Booksology Students at ACLU and Pentagon Schools appeal for a book ban
For years, Kelly Jensen has argued in these censorship news updates that the best way to push back the trend of censorship is a legal challenge. Last week we reported on Ala suing Doge for gutting IMLS. This week, the American Civil Liberties Union sued the Department of Defense Education institutions and the Secretary of Defense, and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegses for removing books from schools run by the Department of Defense. Children from 67,000 military families attend these schools at bases all over the world.
The ACLU filed a lawsuit on behalf of 12 students who alleged that their initial right to amendment was infringed. They also argue that they put children at risk by preventing education in health and learning about abuse. Furthermore, this censorship means that highly placement students are not taught anything important about the gender or gender that may appear in the AP psychology exam.
These schools are at the forefront of anti-DEI policies. In addition to removing books on gender, sexuality, or race, the school also cancelled Black History Month and Women’s History Month. Among the hundreds of deleted books, there are classic works such as To kill a mockingbird By Harper Lee Kit Runner Khaled Hosseini, and I know why a caged bird sings A book of history like Maya Angelou The strange history of the United States Picture books like Michael Bronski Julian is a mermaid By Jessica Love. My fight It’s still on the shelf.
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said Emerson Sykes, chief lawyer and senior staff attorney at ACLU.
“The quality of children’s education, exposure to ideas, and preparation for the next generation of citizens are all undermined by this censorship, not how public schools should work.
It is not the only censorship faced by these students. Their yearbook is also restricted from mentions about the existence of trans people. Letters from management say, “The student yearbook should not include visual depictions, written content, or editorial options that directly or indirectly support the guidance, progress and/or promotion of “gender ideology” and/or “social transition.” ”
Read more about this story New York Times and Guardian.
After the censorship news for this book, don’t miss an excerpt highlighting the best new poem collection of 2025 (so far).
The Mount Lebanon Library became the first public library in Pennsylvania, declaring the book as a sanctuary of books. Book Sanctuary for Inexperienced People is a place where “the pledge to collect and protect endangered species of books that meet the standards of library collection policies.”
Library director Robin Wittek said making a library a sanctuary for books is a way to say, “libraries are for everyone.” The library’s board of trustees voted to pass a resolution declaring the library’s sanctuary in mid-February, joining the Chicago public libraries in Hoboken, New Jersey and Arlington, Virginia, to join the fight against the book ban.
Wittek said the response of the Mount Lebanese community to becoming a book sanctuary was “100% positive.”
In the news of more book lawsuits, the Michigan Court of Appeals dismissed a lawsuit attempting to ban books from libraries in school districts in West Michigan. The group filed the lawsuit – “parents and taxpayers for porn at Rockford Public Schools” alleged that 14 books on library shelves were “sexually explicit,” but the court ruled that the group could not prove that the book had been adversely affected.
The books they targeted were the most banned in the nation, including:
- Court of mist and rage Sarah J. Mars
- Court of Frost and Starlight Sarah J. Mars
- I’m out of breath Jennifer Niven
- From the darkness By Ashley Hope Perez
- crank By Ellen Hopkins
- Ask the passengers As a king
- Kit Runner By Khaled Hosseini
- Not all boys are blue George M. Johnson
- Gender queer By Maia Kobabe
- Beyond magenta By Susan Kuklin
- blue eyes Toni Morrison
- Looking for Alaska By John Green
- The boy on the grass By Jonathan Evison
- Fun Home: Family Tragedy By Allison Beckdel
British librarians see the impact of US censorship attempts
Librarians across the pond are reporting changes that stem from increased demands to remove books from shelves and increased influence in the US-based pressure group. Like America, many books aim to ban the centre of LGBTQ+ themes. Currently, most of the UK book challenges come from individuals and small groups, but librarians report that members of US-based groups are being harassed online, and one librarian has found propaganda from a US-based group on her desk. While British library experts report that the situation there is not (still) as disastrous as in the US, the global media ecosystem and the rise of far-right groups around the world have made this a serious threat to intellectual freedom. You will wonder if Mama for Freedom (named the Hate Group by the Southern Poverty Law Center) is one of the US groups currently reaching overseas. Guardian Not specified.
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This week we are highlighting our best new poem collection of 2025 (so far)! From deep, personal to powerful political, many of these collections reflect the zeitgeist period and introduce some fresh voices to the poem. Read the excerpt and become an All Access member to unlock the full post.
What about more than a quarter of the journey to 2025 already? I’m ahead of my reading goals, but I still feel very behind at the same time. But I’m packing a lot of poetry, and there are plenty of wonderful, amazing voices that appear. It’s early, but so far, the time to check in some of the best new poem collections of 2025 is totally time.
It’s strange how timely these collections are. Please note that publications move very slowly, so that books released in the first quarter of 2025 were probably completed in late 2023 or early 2024. Therefore, these collections were written in the preliminary stages of last year’s presidential election. Nevertheless, many of these collections feel like a throat response to the world today. A visionary artist is amazing
These collections of poems run a range from deep, personal to powerful politics. Let’s face it, especially when it comes to poetry, these two often do the same anyway. What’s most exciting for me is that of these best new poem collections of 2025, so far, is a fresh voice in the poetic scene. Let’s dig into those collections.
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