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Some books now banned in Rutherford County Schools after vote

Banning books
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MURFREESBORO, Tenn. (WTVF) — School board members in Rutherford County on Thursday night voted to ban several books from its school libraries.

Those books are:

  • "Beloved" by Toni Morrison
  • "Queen of Shadows" by Sara J. Maas
  • "Tower of Dawn" by Sara J. Maas
  • "Homegoing" by Yaa Gyasi
  • "The Perks of Being a Wallflower" by Stephen Chbosky
  • "Wicked (The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West)"by Gregory Maquire

However, the board agreed to let one remain in school libraries.

  • "Skin and Bones" by Sherry Shahan

This comes a month after the school board assured in a work session they would review each book before making a final decision.
Board members argued they should create a mature reading list. However, that would be a change to district policy — which can't go into effect until it's taken up at a separate policy committee meeting.

"I knew this was going to be a tough night, and it reminds me of the mask controversies," board chair Claire Maxwell said.

Earlier this week, the American Civil Liberties Union of Tennessee wrote a letter to the board Sept. 16, warning the members to not ban any books.

"Libraries are revered, protected places where students should be able to encounter a marketplace of ideas. If you continue banning books at this pace, RCS students will be shopping in a marketplace with nothing but empty shelves," the ACLU wrote in its letter.

Bethany Davison contributed to this report.

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