Earlier this month, we reported on an appeal sent to the Walla Walla, Washington, school district, following the Library Materials Committee decision to keep four books on shelves. The board met last week to consider the appeal and agreed to keep The Bluest Eye, All Boys Aren’t Blue, Gender Queer, and The Hate U Give available.
The first full board meeting following the decision happened Tuesday night. The room was packed with both those in opposition to that decision — a minority — and those who were in favor of it. The two white women who challenged the books initially and the following decisions showed up and continued to read passages from The Bluest Eye.
Walla Walla’s school district committee followed the procedures for the challenge per Policy 2021. Despite continued protests, the books cannot be challenged for another three years.
A round of applause for the Library Materials Committee for following their own procedure and ensuring intellectual freedom for students. Likewise, kudos to those who showed up in support of the committee.
Perhaps the most interesting thing to note about the board meeting is that following the book discussion, most of the public attendees left afterward.
Find more news and stories of interest from the book world in Breaking in Books.