News

It’s Banned Books Week. How to get your hands on challenged books in Oklahoma

Monday, September 23rd, 2024

via The Oklahoman (Oklahoma)

The annual event is meant to bring the book community together in support of literature and the need for having free and open access to information.

Book Bans, Sex Education

Trump-aligned pastor targets Washoe County librarian in online video

Monday, September 23rd, 2024

via KUNR Public Radio (Nevada)

North Carolina pastor John Amanchukwu singled out a county employee for her opposition to book bans. Experts say it's part of a strategy to get evangelical Christians to vote for the former president.

School Board – General, Book Bans

New State Laws Are Fueling a Surge in Book Bans

Monday, September 23rd, 2024

via The New York Times

Two reports from advocacy groups show that book banning continues at higher rates than before the pandemic. Newly implemented state laws are impacting the numbers this year.

School Board – General, Book Bans

As fears over political attacks rise, diverse books disappear from shelves

Monday, September 23rd, 2024

via Atlanta Journal-Constitution (Georgia)

Opinion: The number of books pulled from school and public libraries surged last year, leaving many children and teens unable to see their lives and experiences represented.

Book Bans

Pickens school board seek to quadruple members’ pay, making them among highest paid in SC

Monday, September 23rd, 2024

via The Post and Courier (South Carolina)

The pay jump would make Pickens County board members among the highest paid in South Carolina, according to a survey by the South Carolina School Boards Association.

School Board – General, Book Bans

A dozen books to celebrate Banned Books Week

Saturday, September 21st, 2024

via Arizona Daily Star (Arizona)

Volunteers from the Tucson Festival of Books are sharing their favorite banned books ahead of Banned Books Week.

Book Bans

Under Tennessee’s stricter school library law, some books quietly disappear

Saturday, September 21st, 2024

via Chattanooga Times Free Press (Tennessee)

Jennifer Edwards was a teenager in Arizona when she first read "Beloved," Toni Morrison's haunting novel about sexual violence and the brutal realities of American slavery.

School Board – General, Book Bans

Banned Books Week 2024 is coming, and here’s what readers should know

Friday, September 20th, 2024

via OC Register (California)

Plus, in The Book Pages this week, author Steve Berry says he recommends every book by this novelist.

Book Bans

This Middle Tennessee county just voted to remove Toni Morrison’s ‘Beloved’ and 5 other books from schools. See the list

Friday, September 20th, 2024

via Tennessean (Tennessee)

Ahead of Banned Book Week, the Rutherford County Board of Education voted to remove six books from public school libraries including Toni Morrison's "Beloved" and "Wicked."

Book Bans

‘Woke Campbell Stadium?’ Cal football fans flood social media with memes ahead of FSU game

Friday, September 20th, 2024

via The Palm Beach Post (Florida)

Oski, Karl Marx and a whole lot of AI-generated art: California football fans have been busy in the leadup to their ACC debut vs Florida State.

Racism, Book Bans

Meet the candidates running to represent Johnston, Urbandale in Iowa Senate District 22

Friday, September 20th, 2024

via The Des Moines Register (Iowa)

Incumbent Republican Sen. Brad Zaun faces challenger Democrat Matt Blake.

Book Bans

Middle Tennessee activist named national youth chair of Banned Books Week 2024

Friday, September 20th, 2024

via Tennessean (Tennessee)

Julia Garnett, of Sumner County, was named the national youth chair of Banned Books Week 2024 thanks to her dedicated work to stop book restrictions in libraries.

School Board – General, Book Bans

Cobb County Public Schools removes six more books, including the popular ‘A Court of Thorns and Roses’ series

Thursday, September 19th, 2024

via 11Alive (Georgia)

Cobb County Public Schools has removed six more books that have been deemed inappropriate from media centers -- bringing the total up to 26.

Book Bans

Requests to remove books from public libraries are on the rise in Oregon. Here are the titles most in jeopardy

Thursday, September 19th, 2024

via The Oregonian (Oregon)

Individuals requested that 150 books and other documents, the majority of them young adult books and graphic novels, be removed or put in age-restricted sections in libraries.

Book Bans

Florida Attorney General’s Office heading out of state to defend Texas library book bans

Thursday, September 19th, 2024

via The Palm Beach Post (Florida)

'The government does not violate anyone's free speech rights merely by speaking — no matter what it chooses to say or not to say.'

Book Bans

Because It Can Happen Here

Thursday, September 19th, 2024

via Eugene Weekly (Oregon)

By Martha Freeman Twenty years ago, my book The Trouble with Babies was removed from a school at the request of a trustee horrified that the parents of a kid character were identified as gay. As fa…

School Board – General, Book Bans

Paid political letter:The Other Mothers

Wednesday, September 18th, 2024

via Grand Forks Herald (North Dakota)

Ideas and opinions in this letter are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect the stance of this paper. The author of this letter has paid for its placement.

Racism, Book Bans, Parent Involvement

Virginia Beach School Board candidates discuss social media and mental health, teacher pay, aging buildings

Tuesday, September 17th, 2024

via The Virginian-Pilot (Virginia)

In Virginia Beach, six school board seats are up for election and a total of 12 candidates are on the ballot. Districts 1, 3, 4, 5, 7 , and an at large seat are up for election.

Book Bans

Central Florida races key to Democrats’…

Monday, September 16th, 2024

via Orlando Sentinel (Florida)

Democrats hope to flip at least five House seats in November, looking to undue gains Republicans made in 2022 in districts around Orlando that look winnable.

Book Bans