Book bans

A small child pulling children's books off a bookshelf.

First Amendment advocates fight growing number of U.S. book bans

BY: - October 4, 2023

WASHINGTON — One of Thomasina Brown’s favorite books is a memoir about a girl who deals with the grief of losing her father and struggles with her sexual identity. Brown, a 16-year-old student at Nixa High School in Nixa, Missouri, said in an interview that she felt a connection with the book, as she grieved […]

A woman stands between two cameras.

Ozark Library increases parental supervision requirements but doesn’t remove books

BY: - September 20, 2023

OZARK– The Ozark Dale County Library Board of Trustees Wednesday approved new policies that will require more parental supervision of children in libraries but did not explicitly remove or ban any books.  The approval came in a meeting that was far less tense – and far less crowded – than a special called meeting in […]

Two piles of books that have been subjected school bans, including Toni Morrison's "The Bluest Eye;" Harper Lee's "To Kill a Mockingbird" and Khaled Hosseini's "The Kite Runner." American flags can be seen in the background.

School districts struggle to implement new laws on sexually explicit books

BY: - June 14, 2023

RICHMOND, Va. — Although a new Virginia law requires schools to inform parents when sexually explicit materials are used in the classroom, some districts are using that law as the basis to go further and remove certain books from schools altogether. Book ban requests across the state often have cited the Virginia law, which was signed last year by Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin. […]