Book Bans In Anoka Co. Schools Decided By National Review Group

Book Bans In Anoka Co. Schools Decided By National Review Group

Anoka County book ban ratings and concerns

An Anoka County school district is allowing a conservative-aligned national group to decide which books are allowed in its libraries.

The Brief

St. Francis Area Schools are now bypassing a local committee to have a conservative-aligned parents group decide on books being banned in school libraries.

Book Looks rates the suitability of books on a scale of 1 to 5, with anything 3 and above now out in St. Francis Area Schools.

Among the books are a Holocaust memoir that was cited over concerns about violence, controversial religious commentary and references to hate.

ANOKA CO., Minn. (FOX 9) - An Anoka County school district is now letting a conservative-aligned national group decide which books are allowed in its libraries after the school board at St. Francis Area Schools began relying on ratings from Book Looks.

In the meantime, some well-known books could be banned.

Popular but banned

The Holocaust story "Night" by Elie Wiesel is subject to a ban based on the Book Looks rating, as is "The Handmaid’s Tale" and "Dear Evan Hansen".

"Night" scores a "3" on the review site, which cites concerns about violence, controversial religious commentary, and references to hate.

Newly adopted rules in St. Francis Area Schools say its libraries could not buy the Holocaust survivor’s memoir, and it would be removed if challenged by a parent.

"So that's telling me that we do not want to have a book in our library that is a true story of a Holocaust survivor," said school board member Nathan Burr, who voted in the minority alongside chair Mike Starr and vice chair Jill Anderson.

Why Book Looks?

Amy Kelly, Rob Schoenrock, Pamela Johnson, and Annette West led the school board to a 4-3 vote to bypass the locally chosen review committee in favor of Book Looks, which was started by a former member of the conservative group Moms for Liberty.

The school district’s attorneys advised against the decision, saying it may violate the First Amendment and a 2024 state law banning book bans based on viewpoints.

Me and Earl and the Last Straw?

But for at least some in the majority, sexual content in the book "Me and Earl and the Dying Girl" was too much to allow, and when the local committee disagreed, they pushed for a new review system.

"The only book so far isn't a history book," Board Member Kelly said. "It isn't anything of that. It's a sexually explicit book that our committee said, 'Ope, that's fine. It stays in the library.' We're red here, just to let you know. We're not going to always be on the same page, but I know we're conservative. They don't want this stuff in the libraries."

Book Looks has reviewed almost 800 books and rated them from 1 to 5 – anything 3 or above is out in St. Francis.

Power to few?

Bans like this give a lot of power to just a few people, according to researcher Tasslyn Magnusson.

And they take the power away from kids.

"We lose young people seeing the world as it is and learning about it through the page, which provides kind of a safe space to learn about some pretty ugly stuff sometimes," Magnusson said.

Superintendent Karsten Anderson emphasized to FOX 9 that he opposed giving Book Looks final say in whether books stay.

Both the superintendent and FOX 9 have reached out to the Minnesota Department of Education (MDE) to see if they believe the new policy violates the state’s ban on book bans, but so far the department has not responded.

SOURCE: FOX 9 KMSP