Marshall University does not ban books! The information is provided to let people know what has been banned/challenged elsewhere.
2022
At the Bedford County (VA) Public Schools, Moms for Liberty challenged The Bluest Eye along with Beloved, also by Toni Morrison, plus The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini, The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls, #MurderTrending by Gretchen McNeil, Two Boys Kissing by David Levithan, All Boys Aren’t Blue by George M. Johnson, What My Mother Doesn’t Know by Sonya Sones, Rick by Alex Gino, Freakboy by Kristin Elizabeth Clark, Love Drugged by James Klise, and Beautiful Music for Ugly Children by Kristin Cronn-Mills. The group said it objected to graphic depictions of sexual acts, violence, substance use, and LGBTQIA+ representation. Board members cited policy, which limited challenges to one book at a time. BCPS administrators and book review committees made the decision not to remove any of the challenged titles from school libraries.
2012
Banned or challenged for nudity, offensive language, and being sexually explicit.
2011
Challenged for sexism, sexually explicit scenes and being unsuited for age group.
2008
Available only to 7th and 8th graders at the Spring Hill (WI) School library after a parent wanted the book, which deals with masturbation, groping, and sexual fantasy, among other themes, to be removed from the library and the accelerated reading program.
2006
Challenged for sexual content and being unsuited to age group.
2005
Challenged at the Bonnette Junior High School in Deer Park (TX) for foul language and references to masturbation.
2004
Removed from the library shelves of the Rosedale Union School District in Bakersfield (CA) because of discomfort with Sones’ poem Ice Capades – a teenage girl’s description of how her breasts react to cold.
On These Pages
A Banned book has been removed from a library, classroom, etc.
A Challenged book has been requested to be removed from a library, classroom, etc.
For additional information contact
Ron Titus, titus@marshall.edu
304-696-6575
Last updated
June 22, 2023