DEARBORN, Mich. – It has been a controversial issue in Dearborn, and Monday, the school district addressed what it plans to do with several books deemed inappropriate by some parents.
The book ban all started over the summer when a parent challenged some books found in school libraries, most of which were LGBTQ-themed. That led to a heated school board meeting last month, which more than 600 people attended.
More: Hundreds pack Dearborn school board meeting to discuss 6 books under review
The conclusion of that internal review so far is not sitting well with parents who are demanding those six books be removed for good.
Those six books are:
- “Push” by Sapphire;
- “The Lovely Bones” by Alice Sebold;
- “Eleanor and Park” by Rainbow Rowell;
- “Red, White and Royal Blue” by Casey McQuiston;
- “All Boys Aren’t Blue” by George M. Johnson; and
- “This Book is Gay” by Juno Dawson.
“The Dearborn school of education, you guys, have been served with a notice of claim and the intent to sue by attorney Darren Wesley,” said a man.
Parents and community members continued to challenge the district. An internal review conducted by a media specialist resulted in The Lovely Bones remaining on high school shelves; Eleanor and Park will be pulled from middle schools but will be available to high school students.
Push, and Red, White, and Royal Blue were deemed inappropriate and will be removed from both high school and middle school libraries.
A decision has yet to be made on All Boys Aren’t Blue and This Book is Gay.
“If we just arbitrarily walked through a library based on the title and started pulling books off of the shelves, that would be wrong to do,” said David Mustonen. “Just as it is wrong if there is inappropriate material in the libraries as well.