What Books Are Really Getting Banned? | The Free Press

To get to the bottom of things, James (you ll remember his name from this huge piece about the hijacking of high school debate) surveyed the library catalogs in 35 of America s biggest public school districts, representing over 4,600 individual schools. What he discovered wasn t so much a problem of banned books. It s that kids are often exposed to only one side of the story.

For example: take how easy it is for kids to access memoirs by prominent Democrats like Barack and Michelle Obama, compared to memoirs by leading Republicans. More than half of the 35 districts James surveyed carried both of the Obamas books. But how many districts carried books by Nikki Haley, Tim Scott, Ron DeSantis, Vivek Ramaswamy, and Mike Pompeo? 

The answer is zero. 

That includes school districts in red states like Texas and Florida. 

James lays out even more surprising data and comes to a conclusion: Should libraries carry books that peddle progressive ideas? Absolutely, he writes. But only if they carry books that advocate for conservative ones too, so our young minds can benefit from the full spectrum of opinions. At a time of profound national division, the skill of appreciating and understanding the other side, even if you vehemently disagree, is more important than ever.

via www.thefp.com