ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — As a queer and out youth, Shae Ross was alarmed when she heard that conservative groups were organizing in her community to ban books dealing with sexuality, gender and race. So she and her friends got organized themselves, and helped persuade their school board to make it much harder to remove books and other materials from their libraries and classrooms.
Ross, an 18-year-old senior in the Minneapolis suburb of Bloomington, is glad to see that her governor and leaders in several other states are fighting the trend playing out in more conservative states where book challenges and bans have soared to their highest levels in decades.
“For a lot of teenagers, LGBT teenagers and teenagers who maybe just don’t feel like they have a ton of friends, or a ton of popularity in middle or high school ... literature becomes sort of an escape.” Ross said. “Especially when I was like sixth, seventh grade, I’d say reading books, especially books with gay characters ... was a way that I could feel seen and represented.”
Redfin agrees to pay $9.25 million to settle real estate broker commission lawsuits
A Black lawmaker briefly expelled from the Tennessee Statehouse will remain on the 2024 ballot
Mick Jagger wades into politics, taking verbal jab at Louisiana state governor at performance
Troops fired on Kent State students in 1970. Survivors see echoes in today's campus protests
Merlier wins Giro Stage 3 after Pogacar fires up finale and stays in the lead
UK local elections: Boris Johnson turned away after forgetting photo ID
A suspected Islamic State group attack on pro
Pip Edwards looks elegant in a black gown as she celebrates chef Nobu Matsuhisa in Sydney
Anaheim Ducks goaltending coach Sudarshan Maharaj declared cancer
Emily Andre shares sweet snap breastfeeding her baby daughter in hospital as she thanks midwives
Jessie Buckley is seen flying up a building as Christian Bale gets his Frankenstein make