materials in Connecticut libraries in communities including Old Lyme, Suffield, Colchester, Guilford and more.
...
Libs of TikTok targeted the bill, and Duff and Maher by name, the senators said they received threats of violence. Duff played one voicemail message at the press conference.
“You’re a sick piece of [expletive] and I hope somebody walks up to you tonight while you’re walking up to your car and takes the back of your head off,” the caller said.
Duff called the death threats, which he referred to the Capitol Police, “anathema to our democracy.”
“Hatred and intolerance will only sow division and ignorance,” Duff said. “We cannot and will not allow that.”
The bill has been referred to the General Assembly’s Judiciary Committee.
Samuels County , Virginia Library still under fire from conservatives.As Library Supporters Cite New Board Member Ties to Book Removal Effort, Library Trustees File Injunction vs. the County
https://royalexaminer.com/as-library-...
4-year-appointee Eric Belk, who was identified as with his family submitting 27 book removal requests to Samuels Library during the 2023 “Clean Up Samuels” public effort. Readers will recall that effort as largely aimed at removing LGBTQ-themed material.
Royal Examiner contacted county officials, including new board Chairman “Jay” Butler about the library board appointment process and numbers. Butler confirmed a total of six interviews conducted in Closed/Executive Session a week earlier (Jan. 16) of what at one point was 21 applicants that eventually rose to 27 or 28. Noting he spoke only for himself, Butler said he could not comment on the interview criteria the other members held applicants to. For his part, Butler said he was primarily interested in applicant’s perspectives on current policies and finances related to library operations.
(Writer’s note: An edit has been made correcting citing Jessica Lynn Johnson, writer of the Open Letter to the Warren County Board of Supervisors, as the original source of information about Warren County Library Board appointee Frank Gresham. Johnson explained to us that she found the information cited about Gresham’s past Facebook posts from another Save Samuels member and was forwarding that information to us as additional background. Additional clarifying corrections regarding Chairman Butler’s comment should have read, “was primarily interested in applicant’s perspectives on current policies and finances related to library operations.”
Posts originated at a members-only “Save Samuels” Public Library supporters website chat room forwarded to this reporter alleged some questionable processes and choices by the Warren County Board of Supervisors regarding appointments to its newly created Warren County Library Board. In a post quoting from a member’s letter to the county’s five elected supervisors that was also sent to Royal Examiner as part of an Opinion page submission it was pointed out that:
“You have stated time and time again that this new board is not about regulating and/or restricting content in the library, that this is all for financial oversight. How are we supposed to believe that, when at a minimum, one of the five appointees was heavily involved in Clean Up Samuels?”
Evolving information gathered by Samuels Library supporters appears to indicate a clear majority of newly appointed County Library Board members have connections to the Samuels Library book banning effort of 2023. Will that majority put Virginia’s 2024 Library of the Year ‘behind bars’ operationally as many supporters fear? Royal Examiner File Photos
The post cited that “minimum of one” as 4-year-appointee Eric Belk, who was identified as with his family submitting 27 book removal requests to Samuels Library during the 2023 “Clean Up Samuels” public effort. Readers will recall that effort as largely aimed at removing LGBTQ-themed material. It is material, as previously reported here, seen by Library supporters as an emotional support effort to children reaching puberty with self-generated sexual identity questions to keep them from accepting bullying from their peers, and/or becoming suicidal as a consequence of such bullying.
“How is this person supposed to remain objective in making decisions about the future of the library?” Jessica Lynn Johnson asked the supervisors of Belk’s appointment, adding, “Your agenda you tried to deny all along is now very clear. You cannot hide it. I am curious to see Mr. Belk’s and others qualifications that deemed them sufficient to be on this board. I know for a fact that multiple citizens applied who were very qualified, and none of them were even contacted for an interview.”
Royal Examiner contacted county officials, including new board Chairman “Jay” Butler about the library board appointment process and numbers. Butler confirmed a total of six interviews conducted in Closed/Executive Session a week earlier (Jan. 16) of what at one point was 21 applicants that eventually rose to 27 or 28. Noting he spoke only for himself, Butler said he could not comment on the interview criteria the other members held applicants to. For his part, Butler said he was primarily interested in applicant’s perspectives on current policies and finances related to library operations.
Now Supervisors Chairman ‘Jay’ Butler confirmed the BOS interviewed only 6 of 27 or 28 applicants for seats on new County Library Board. Were only known allies to the board majority’s perspective on library operations called for interviews, library supporters are now asking.
Regarding the 2023 “Clean Up Samuels” effort to have materials removed from Virginia’s 2024 Library of the Year, Butler added, “When they made the adjustments over there (at the library) I was okay with that.” His reference was to the movement of some material content questioned to older-age youth sections, as opposed to complete removal.
Asked about qualifications as a library board appointee, Butler indicated that Belk’s application indicated he was an attorney. Asked if the appointee was an attorney with ties to the ultra-conservative Catholic community some library critics have self-identified as, the board chairman indicated he did not know, and declined further comment.
Moving past Belk’s appointment, as well as Supervisor Vicky Cook’s 3-year self-appointment, we looked at 1-year term appointee Frank Gresham. In her introductory email submitting her Open Letter to the WC BOS to us for possible publication on our Opinion page, Jessica Lynn Johnson added information she had acquired from others about appointee Frank Gresham:
“I have now come to learn that another appointee, Mr. Frank Gresham, has posted publicly on Facebook multiple extreme right wing leaning posts, to include a claim that p_____graphy is in the local schools libraries.”
another Save Samuels members post that also summarized the new library board appointment situation as perceived by many Samuels Public Library supporters:
“The Warren County Library has been appointed. Unfortunately, Board of Supervisors member Vicky Cook, who attended a gathering that was held to complete book ban requests; Eric Belk, who submitted requests for books to be banned; and Veronica Ranieri, a member of Clean Up Samuels, were appointed to the Board. In addition, it seems as though library supporters, who applied for positions on the Board, were not even contacted.”
Friday afternoon the Samuels Library Board of Trustees had submitted a “Petition for Injunction & Specific Performance” against the County seeking to halt the installation of the new Library Board as an oversight authority of, not only County financing of aspects of library operations, but potentially of those operations themselves.
Two former elected Town of Front Royal officials, former Mayor Hollis Tharpe and Councilwoman Letasha Thompson, chimed in with brief comments in the Save Samuels chat room: “I’m sure it’s going to be like ban these books or no funding, etc.,” Thompson posted of the newly appointed board’s role of alleged financial oversight.
Follow-upCourt Allows New County Library Board to Proceed as March 4, April 1, and May 2 Dates Set for Follow-Up Arguments
https://royalexaminer.com/court-allow...
The hearing called for Tuesday morning, January 28th, in the Samuels Public Library Board of Trustees Injunction filing against the Warren County Board of Supervisors and the County municipal government seeking a freeze in the County’s movement on creation of a new Warren County Library Board quickly became mired in arguments on legal technicalities in Warren County Circuit Courtroom A.
Those technicalities included whether the Injunction was legally filed, whether the County government has “Sovereign Immunity” from such filed litigation, whether Samuels has adequate “Regional Library” designation to not be overseen by a single municipality within its region, and whether there is an immediate financial or organizational threat to library funding and operations from the new board’s meeting or potential action schedule. The new board has been publicly cited by county supervisors as a financial oversight tool to oversee the distribution of County revenue to the contracted community public library. However, with the announcement of the board’s five appointees fears have increased of a veiled return to the 2023 effort to remove certain books from the library’s shelves.
...
In arguing for the defense contention the Injunction was filed by the wrong plaintiff entity against an immune from litigation defendant, Bardot summarized a portion of the County’s defense stance, stating, “We have a plaintiff that can’t sue and a defendant that can’t be sued.”
Bardot argued that by state code the only Samuels Library entity that could have filed a legal action in the matter was Samuels Library Incorporated, rather than the Samuels Library Board of Trustees.
Judge Funk observed that he would not be ruling that day on the myriad technical points being argued by counsels. However, he did query Library counsel on one point that he could base a decision on the main point of the hearing called for just two business days following the Injunction’s filing Friday, January 24.
That point was whether planned meetings and possible actions by the new County Library Board presented an immediate threat to Samuel Public Library operations. The judge asked plaintiff attorney French if the County and Library hadn’t, in fact, reached a resolution of the budget-based arguments for the existing Fiscal Year 2024/25, with the library’s full FY-2024/25 funding being released to the library.
French replied that Samuels Library officials “believed” the intent of the County and its new board was to impact current spending and their Injunction was seeking “to maintain the status quo” of operational decision making by the Samuels Library Board of Trustees. Defense attorney Bardot countered that fearing that “something bad may happen in future” was not sufficient grounds for such an Injunction to be immediately imposed.
With the Court’s perspective that it was more likely that any pending financial actions by the new County Library Board would not kick in until the next Fiscal Year-2026, beginning on July 1, 2025, the motion for immediate implementation of the Injunction was denied.
Indiana Kelly Jensen of BooKRiot reports: "Lawmakers are proposing a ban on p____graphy in school libraries and classrooms. Psst: there is no such thing as p___graphy published for anyone under 18, so this is just straight-up nonsense."
https://www.heraldbulletin.com/news/b...
PAYWALLED
Minnesota- Lakeville Public Schools (MN) have banned posters that celebrate inclusion.https://www.kare11.com/article/news/l...
The poster series features eight posters, with messages saying "be kind" and "we are stronger together" on some, and includes two that say "Black Lives Matter."
... the board voted to remove the existing inclusive poster series and replace them with a new series based on academic excellence. The crowd was visibly upset and the meeting was quickly adjourned. Hundreds of emails had been sent and there was public comment, with most people speaking in support of the posters.
According to the district superintendent in a letter Wednesday, the posters will stay up for now as they make a plan for a future poster series.
There has been pushback against the posters from parents and community members in Lakeville for several years now. Litigation alleges that the district is creating a "hostile educational environment" by having these posters. That same lawsuit also alleges that the district refused to accept an "All Lives Matter" or "Blue Lives Matter" poster as well.
The district says the posters were created in 2021 after meetings with students, staff and community advisory groups. In a statement, a district spokesperson said, "The intent of the inclusive posters was to support creating school communities where students are respected, valued and welcome. And Lakeville Area Schools remains committed to creating safe and welcoming learning environments, where every student is treated with respect, and is valued for who they are."
Multiple members of the board for the district were endorsed by Minnesota Parents Alliance, whose slogan on its website is listed as "reclaiming our schools."
In a statement, the executive director for the group, Cristine Trooien, said "It appears the two avenues to avoid further litigation are either to allow any and all viewpoints to be displayed throughout LPS buildings, which would undoubtedly present a wide and distracting array of content that doesn’t have a direct connection to student achievement, or to do away with any and all non-essential displays to ensure LPS buildings are neutral environments where students of all backgrounds and beliefs can excel. I anticipate the later being the prefe preferred course from a practical and legal standpoint."
Carrie Popp is the president of the teachers union. She said she's frustrated by the potential changes and said even the discussion of the removal of those posters sends a message to students and their families.
Christian County Library (MO) plans for executive director searchhttps://www.ksmu.org/news/2025-01-27/...
In the last year, the library district has seen the resignation of one board president and its previous executive director, as the board and district face ongoing public calls for book labeling and removal.
During a special meeting Friday, January 24, the Christian County Library’s Board of Trustees continued preparing the search for a new executive director for the four-branch library district.
The board previously opted not to seek the help of an outside recruiting agency and to develop a new job description for the role. Friday’s meeting was an extended editing session to develop the description.
Board members, with assistance from library staff, clarified legal obligations, including ADA requirements and Missouri statutes that govern library directors. They also considered key responsibilities, expectations and qualifications, and, throughout the discussion, laid out a vision for the new director and their working relationship with the board.
Early in the discussion, Trustee Janis Hagen prompted the board to rethink a passage that seemed to indicate the new hire would be expected to seek board approval before hiring and firing certain staff. The board as a whole conceded that this was outside of their powers as defined by statute. The language was rewritten, but Trustee John Garrity emphasized the intentions underlying the initial wording.
...
Trustees spent much of the last half of the meeting discussing degree and library experience requirements. Trustee Garrity and Trustees Mary Hernandez de Carl and Echo Schneider de-emphasized the importance of the library specific master's degree and library experience and pointed towards the potential aptitude of a business or nonprofit leader to take the job. At one point Trustee Garrity said the district does not “need another librarian.”
"The skill set that is sorely needed here is operational, people management, project management, budget; financial responsibilities.” Garrity said. “They don’t need to know how to shelve books. They need to know how to run our programs, how to oversee the people that run our programs, that’s what we need.”
The board ultimately made a relevant master's degree a preference, citing an MBA or master's in education or nonprofit management as potentially relevant non-library degrees. They reduced the required library experience to five years, maintaining the requirement that a candidate have a full 10 years of relevant experience.
Kelly Jensen of BookRiot summarizes:In South Carolina, the new laws on education are making it so teaching something like Black history may be illegal. There’s also now a civil rights lawsuit going on over the budget proviso in the state that has led to book bans statewide.
https://scdailygazette.com/2025/01/28...
SC law causes bans on lessons, books about Black history, lawsuit claims
Legislation that failed last June would have nullified the most disputed part of the law
The South Carolina Department of Education is discriminating against Black people’s viewpoints by enforcing a law that bars schools from teaching that any race is inherently superior or automatically racist, claims a federal lawsuit filed Monday.
The lawsuit, filed in Columbia on behalf of the state NAACP, teachers, students and librarians, names state Superintendent Ellen Weaver and two school districts in Lexington County.
It claims they removed curriculum and books out of fear of violating the clause that legislators first approved as part of the state budget in 2021. Schools that violate the law risk losing state funding.
The law says no state money can go toward the teaching or training of eight banned concepts, which include anyone being responsible for past atrocities because of their race, that someone’s worth is determined by race, and that traits such as hard work are oppressive and racist.
Of the eight, the concept cited as the most troublesome says lessons can’t make anyone “feel discomfort, guilt, anguish, or any other form of psychological distress on account of his race or s-x.”
The wording is vague and discriminatory, leaving schools and statewide officials to unnecessarily remove history lessons and books by Black authors from shelves, the lawsuit claims.
Legislators of both parties agreed that line in the law could stifle instruction. That’s why it was purposefully excluded from legislation that sought to clean up the law while creating a uniform complaint process.
But that bill ultimately died last June after negotiations between the House and Senate stalled for a year. Then, on the final day of the special session, Senate Democrats refused to accept the compromise, which needed bipartisan support for the necessary supermajority approval in both chambers. So, it failed on a vote of 25-13, leaving the vague language in place. The House never voted on the final version.
Legislators would have to start over a third time if they want to revive the proposal. (The first version died in 2022.)
The education department remains dedicated to ensuring schools teach “both the tragedies and triumphs” of history, said spokesman Jason Raven.
Education department officials pointed to the law and controversy surrounding it in when it didn’t include African American Studies on the state’s roster of Advanced Placement courses for this school year — the course’s inaugural year following a two-year pilot.
Schools can still offer honors classes on African American history, with the option of taking the end-of-course Advanced Placement test for college credit. Instead of the state paying the $98 fee for the test, though, the cost would fall to the district or student.
It’s unclear why honors African American classes but not the standard Advanced Placement version would be allowed under the law, the lawsuit reads. Two students joined the lawsuit over the AP course.
“This lawsuit simply is to ask the courts to do what’s right to stop the censorship and allow students to hear from their teachers, to learn freely about things like race and gender,” said attorney Tyler Bailey.
School librarians, teachers and administrators have also removed books from classrooms and libraries for fear that they violate the law, the lawsuit claims.
Among those books are “Between the World and Me” by Ta-Nehisi Coates, which was removed from a teacher’s curriculum in the Lexington-Richland 5 School District in 2023, and “Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You” by Ibram X. Kendi, which has been removed from school libraries across the state, the lawsuit claims.
Kendi, who a GOP legislator repeatedly quoted during a House floor debate last year, is also a plaintiff in the lawsuit.
Teachers and administrators may be overly cautious in enforcing the law because it’s so unclear what it covers, the lawsuit claims.
For instance, some teachers believe they can’t talk about events such as the Holocaust because that would cause students discomfort. Others questioned whether they would be able to talk about pay disparities between men and women because of the inclusion of sex discrimination in the law, the lawsuit reads.
Chapin High School librarian Ayanna Mayes, a plaintiff in the case, found herself unsure of what books might be allowed to remain in the school library, she told reporters Monday. School administrators began monitoring her work much more closely after the law went into effect, she said.
“There is no way to deny that our state and school districts have thwarted mine and my colleagues’ efforts to provide the highest quality education to our students without blatantly calling us liars,” Mayes said.
The lawsuit asks a federal judge to stop the enforcement of the state law, claiming it violates constitutional rights to freedom of speech and equal protection, as well as protections against viewpoint discrimination and selective enforcement of the law.
Beyond striking the most problematic banned concept, the legislation that died last year also specified that “fact-based” instruction on history was not part of the ban.
During the debate, legislators of both parties said they want students to get a full and accurate picture of history, including the ugly and brutal parts.
As passed by the Senate in May 2023, also along party lines, the bill specifically protected “historically accurate” discussions on slavery, Reconstruction, the Jim Crow era, segregation, racial lynchings, and any “historical oppression of a particular group of people based on race, sex, ethnicity, class, nationality, religion, or geographic region.”
The opponents who protested outside the Statehouse and packed hearings said the legislation would create fear among teachers about what they could teach, censor lessons, and discriminate. Some of their testimony centered on language in other bills filed by the uber-conservative House Freedom Caucus, which wasn’t in the versions passed by either chamber.
Opponents wanted the bill struck altogether, rather than amended. They won. But what many perhaps also didn’t realize is that much of the bill they successfully pushed to kill was already state law, which was left in place.
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I suspect the new government will completely ignore the anniversary. They only care about antisemitism if it allows them to browbeat students at liberal Ivy universities.