(New Carlisle, IN) - Last week New Prairie’s school board tackled the thorny topic of age-appropriate books in school libraries.
On Monday, January 8th over two dozen people attended a public hearing as the board considered a petition to remove six books from the middle school library. These are the works called into question: Empire of Storms and Kingdom of Ash by Sarah J. Maas, The Infinite Moment of Us by Lauren Myracle, The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky, Rethinking Normal by Katie Rain Hill, and Tilt by Ellen Hopkins. Portions of their content contain foul (R-rated) language, substance abuse, violence, and graphic sexuality.
Some call it book banning. Others say weeding, or removing certain titles that are no longer relevant or useful, is a necessary process in libraries. Heather Oake, who brought the petition, says it’s just common sense and common decency. “We’re not banning books,” she said. “It’s [about being] age-appropriate. And if you want your child to have that kind of a book, you can buy it for them outside of school.”
At the meeting Oake read aloud passages from the books describing sexual acts in graphic detail. Only a couple of parents, besides Oake, spoke out against the books. Most people in attendance were in favor of keeping them on the shelves. At least ten people spoke in favor of what they consider “free speech.”
One of them was Jamie Talboom, grandmother of five New Prairie students. “Removing or banning books is a slippery slope to government censorship and the erosion of our country’s commitment to freedom of expression,” she told board members.
According to another speaker, Tom Pietrzak, not everyone’s values and literary standards are the same. “What we heard tonight may be a bit shocking; I’m not going to tell you that it shouldn’t be. But at the same time, time my opinion of what is shocking versus your opinion… may be different.” He stressed the importance of getting kids interested in reading. “Is it shocking? Yeah, sure it is. But at the same time, fostering the will and the want to read—you can’t do a better thing for your child.”
Sid Shroyer, a former New Prairie English teacher and member of the committee that reviewed the books, talked about Nazi Germany, book burning, and classic authors such as Mark Twain, Jack London, and Ernest Hemingway, whose books have been banned over the years. “The goal of book-banning,” he said, “is the numbing of the senses, seeking to destroy individuality and stifle curiosity.”
A committee of seven appointed New Prairie community members reviewed the books in question and made their recommendation to keep them in the middle school. The board agreed unanimously, with an exception. One title, The Infinite Moment of Us, by the suggestion of Superintendent Dr. Paul White, will be moved to the high school due to its graphic nature.
Oake said after the meeting that she felt there would have been less support for the books if the matter had been debated in December as originally planned. “I got a call the same day saying they were postponing it,” said Oak. “I personally believe that gave them time to get a lot of people to come.” She felt as though the matter should have been resolved last month, but was intentionally postponed.
Meetings like this one may become more common due to a new state law passed in May requiring public and charter schools to make public a list of their library books. New Prairie’s middle school library, as of May, reported 13,497 books in their collection. The new law also requires that schools offer a procedure for objecting to a book’s place in the collection if it can be deemed both “offensive” and “harmful to minors.”
At last week’s meeting, an attorney for the school district was present to read Indiana’s statutes on what is “obscene” and “harmful.” But the definitions are vague, and it ultimately comes down to community members to draw the line. When asked what would constitute a reason to remove a book, Superintendent White did not specify, saying the district would continue to rely on publisher recommendations and guidelines set by the American Library Association.
White did say that the high school has a new certified librarian who has been tasked with being more hands-on with K-8 library development. “I think a focus on certain books being a better selection at the high school as opposed to the middle school level will continue to be reviewed and considered,” he said.
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