Judge orders books removed from Texas public libraries due to LGBTQ and racial content must be returned within 24 hours
1 year, 8 months ago

Judge orders books removed from Texas public libraries due to LGBTQ and racial content must be returned within 24 hours

CNN  

CNN — A federal judge in Texas ruled that at least 12 books removed from public libraries by Llano County officials, many because of their LGBTQ and racial content, must be placed back onto shelves within 24 hours, according to an order filed Thursday. The lawsuit filed in the US District Court for the Western District of Texas in San Antonio claimed county officials removed books from the shelves of the three-branch public library system “because they disagree with the ideas within them” and terminated access to thousands of digital books because they could not ban two specific titles. The defendants argued the books were removed as part of a regular “weeding” process following the library’s existing policies, but Pitman said there was clear influence from outside sources. These books were removed from the libraries, according to the order, as well as other books listed as “pornographic” that were about ” ‘critical race theory’ and related racial themes.” In one email from community member Bonnie Wallace, who was later elected to the library board, she suggested “all the pastors to get involved in this.

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History of this topic

Banned Books Week starts with mixed messages as reports show challenges both up and down
3 months ago

Banned Books Week starts with mixed messages as reports show challenges both up and down

Associated Press  

NEW YORK — Two reports released Monday provide a mixed but compelling outlook on the wave of book removals and challenges as the annual Banned Books Week begins for schools, stores and libraries nationwide. “And we expect that to continue through the end of the year.” The library association defines a “challenge” as a “formal, written complaint filed with a …

More than a dozen books are removed from schools statewide in Utah
4 months, 2 weeks ago

More than a dozen books are removed from schools statewide in Utah

NPR  

More than a dozen books are removed from schools statewide in Utah Public school libraries all across Utah will look a little different once classes start this year because the state has required the schools to remove 13 book titles from their shelves permanently. LIMBONG: The law works like this - if a book is found to contain, quote, "objective …

A San Francisco store is shipping LGBTQ+ books to places where they are banned
5 months, 3 weeks ago

A San Francisco store is shipping LGBTQ+ books to places where they are banned

Associated Press  

SAN FRANCISCO — In an increasingly divisive political sphere, Becka Robbins focuses on what she knows best — books. Among those topping banned lists have been Maia Kobabe’s “Gender Queer,” George Johnson’s “All Boys Aren’t Blue” and Nobel laureate Toni Morrison’s “The Bluest Eye.” An LGBTQ+ related book is seen on display at Fabulosa Books, in the Castro District of …

Oklahoma Supreme Court rejects Education Department’s attempt to ban books
6 months, 1 week ago

Oklahoma Supreme Court rejects Education Department’s attempt to ban books

Raw Story  

This article first appeared on Oklahoma Watch and is republished here under a Creative Commons license. The state’s high court in a unanimous decision said Superintendent of Public Instruction Ryan Walters and the state Department of Education overstepped their authority in trying to force Edmond schools to ban two novels. Jeff Bardach, a spokesman for Edmond Public Schools, said the …

Oklahoma Supreme Court rejects state education board’s authority over public school libraries
6 months, 1 week ago

Oklahoma Supreme Court rejects state education board’s authority over public school libraries

Associated Press  

EDMOND, Okla. — Local school boards in Oklahoma will retain the right to determine what books are available in public school libraries after the state Supreme Court shut down efforts to shift that discretion to the state Board of Education. “State statutes give a local school board power and a type of statutory discretion to supply books for a school …

A Texas county removed 17 books from its libraries. An appeals court says eight must be returned.
6 months, 2 weeks ago

A Texas county removed 17 books from its libraries. An appeals court says eight must be returned.

Associated Press  

NEW ORLEANS — Eight books dealing with subjects including racism and transgender issues must be returned to library shelves in a rural Texas county that had removed them in an ongoing book banning controversy, a divided panel of three federal appeals court judges ruled Thursday. It was a partial victory for seven library patrons who sued numerous officials with the …

How best to stop books being banned? Ban such bans.
6 months, 4 weeks ago

How best to stop books being banned? Ban such bans.

Live Mint  

While far-right groups—in mostly Republican-led states—wage a crusade to ban thousands of books in schools and public libraries across the country, Minnesota is pushing back. Where previous attempts typically involved a parent or small group of parents challenging a single book title, now groups with clear political agendas are filing coordinated challenges against scores of books, all under the guise …

Censorship efforts at libraries continued to soar in 2023, according to a new report
9 months, 1 week ago

Censorship efforts at libraries continued to soar in 2023, according to a new report

Associated Press  

NEW YORK — Bannings and attempted bannings of books soared again in the U.S. last year, continuing to set record highs, according to a new report from the American Library Association. On Thursday, the ALA announced that 4,240 works in school and public libraries had been targeted in 2023, a substantial hike from the then-record 2,571 books in 2022 and …

Tennessee lawmakers propose changes to how books get removed from school libraries
9 months, 2 weeks ago

Tennessee lawmakers propose changes to how books get removed from school libraries

Associated Press  

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Tennessee’s Republican-controlled Statehouse is once again looking to tweak how books can be removed from school library shelves despite concerns that the latest proposal could result in the Bible being possibly banned. Bill Lee signed off on legislation requiring school libraries to post their contents online and regularly review their policies to make sure the materials are …

Appeals court blocks Texas from enforcing book rating law
11 months ago

Appeals court blocks Texas from enforcing book rating law

Raw Story  

Jan. 17, 2024 "Appeals court blocks Texas from enforcing book rating law" was first published by The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan media organization that informs Texans — and engages with them — about public policy, politics, government and statewide issues. Circuit Court of Appeals blocked the Texas Education Agency on Wednesday from enforcing a state law requiring booksellers to …

From Iowa to Florida, national lawsuits against local book bans begin to gain traction
11 months, 2 weeks ago

From Iowa to Florida, national lawsuits against local book bans begin to gain traction

LA Times  

Lawsuits challenging book bans in Florida and Iowa are proving to play a key role in the growing fight for student’s access to literature. In May, Dan Novack, Penguin Random House vice president and associate general counsel, told The Times the publishing house was suing to stop “one of the most unsubtle attempts at viewpoint discrimination” they’d ever seen. Today’s …

Judge blocks most of an Iowa law banning some school library books and discussion of LGBTQ+ issues
11 months, 3 weeks ago

Judge blocks most of an Iowa law banning some school library books and discussion of LGBTQ+ issues

Associated Press  

DES MOINES, Iowa — A federal judge on Friday temporarily blocked key parts of an Iowa law that bans some books from school libraries and forbids teachers from raising LGBTQ+ issues. Judge Stephen Locher’s preliminary injunction halts enforcement of the law, which was set to take effect Jan. 1 but already had resulted in the removal of hundreds of books …

Missouri library bans ‘porn star book’ – but only after waitlist runs out
1 year, 1 month ago

Missouri library bans ‘porn star book’ – but only after waitlist runs out

The Independent  

The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. An internal review committee determined that the controversial …

Republicans Use 'Decency' Law To Ban Books
1 year, 1 month ago

Republicans Use 'Decency' Law To Ban Books

Huff Post  

LOADING ERROR LOADING At the November meeting of the Rutherford County, Tennessee, steering committee, Chairman Craig Harris asked the county’s public library board about their feelings on books that conservative members of the community had deemed indecent — and potentially in violation of a new city ordinance promoting “decency.” “Do you think ‘Let’s Talk About It’ should have been removed?” …

Inside a Texas town’s chilling effort to ban LGBT+ books
1 year, 1 month ago

Inside a Texas town’s chilling effort to ban LGBT+ books

The Independent  

The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Krause’s letter asked school districts to …

Challenges to library books continue at record pace in 2023, American Library Association reports
1 year, 3 months ago

Challenges to library books continue at record pace in 2023, American Library Association reports

Associated Press  

NEW YORK — Book bans and attempted bans continue to hit record highs, according to the American Library Association. Through the first eight months of 2023, the ALA tracked 695 challenges to library materials and services, compared to 681 during the same time period last year, and a 20% jump in the number of “unique titles” involved to 1,915. “The …

LGBTQ+ book bans are hitting California schools. How teachers can fight back
1 year, 4 months ago

LGBTQ+ book bans are hitting California schools. How teachers can fight back

LA Times  

These three books with LGBTQ+ themes have been banned in some Florida counties. If you’re an educator who encounters LGBTQ+ book bans or attempts to ban at your school, here’s what you need to know. Kasey Meehan, Freedom to Read program director at PEN America, said that book bans and attempts to ban overwhelmingly affect LGBTQ+ identities, characters, stories and …

A new Texas law forces vendors to rate sexual content in schoolbooks. They’re not happy about it
1 year, 5 months ago

A new Texas law forces vendors to rate sexual content in schoolbooks. They’re not happy about it

CNN  

CNN — The CEO of the largest independent bookstore in Texas oversees a four-story, 40,000-square-foot space in Austin and the 100 employees who staff it. The law’s primary author, Republican Texas State Rep. Jared Patterson, said its aim is simple: Get sexually explicit content out of schools. The law says that sexually relevant books depict sexual conduct but not necessarily …

'Seems obscene' says Trump-appointed judge during hearing for Texas library book removal case
1 year, 6 months ago

'Seems obscene' says Trump-appointed judge during hearing for Texas library book removal case

Raw Story  

A federal appeals judge said Wednesday if two particular young adult books “don’t meet the definition of pornography, I don’t know what does,” before clarifying he meant “obscenity” during a hearing over the removal of certain books from a Central Texas public library. The nearly hourlong hearing Wednesday marked the latest turn in a saga that first began almost two …

Texas lawmakers set new standards to ban books from schools for sexual content
1 year, 7 months ago

Texas lawmakers set new standards to ban books from schools for sexual content

Associated Press  

AUSTIN, Texas — Texas would set new standards and ratings for sexually explicit material in order to ban books from public and charter school libraries, under a bill given final passage by the state Senate late Tuesday night and sent to Republican Gov. The bill passed by the GOP-controlled Legislature defines “sexually explicit material” as anything that includes descriptions, illustrations …

Major publisher sues over DeSantis-sanctioned book bans
1 year, 7 months ago

Major publisher sues over DeSantis-sanctioned book bans

Raw Story  

A writers group and major publisher have sued a Florida school district over its Ron DeSantis-sanctioned removal of books about race and LGBTQ+ identities. PEN America and Penguin Random House filed a federal lawsuit Wednesday against the Escambia County School District and its school board alleging a violation of their First Amendment rights for removing 10 books from library shelves, …

These authors’ books are some of the most challenged in the US. They’re speaking out
1 year, 7 months ago

These authors’ books are some of the most challenged in the US. They’re speaking out

The Independent  

The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Well, they do matter.” To Kobabe, learning that …

The book ban surge gripping America’s schools and libraries
1 year, 8 months ago

The book ban surge gripping America’s schools and libraries

The Independent  

The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. PEN has described the measures collectively as part …

Book ban attempts hit record high in 2022, library org says
1 year, 9 months ago

Book ban attempts hit record high in 2022, library org says

Associated Press  

NEW YORK — Attempted book bans and restrictions at school and public libraries continue to surge, setting a record in 2022, according to a new report from the American Library Association released Thursday. “Every day professional librarians sit down with parents to thoughtfully determine what reading material is best suited for their child’s needs,” ALA President Lessa Kanani’opua Pelayo-Lozada said …

'Never seen anything like this': US librarians report book bans hit record high in 2022
1 year, 9 months ago

'Never seen anything like this': US librarians report book bans hit record high in 2022

Raw Story  

Librarians from across the United States released a report showing that pro-censorship groups' efforts to ban books with LGBTQ+ themes and stories about people of color have driven an unprecedented rise in the number of book challenges, with right-wing organizers pushing library workers to remove works ranging from the dystopian novel The Handmaid's Tale to children's books about foods enjoyed …

US saw record book-banning efforts in 2022, library group says
1 year, 9 months ago

US saw record book-banning efforts in 2022, library group says

Al Jazeera  

Conservative groups are trying to restrict availability or ban books covering topics such as race and gender identity. “Every day professional librarians sit down with parents to thoughtfully determine what reading material is best suited for their child’s needs,” ALA President Lessa Kanani’opua Pelayo-Lozada said in a statement. In Florida, where Governor Ron DeSantis has approved laws to review reading …

School library book bans are seen as targeting LGBTQ content
1 year, 9 months ago

School library book bans are seen as targeting LGBTQ content

Associated Press  

DES MOINES, Iowa — Teri Patrick bristles at the idea she wants to ban books about LGBTQ issues in Iowa schools, arguing her only goal is ridding schools of sexually explicit material. “It’s a national phenomenon.” Longstanding disagreements about content in school libraries often focus this year on books with LGBTQ themes as policymakers nationwide also consider limiting or banning …

ACLU, Missouri library groups sue over new school book law
1 year, 10 months ago

ACLU, Missouri library groups sue over new school book law

Associated Press  

— The American Civil Liberties Union of Missouri and two state library associations are suing over a new state law that bans sexually explicit material from schools, saying it violates the rights of librarians and students. The ACLU, the Missouri Association of School Librarians and the Missouri Library Association are asking the Circuit Court in Kansas City to find the …

North Dakota weighs ban of ‘sexually explicit’ library books
1 year, 11 months ago

North Dakota weighs ban of ‘sexually explicit’ library books

Associated Press  

Books containing “sexually explicit” content — including depictions of sexual or gender identity — would be banned from North Dakota public libraries under legislation that state lawmakers began considering Tuesday. Though supporters of North Dakota’s bill repeatedly called the sexual content “obscene,” opponents said the material in question is not actually considered legally obscene. “It’s a cute book,” Kujawa said …

US Education Department investigates removal of LGBTQ books
2 years ago

US Education Department investigates removal of LGBTQ books

Associated Press  

GRANBURY, Texas — The removal of LGBTQ-themed books from the library of the Granbury, Texas, school district is under investigation by the U.S. Department of Education’s civil rights division. “The Office for Civil Rights can confirm that there is an open investigation into Granbury ISD under Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972,” according to a statement Tuesday from …

School book bans have seen an unprecedented surge this year, a new report says
2 years, 3 months ago

School book bans have seen an unprecedented surge this year, a new report says

LA Times  

Book bans at schools across the country are accelerating at a rate never before seen. Nearly 140 school districts in 32 states issued more than 2,500 book bans during the 2021-22 school year, which affected nearly 4 million students across 5,000 schools, according to the report, “Banned in the USA: The Growing Movement to Censor Books in Schools.” This movement …

Book ban efforts surging in 2022, library association says
2 years, 3 months ago

Book ban efforts surging in 2022, library association says

Associated Press  

NEW YORK — The wave of attempted book banning and restrictions continues to intensify, the American Library Association reported Friday. “We’re seeing that trend continue in 2022, the criticism of books with LGBTQ subject matter,” Caldwell-Jones says, adding that books about racism such as Angie Thomas’ novel “The Hate U Give” also are frequently challenged. A middle school librarian in …

Book ban efforts surging in 2022, library association says
2 years, 3 months ago

Book ban efforts surging in 2022, library association says

LA Times  

Amanda Darrow, director of youth, family and education programs at the Utah Pride Center, poses in December 2021 with books that have been the subject of complaints from parents in Salt Lake City. “We’re seeing that trend continue in 2022, the criticism of books with LGBTQ subject matter,” Caldwell-Jones says, adding that books about racism such as Angie Thomas’ novel …

Texas woman files criminal complaint after high school declines to ban book about gay Boy Scout
2 years, 4 months ago

Texas woman files criminal complaint after high school declines to ban book about gay Boy Scout

Raw Story  

A Texas police officer temporarily removed a book from a high school library after a woman filed a criminal complaint over it. “The KISD Police Report will be sent to the Texas Rangers office.” The woman told police she had already filed complaints about the book, which tells the story of a closeted teenager at a Boy Scouts summer camp, …

Fox News hosts melt down after book ban crusade causes Bible to be removed from schools
2 years, 4 months ago

Fox News hosts melt down after book ban crusade causes Bible to be removed from schools

Raw Story  

A panel of Fox News hosts expressed outrage on Thursday after one Texas school district temporarily removed the Bible for review during a push by conservatives to ban certain school books. "The Bible, the most read book in human history," McEnany remarked, "Over the last 50 years, nearly 4 billion copies have been sold. "The fact that because one person …

Republican war on books: They don't just want to control your body — next up, your mind
2 years, 4 months ago

Republican war on books: They don't just want to control your body — next up, your mind

Salon  

Once Republicans started to falsely accuse educators and librarians of "grooming" children for sexual abuse, it was just a matter of time before the talk of imprisoning them began. Using fake concerns about "the children" as cover, Republicans have waged all-out war on not just books but any form of speech deemed "woke," usually because it advocates antiracism or humanizes …

Tennessee lawmakers pass K-12 library oversight, end session
2 years, 7 months ago

Tennessee lawmakers pass K-12 library oversight, end session

Associated Press  

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Tennessee lawmakers closed out their annual legislative session Thursday, striking a deal that would let a politically appointed panel remove books from public school libraries statewide through a new veto power over local school board decisions. Those proposals and others head to the Republican governor, concluding a session in which lawmakers pushed further on conservative hot-button issues …

Texas residents are suing their county after books were removed from public libraries
2 years, 7 months ago

Texas residents are suing their county after books were removed from public libraries

CNN  

CNN — Seven residents in Llano County, Texas, are suing county officials, claiming their First and 14th Amendment rights were violated when books deemed inappropriateby some people in the community and Republican lawmakerswere removed from public libraries or access was restricted. The lawsuit, filed Monday in US District Court for the Western District of Texas in San Antonio, claims county …

Books Are The Latest Casualty Of The New Conservative Culture War
2 years, 8 months ago

Books Are The Latest Casualty Of The New Conservative Culture War

Huff Post  

LOADING ERROR LOADING As the conservative right digs its heels into the culture war of the day, the list of books challenged and banned across the country has exploded. Thomas’ book has been targeted by school boards and parents, who say it should be banned because it promotes “an anti-police message and indoctrination of a social agenda.” It made the …

Book Banning And Threats Against Librarians Soared Over Past Year, Report Shows
2 years, 8 months ago

Book Banning And Threats Against Librarians Soared Over Past Year, Report Shows

Huff Post  

LOADING ERROR LOADING NEW YORK — Deborah Caldwell-Stone, director of the American Library Association’s Office for Intellectual Freedom, has never been so busy. The two most challenged books on the ALA’s top 10 list have been in the news often: Maia Kobabe’s graphic memoir about sexual identity, “Gender Queer,” and Jonathan Evison’s “Lawn Boy,” a coming-of-age novel narrated by a …

Library study finds ‘challenged’ books soared in 2021
2 years, 8 months ago

Library study finds ‘challenged’ books soared in 2021

Associated Press  

NEW YORK — Deborah Caldwell-Stone, director of the American Library Association’s Office for Intellectual Freedom, has never been so busy. The two most challenged books on the ALA’s top 10 list have been in the news often: Maia Kobabe’s graphic memoir about sexual identity, “Gender Queer,” and Jonathan Evison’s “Lawn Boy,” a coming-of-age novel narrated by a young gay man. …

Op-Ed: The recent onslaught of book bans is a strategic part of wider attacks on our democracy
2 years, 10 months ago

Op-Ed: The recent onslaught of book bans is a strategic part of wider attacks on our democracy

LA Times  

In the ever-worsening culture wars, schools have emerged as a battlefront, with fierce arguments raging about the contents of curricula and propriety of particular books. South Carolina’s House Bill 4605 seeks to protect students from any material that might cause “discomfort, guilt, anguish, or any other form of psychological distress” on account of their “race, ethnicity, sex, sexual orientation, national …

Conservatives Are Banning Books From Schools While Whining About 'Cancel Culture'
2 years, 10 months ago

Conservatives Are Banning Books From Schools While Whining About 'Cancel Culture'

Huff Post  

LOADING ERROR LOADING When a publisher stops printing an old Dr. Seuss book nobody read because it contained harmful racial stereotypes, Fox News and the entire Republican party lose their minds over “cancel culture.” But when conservatives across the country start banning and censoring dozens of books at a time from school libraries, they’re just trying to protect the kids. …

A Texas school district is reviewing 400 library books after a GOP lawmaker's inquiry
3 years ago

A Texas school district is reviewing 400 library books after a GOP lawmaker's inquiry

NPR  

A Texas school district is reviewing 400 library books after a GOP lawmaker's inquiry Enlarge this image toggle caption Eric Gay/AP Eric Gay/AP One of Texas' largest school districts is reviewing more than 400 of its library books following a Republican lawmaker's statewide inquiry into school library titles dealing with topics like race, gender and sexuality. The North East Independent …

ACLU of Utah investigating after books removed from schools
3 years, 1 month ago

ACLU of Utah investigating after books removed from schools

Associated Press  

SALT LAKE CITY — The American Civil Liberties Union of Utah is investigating complaints related to the removal of several books from high school library shelves in a suburban Salt Lake City district after a parent complaint. The Canyons School District appears to have disregarded its own policy for responding to such complaints by pulling nine books off the shelves, …

Conservative school board members propose public burning of 'sexually explicit' library books
3 years, 1 month ago

Conservative school board members propose public burning of 'sexually explicit' library books

Raw Story  

Two members of the Spotsylvania County School Board have proposed burning books that the board this week unanimously voted to ban from high school libraries. The Fredericksburg Free Lance-Star reports that all six members of the school board voted to remove books that some parents had flagged as "sexually explicit" from libraries in the county. Board member Rabih Abuismail, for …

School board: Libraries to remove ‘sexually explicit’ books
3 years, 1 month ago

School board: Libraries to remove ‘sexually explicit’ books

Associated Press  

FREDERICKSBURG, Va. — A Virginia school board directed staff to remove books with “sexually explicit” material from libraries after a parent raised concerns about books available through a school’s digital library app at Monday’s meeting. The Spotsylvania County School Board also directed staff to report on the number of books that have been removed at a special meeting called for …

Op-Ed: Book banning in the 21st century? Why my book has been removed from school shelves
3 years, 1 month ago

Op-Ed: Book banning in the 21st century? Why my book has been removed from school shelves

LA Times  

Amid the Virginia governor’s race, in which conservatives are furiously campaigning to activate their base, a proposed book ban in Virginia Beach schools is playing out a familiar piece of political theater: whipping up moral panic over public education while stoking racial fears. Backers of the ban describe the books as “abhorrent” and “pornographic,” with one parent claiming at a …

School system pulls 2 books with graphic sex from libraries
3 years, 3 months ago

School system pulls 2 books with graphic sex from libraries

Associated Press  

Va. — A northern Virginia school system said it is removing two books from school libraries, including an illustrated memoir that contains explicit illustrations of sexual encounters involving children, after a parent expressed concern about them at a school board meeting. Stacy Langton, a parent in the Fairfax County school system, questioned the school board at a public meeting Thursday …

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