Bacon's Rebellion

Democracy Thrives in Sunlight

The Tyranny of One

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by

Dick Hall-Sizemore
in ,

by Dick Hall-Sizemore

The superintendent of the Spotsylvania County schools has removed 14 books from the school libraries in response to the complaint of one parent that the books had sexually explicit content. Two of the books removed were by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Toni Morrison.

The Richmond Times-Dispatch reports that the superintendent claims that he was required to take that action by a law recently enacted by the General Assembly. However, that Code section (22.1-16.8) requires schools to notify parents about instructional material that may be sexually explicit and provide alternative nonexplicit instructional material for that student if the parent so requests. It says nothing about completely removing library books that are not assigned reading. Moreover, one of the enacting clauses of the legislation stipulates, “That the provisions of this act shall not be construed as requiring or providing for the censoring of books in public elementary and secondary schools.”

The superintendent claimed, “This is about maintaining libraries as a safe space for our children.”

When asked how many parents had spoken out about sexually explicit material in library books, the superintendent admitted that “parental engagement has been unfortunately rather light.” He suggested other parents had not participated because they had long commutes to work. He praised the one parent who had spoken out and suggested that, without her, the issue would not have “come to the fore here in Spotsylvania at all.”

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44 responses to “The Tyranny of One”

  1. James Wyatt Whitehead Avatar
    James Wyatt Whitehead

    Available for check out the Spotsy Regional Library. Audio Book, ebook, large print book, and old fashioned book. Right now the 8 hard copies are checked out. So are the 2 copies of the downloadable book and 2 downloadable audiobooks. 2 cd audiobooks can be had though. Plus 1 large print. I’ll take that one. No restrictions as far as I can tell.
    https://librarypoint.bibliocommons.com/v2/search?query=beloved%20&searchType=title

  2. James A. Bacon Avatar
    James A. Bacon

    Surely there is a way to find a middle ground that can accommodate the sensitivities of the super-easily offended while providing access to controversial books for the large majority who want them. For example, exempt kids from a requirement to read controversial material and provide them alternate material… but do not ban books from libraries entirely. If people are so determined to dig in their heels that compromise is impossible, I say a pox on both your houses.

    1. vicnicholls Avatar
      vicnicholls

      If you use the parental written ok to check out certain books, how do you make sure that those who don’t want their kids to have access to the books, won’t have someone check it out for them?

    2. Eric the half a troll Avatar
      Eric the half a troll

      How is this a “both house” issue? No one is forcing kids to read these books.

  3. Matt Adams Avatar
    Matt Adams

    “Two of the books removed were by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Toni Morrison.”

    Just because a book has won awards does not mean it’s appropriate for all ages. That is a larger problem with this current issue, all the libraries in the school district must contain the same books no matter the ages of individuals they service.

    Furthermore, your last paragraph doesn’t help your cause.

    1. Lefty665 Avatar
      Lefty665

      A grade school library and a high school library must “contain the same books”. For several reasons I would not have expected that. Can you provide a little more information?

      1. Matt Adams Avatar
        Matt Adams

        Book’s are chosen at District Level, but for uniformity sake. Each library in the district must have the same books. The VODE will tell you it’s all up to the district, but I think we both know that’s them pushing the blame.

        I’m unable to find any specific reference to that, outside of having first hand knowledge from someone within the system on what books have to be where.

        1. Lefty665 Avatar
          Lefty665

          Tks, be interested if you learn more. Still seems strange to me that libraries for 1st graders and 12th graders would have the same books.

          There will be a lot of books that are inappropriate for both ends of that spectrum, if for no other reason than profoundly varying levels of reading comprehension.

          1. Matt Adams Avatar
            Matt Adams

            Oh that I agree and I found it profoundly ignorant when she made the statement. I however can see the need to have uniformity when ordering books as unless they are special orders it’s just done in bulk.

          2. how_it_works Avatar
            how_it_works

            Seems like a big waste of money to have Dr. Seuss in the high schools and Camelot in the elementary schools, unless, of course, they are getting those books for free.

          3. Matt Adams Avatar
            Matt Adams

            School districts like government aren’t what you call, efficient.

            I understand people being up in arms about book banning, but there as it stands current in Spotsylvania School District Libraries, 390,000 books.

            The 14 that were removed should have at the very least had age restrictions because of the content. Unless there is a noted restriction that libarian is unable to deny the student the book.

            The author makes and up to do about Beloved and the Bluest Eye, merely because their author won awards. Just because they were provided awards doesn’t mean they are suitable for younger students.

          4. how_it_works Avatar
            how_it_works

            Someone once said that school districts know how to do two things:

            1)Spend money
            2)Ask for more

          5. Matt Adams Avatar
            Matt Adams

            Awfully similar to Government in General. The difference being is that most of the Teacher’s aren’t benefitting from the district and their money. It’s Superintendent and the like benefitting from it.

          6. how_it_works Avatar
            how_it_works

            Case in point, Manassas Park, lots of new(er) school buildings and the debt service to go with, but one of the (if not the) lowest teacher pay in the area.

          7. WayneS Avatar
            WayneS

            Cynical, but with at least a grain of truth.

          8. how_it_works Avatar
            how_it_works

            Nothing I’ve ever seen tended to disprove that assertion

          9. WayneS Avatar
            WayneS

            Maybe the high school students need Dr. Seuss books to read to their own kids…

          10. how_it_works Avatar
            how_it_works

            Hah.

            Heard this one a while ago:

            You might be a redneck if…

            …your 14 year old daughter smokes at the dinner table…

            …in front of her 2 children!

          11. Nancy Naive Avatar
            Nancy Naive

            Just go to an elementary school and see for yourself.

            I would guess he’s wrong for one easily verifiable reason. SIZE.

            The libraries in elementary schools are far smaller than those in a high school.

            It is more probable that any book is available in any of the libraries through SHARING.

          12. Nancy Naive Avatar
            Nancy Naive

            Just go to an elementary school and see for yourself.

            I would guess he’s wrong for one easily verifiable reason. SIZE.

            The libraries in elementary schools are far smaller than those in a high school.

            It is more probable that any book is available in any of the libraries through SHARING, i.e., inter-library checkout.

        2. VaPragamtist Avatar
          VaPragamtist

          I’m having a hard time believing that. Maybe all libraries in the district must have the same books for the age ranges they serve?

          But I can’t see Dostoevsky or Camus in the elementary school library just because the high school has it; or the Berenstain Bears or Dr. Seuss in the high school library because the elementary school has it.

          1. Matt Adams Avatar
            Matt Adams

            You can find it unfathomable all you’d like and perhaps the librarian I know has anecdotal evidence but that is how it stands in Spotys.

          2. Nancy Naive Avatar
            Nancy Naive

            Common card catalog is likely. The district libraries all use the same data base.

            It’s probably just availability and not storage. A 5th grader in an elementary school can request Camus, and if one is available at the high school, it will be brought to the elementary school for checkout.

            The idea that every school would have at least one copy of The Guest is cost prohibitive.

            Don’t trust anecdotal evidence.

        3. WayneS Avatar
          WayneS

          Are you sure that the rule is not applied based on the respective levels of the various schools?

          Perhaps, all high school libraries in the district have the same books, all middle schools have the same books, and all primary/elementary schools have the same books?

          That would make a lot more sense.

          1. Matt Adams Avatar
            Matt Adams

            I have no idea about the rule outside of what was conveyed to me. I would understand the uniformity need for ordering purposes given schools in a specific county and their districts. I could’ve always misunderstood what she was stating, perhaps they all share the same catalog that way a book can be ordered in from another library if requested.

            It’s also of note that the challenge process for books exists at the District Level throughout VA and it doesn’t take a State Law to enact a ban. Which is the message I read in DHS’s post.

      2. Nancy Naive Avatar
        Nancy Naive

        Most likely, it’s a district (state?) level card catalogue. The books are where they are, but any student in any school can look up the book in the catalogue and ask to checkout the book. It’s not likely that a 3rd grader can find any arbitrary book perusing the shelves.

        For each library to have the same books would mean that all the libraries in every school would have to be the same size physically. Does that even seem remotely possible?

  4. DJRippert Avatar
    DJRippert

    If the “woke mob” can object to Dr Seuss and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, why would anybody object to a “conservative snowflake” objecting to Toni Morrison?

    1. Dick Hall-Sizemore Avatar
      Dick Hall-Sizemore

      I am not a supporter of the objections to Dr. Seuss or Huckleberry Finn. Not only is it wrong, it is ridiculous.

      1. Tom B Avatar
        Tom B

        🙂

    2. Stephen Haner Avatar
      Stephen Haner

      Turnabout being fair play….Doesn’t really matter. The little darlings read only things on screens, and read those poorly. #BooksIzDed. And if some bright child really does want to get his or her hands on some “banned” material, nobody will stop it from happening.

      1. James Wyatt Whitehead Avatar
        James Wyatt Whitehead

        No kidding about dead books. Civil War books that were once priced far beyond my budget have been happily added to my collection from the local thrift stores. Loving it!

        1. Stephen Haner Avatar
          Stephen Haner

          What do you need from my shelf? I have no illusions the grandkids will read them. Only thing I won’t part with is Shelby Foote.

        2. Stephen Haner Avatar
          Stephen Haner

          What do you need from my shelf? I have no illusions the grandkids will read them. Only thing I won’t part with is Shelby Foote.

  5. Stephen Haner Avatar
    Stephen Haner

    Always helpful to find a state law that can be bent into some tortured shape to justify what you want to do anyway.

    1. Nancy Naive Avatar
      Nancy Naive

      Which is why they are passing laws that needn’t be tortured. No reason to inflict pain on a poor law, just people.

      WWFD? (Florida)

  6. Tom B Avatar
    Tom B

    Funny how the RT article tells us nothing about the titles of the books or what was deemed objectionable (with examples). Just a hatchet job implying that anyone who objects must be an evil book burner. One gets the impression that we are not supposed to think, but just accept the injustice of it all as decided for us by our betters. For some, that’s probably all their minds can handle.

    1. Eric the half a troll Avatar
      Eric the half a troll

      What, you want easy access to all the information? Why it seems like you are experiencing some sort of censorship…

      1. Tom B Avatar
        Tom B

        No. I was just commenting on the lack of intellectual curiosity by the author and his projection that his readers were equally dull witted.

        1. DJRippert Avatar
          DJRippert

          Fair point. Some of Toni Morrison’s writing is pretty racy. Tales of rape, incest, etc.

          She also had more than a small chip on her shoulder based on race.

          One of her quotes:

          “Navigating a white male world was not threatening. It wasn’t even interesting. I was more interesting than they were. I knew more than they did. And I wasn’t afraid to show it.”

          I’m not sure who “they” are but I am sure that if a White author referred to Blacks as “they” that author would be pilloried.

          My bottom line – Morrison’s works are probably appropriate for high school juniors and seniors but not younger students.

          1. Matt Adams Avatar
            Matt Adams

            The passages I’ve seen from both of her books on the list, definitely shouldn’t be read by anyone younger than junior and senior levels.

      2. Carol J BOVA Avatar
        Carol J BOVA

        Yeah, took me about 6 seconds to get the list:

        “All Boys Aren’t Blue: A Memoir-Manifesto” by George Johnson
        “Like a Love Story” by Abdi Nazemian
        “Dime” by E.R. Frank
        “Sold” by Patricia McCormick
        “Out of Darkness” by Ashley Hope Perez
        “Beloved” by Toni Morrison
        “America” by E.R. Frank
        “Looking for Alaska” by John Green
        “The Perks of Being a Wallflower” by Stephen Chbosky
        “Water for Elephants” by Sarah Gruen
        “Neanderthal Opens the Door to the Universe” by Preston Norton
        “More Happy Than Not” by Adam Silvers
        “The Bluest Eye” by Toni Morrison
        “Nineteen Minutes” by Jodi Picoult

  7. Nancy Naive Avatar
    Nancy Naive

    Fortunately, we have the civil court system where, if one is so inclined, a damaged party can be made whole, e.g.,
    Mickey Mouse, Plaintiff
    v.
    Ronnie Rat, Defendant

  8. Nancy Naive Avatar
    Nancy Naive

    Fortunately, we have the civil court system where, if one is so inclined, a damaged party can be made whole, e.g.,

    IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
    FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF FLORIDA

    Mickey Mouse, Plaintiff
    v.
    Ronnie Rat, Defendant

    FOR DECLARATORY AND INJUNCTIVE RELIEF

  9. James Kiser Avatar
    James Kiser

    removing stuff works both ways.

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