PEN America and EveryLibrary respond to the action taken by the Trump administration, which called the book bans
School Library Journal:
With a press release titled “U.S. Department of Education Ends Biden’s Book Ban Hoax,” the Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights (DOE OCR) dismissed all complaints of book banning that it had been investigating. Complaints through DOE OCR had proven to be an effective way to fight bans. But that ability to seek the DOE OCR's assistance and ruling is gone. "OCR has no role in these matters," the DOE statement said. PEN America released a statement from Freedom to Read director Kasey Meehan. “For over three years we have countered rhetoric that book bans occurring in public schools are a ‘hoax.’ They are absolutely not,” Meehan said. "This kind of language from the U.S. Department of Education is alarming and dismissive of the students, educators, librarians, and authors who have firsthand experiences of censorship happening within school libraries and classrooms. “Since 2021, we have meticulously recorded nearly 16,000 instances of book bans nationwide – where access to books is revoked from their intended readers – often without following commonsense processes and increasingly due to censorial legislation from states. “We will continue to raise awareness and resistance to ongoing book bans in defense of students’ freedom to read. All students deserve to see themselves and the world around them reflected in the books shelved within their public schools.” In the same action, the DOE OCR also terminated the resolution agreement with Forsyth County Schools after a complaint was filed that removal of books in the district violated students’ Title IX and Title VI civil rights.
The US Department of Education issued a press release dismissing valid book ban complaints by calling book bans a “hoax”, signifying Trumpist control of the institution.
See Also:
The Hill: Trump/McMahon-era Department of Education dismisses book ban complaints
PEN America: It’s Not a Hoax: Trump Administration Dismisses Book Ban Complaints
