Reader’s Corner: Holding our schools accountable

Having formerly been in Sen. Mike Moon’s legislative district, I follow his regular updates. Being convinced of the need for quality literature in education, I found one of his recent emails very concerning. With his permission, I’ve adapted his remarks for this week’s column. 

One of the most troubling, things I [Sen. Moon] learned recently was the number of books in school libraries, available to our children, that are pornographic in nature. During a short visit to Cape Girardeau last year, I found several books fitting this description in the children’s section of a local library, and presented my findings to the Missouri Attorney General’s office.  

Recently, I had the pleasure of hearing and learning from a Missouri woman taking on a huge fight: Finding books on school library shelves which contain obscene material and working to get them out of the hands of students. With a new Attorney General, and after hearing of the serious problem in school libraries across Missouri, I have a renewed interest in investigating the situation.  

John Amanchukwu, a pastor from North Carolina, travels to attend school board meetings across the country. During these meetings, he reads passages from books available for checkout by K-12 students; but he is often stopped, mid-sentence, by the board. The reason: Reading obscene materials is not permitted at school board meetings. Yet, such books are available to our students! And, as taxpayers, we collectively are paying for them! 

You might wonder what is so bad about these books. So did this writer, so Sen. Moon referred me to a sample, from the book ‘Thrones 2: A Clash of Kings,’ by George R.R. Martin. Unfortunately, after reviewing the excerpt, it was not acceptable for this column in a family paper—and yet, it’s one of 119 books with language deemed unacceptable at a school board meeting, but within reach of students in one of our local public schools!  –CT 

On November 18, a Jackson County court struck down a Missouri law criminalizing the supplying of “sexually explicit material” to students. Since we are part of a republic, we can either agree with the court's decision and do nothing, or we can investigate claims regarding books on the library shelves, verify such claims, and take appropriate action. 

If this concerns you, you can help by taking time to visit www.TakeBacktheClassroom.com. On the site, click “Search Your School Now.” After confirming you are 18 or older, scroll to your state and select a school district to access a list of questionable books in that district’s libraries, broken down by elementary, middle and high school. An excerpt is available by clicking on the book icon.

If a district is not listed, it likely means a password is required in order to access the list of books; in this case, a resident in the district can request an in-person visit. Although this is not a complete list of questionable titles, here are some to look for:

            101 Ways to Dance (Kathy Stinson) 

            19 Love Songs (David Levithan) 

            A Clash of Kings (George R. R. Martin) 

            A Court of Frost and Starlight (Sarah J. Maas) 

            A Court of Mist and Fury (Sarah J. Maas) 

            A Court of Silver Flames (Sarah J. Maas) 

            A Court of Thorns and Roses (Sarah J. Maas) 

            A Court of Wings and Ruin (Sarah J. Maas) 

            A Game of Thrones (George R. R. Martin) 

            A Kingdom of Flesh and Fire (Jennifer Armentrout) 

            A Lesson in Vengeance (Victoria Lee) 

            A Sin Such as This (Ellen Hopkins) 

            A Stolen Life (Jaycee Dugard) 

            Ace Voice (Eris Young) 

            Adjustment Day (Chuch Palahnuik) 

            Alice on the Outside (Phyllis Reynolds Naylor) 

Concerned citizens can report their findings to their state senator and to the Attorney General’s office, and should present their concerns to their local school boards as well. It’s up to us to properly steward the minds of our next generation.