Book Censorship News, October 21, 2022

It was solely a matter of time earlier than the “Don’t Say Gay” invoice of Florida and the wave of comparable anti-LGBTQ+ payments handed all through the nation made its solution to the federal stage.

Congressman Mike Johnson (Louisiana) launched the “Stop the Sexualization of Children” Act into the House this week. The invoice would “prohibit the use of Federal funds to develop, implement, facilitate, or fund any sexually-oriented program, event, or literature for children under the age of 10, and for other purposes.” The invoice would disallow funding for any group — from libraries to colleges to medical services and extra — providing any supplies or programming associated to “sexually oriented material” to individuals underneath the age of 10. The vagueness of this definition is exactly the purpose, as it could open the door for huge interpretation and wouldn’t solely result in censorship however would result in the persecution of any particular person who doesn’t align with perceived notions of “appropriate.”

As writer Alejandra Cabarello points out, the supply throughout the invoice for “Private Right of Action” is an open bounty for people to file lawsuits in opposition to anybody utilizing federal funds, banning any and all dialogue of LGBTQ+ individuals and subjects whereby there is likely to be kids underneath 10.

This means a queer elementary college educator could also be unable to do their job, just because they’re queer. Or as a result of they present a movie that one father or mother could disagree with and select to interpret as sexual indoctrination.

It means a queer physician in a public hospital may very well be sued merely for being queer. A brand that appears too suspiciously “like a rainbow flag” might set off lawsuits.

And it means anybody might file a lawsuit in opposition to a library for having queer supplies within the kids’s space, even when these supplies are age-appropriate.

So many people have seen this coming, and now that it’s right here, in case you haven’t been making calls and sending emails to your representatives, this must be the explanation that you simply do. Every beat within the invoice is laden with the language being utilized by teams like Moms For Liberty and their ilk, creating an ethical panic concerning the sexualization of kids that doesn’t exist.

Whether or not such a regulation passes is moot proper now. That it was drafted says all the things you’ll want to know. That it’s being thought of is a daunting actuality of the place we’re as a society proper now. We aren’t progressive nor open minded, and we by no means have been.

Now, it’s merely being legislated.

Absolutely none of this ought to be shocking in case you’ve been paying consideration. It was coming.

Remember: it was by no means, it’s by no means, and it’ll by no means be concerning the books.

It’s concerning the systematic erasure of people that don’t match the white, cishet, ready bodied Christian nationalist mould.

• Poway Unified School District (CA) has pulled two books for evaluate within the college library. Only one guide is known as — Gender Queer — and one father or mother claims there are 100 extra that should be reviewed. Removing the books whereas reviewing them continues to be censorship.
• “Cindy Rose, a candidate on the Education Not Indoctrination slate, shared a list of 35 books before beginning her public comment at the Frederick County Board of Education’s meeting Wednesday.” This is in Maryland. This…is actually their platform.
• Members of a church group have been exhibiting up on the Bartholomew Public Library (IN) complaining about books they assume are inappropriate. Complainers say books ought to be moved to extra acceptable areas of the library (Gender Queer, for instance, is within the grownup part however by some means that’s not acceptable?). Of course, it’s not lengthy earlier than you discover out “we want the books moved to more appropriate places” means “not in the library at all.” Hundreds of individuals confirmed up on the board assembly this week.
• “Republican Gubernatorial nominee for Pennsylvania, Doug Mastriano, argued for books to be banned but said it was ‘not a book ban.’” I really like how guide bans aren’t guide bans. Doublespeak at its best.
• Parents complained about inappropriate books — none of that are named — on the Fairport Public Schools (NY). The district isn’t going to take any motion.
• A Place Inside of Me: A Poem to Heal The Heart will stay on cabinets in Sumner County Schools (TN).
• The following books are being reviewed after being challenged at Old Rochester Regional High School (MA): All Boys Aren’t Blue by George M. Johnson, Beyond Magenta by Susan Kuklin, Flamer by Mike Curato, Gender Queer: A Memoir by Maia Kobabe, Lawn Boy by Jonathan Evison, Out of Darkness by Ashley Hope Pérez, The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie, The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison, and The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas.
• The Lafayette Parish Library (LA) board president who advocates guide banning was elected to serve for one more 12 months.
• What Girls Are Made Of has been underneath hearth at St. Joseph Public Schools (MI) and now there are 11 extra books being challenged.
• “Wingate said his draft policy on sexually explicit materials is just a first step and will be modeled through the comments of his fellow board members. He said the draft is stronger than the model state policy and there is no good reason to have sexually explicit materials in school. […] He said while parents have the right to determine what their children read, taxpayers shouldn’t be required to fund it and that he’s appalled that some find literary merit in a father discussing raping his 11-year-old daughter as he said is included in one of the books.” This is Madison County, Virginia.
• 33 books have been challenged in Spotsylvania faculties this 12 months (VA). The lists and their content material — completely no surprises on both — are right here.
• All Boys Aren’t Blue is being challenged in Gettysburg Public Schools (PA).
• Three books challenged at Durham District Schools (Ontario, Canada) will stay on cabinets.
• Why is there a police officer on the Huntsville Public Library (TX) reviewing books? I would not have a solution, there aren’t any articles about it, and but, bizarre issues have been occurring at this library, whereby the town administration appears to assume they run the general public library.
• Here’s the panorama on guide bans in western New York.
• In Kenosha County, Wisconsin, a county board supervisor has triggered a stir over the guide Homegoing as a result of he doesn’t like how slavery is depicted. The guide was chosen for the general public library’s Big Read occasion for the approaching 12 months.
• This story out of Maple Valley, Michigan, showcases how the push to ban books isn’t actually concerning the books in any respect and the mis- and disinformation is actively harming individuals.
• “A draft of Fauquier County Public Schools’ [VA] new policy addressing students exposure to sexually explicit content in the classroom will be presented to the School Board on Nov. 14, according to the Deputy Superintendent Major Warner.” Make any of this make sense.