News

Librarians already under attack as activists challenge books. Now they could go to prison

Wednesday, April 10th, 2024

via The Times (Indiana)

Across the country, book bans and attempted bans have soared to the highest levels in decades. Now librarians face new threats: Crippling lawsuits, hefty fines, and even prison.

School Board – General, Book Bans, Parent Involvement

Vt. lawmakers consider library protection legislation

Tuesday, April 9th, 2024

via WCAX-TV (Vermont)

Vermont lawmakers are pushing for several bills aimed at preventing what some describe as attacks on libraries.

Book Bans

Moms for Liberty’s legislative agenda targets politicians on both sides of the aisle

Sunday, April 7th, 2024

via Tulsa World (Oklahoma)

OKLAHOMA CITY — As Moms for Liberty works to grow its influence in Oklahoma, members have raised their voice at the Capitol and built relationships with political leaders who share

School Board – General, Book Bans, Parent Involvement

Pornography in school libraries? Moms for Liberty shares Ryan Walters’ cause célèbre

Sunday, April 7th, 2024

via Tulsa World (Oklahoma)

Oklahoma's state superintendent, who's called Moms for Liberty "the most patriotic, pro-American group in the country," has frequently said pornography is "widely available" in schools.

School Board – General, Book Bans, Parent Involvement

Skip Auld: The importance of the Transgender Day of Visibility

Saturday, April 6th, 2024

via Capital Gazette (Maryland)

Our library system is fully committed to creating a sense of belonging for all our staff, not to mention our customers. We want everyone to know they are valued for who they are and that their voic…

Book Bans, LGBTQ+

NH Senate passes bill Democrats call a ‘book ban’

Friday, April 5th, 2024

via The Keene Sentinel (New Hampshire)

Republican state senators passed a bill on Friday that they said would give parents more input about the written, visual and audio material presented to children at school.

Book Bans

Successful session: 3 Anne Arundel House members sponsored dozens of bills on book-banning, criminal justice, health care

Friday, April 5th, 2024

via Capital Gazette (Maryland)

Dels. Dana Jones, Sandy Bartlett and Heather Bagnall were the most prolific Anne Arundel House lawmakers this session.

Book Bans

Union wave is picking up at Chicago, suburban libraries, cultural institutions

Friday, April 5th, 2024

via Chicago Sun-Times (Illinois)

The Chicago Public Library and other systems have long had unions, but now the organizing is happening against a backdrop of unprecedented pressure on workers.

Book Bans

Lake Travis ISD emerges as a battleground for school book bans

Thursday, April 4th, 2024

via Texas Standard (Texas)

The Lake Travis ISD School Board voted this month to keep one book in the high school library and remove another after a parent with kids in elementary school formally challenged them.

Book Bans

Mat-Su schools book ban goes to federal judge for oral arguments

Tuesday, April 2nd, 2024

via Alaska Public Media (Alaska)

Parents and students sued the school district over the book removal of 56 books without review from school libraries last April.

Book Bans

The clock is ticking: Where lawmakers stand on $63B budget, juvenile justice in final week of General Assembly session

Tuesday, April 2nd, 2024

via Capital Gazette (Maryland)

The Maryland General Assembly has less than a week to decide what will make it across the finish line and be signed into law.

Book Bans

Florida had more books challenged than any other state, American Library Association says

Monday, April 1st, 2024

via The Palm Beach Post (Florida)

Nearly 2,700 titles were challenged in Florida schools and public libraries last year, according to the American Library Association.

Book Bans

Utah book ban: New law to be applied retroactively, but officials unsure how

Thursday, March 28th, 2024

via The Salt Lake Tribune (Utah)

A new law will make banning books statewide easier and is supposed to apply retroactively. The problem is, officials are unsure how to retroactively enforce the law.

School Board – General, Book Bans

Political divides, declining population are causing fewer people to run in rural local elections

Thursday, March 28th, 2024

via The Post-Crescent (Wisconsin)

What if there were an election and no one ran? That's the case in some rural areas where there are sometimes no candidates for an elected office.

School Board – General, Book Bans

Californians are divided on LGBTQ issues at schools, but there’s a path to parental support

Wednesday, March 27th, 2024

via CalMatters (California)

While progress has been made on Californians' attitudes, many are still uncomfortable with schools being a place to incorporate LGBTQ topics.

Racism, School Board – General, Book Bans, LGBTQ+

Vermont advances book banning policy

Wednesday, March 27th, 2024

via WCAX-TV (Vermont)

Vermont libraries are getting on the same page about handling proposed book bans thanks to a bill that advanced in the Senate on Tuesday.

Book Bans

Races see increased partisan influence

Tuesday, March 26th, 2024

via Wisconsin State Journal (Wisconsin)

When officials with the Democratic Party of Wisconsin reached out to Lodi School Board candidate Sarah Ripp offering to support her campaign leading up to the April 2 spring election,

School Board – General, Book Bans

Kentucky’s teacher shortage has reached critical proportions

Monday, March 25th, 2024

via The Advocate-Messenger (Kentucky)

By Rhonda Caldwell Kentucky Association of School Administrators Every morning across the Commonwealth, children walk into our schools to engage in one of the greatest accomplishments in the history…

Book Bans

PennLive’s 2024 primary voters’ guide: Pa. State Senate

Monday, March 25th, 2024

via PennLive (Pennsylvania)

These candidates are running for a Pennsylvania state senate seat.

Book Bans, Parent Involvement