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Parents urge Omaha Public Schools to remove 'The Poet X' and 'Flamer' from district libraries
Summary
Two community members told the Omaha Public Schools board that the books The Poet X and Flamer contain explicit material and urged the district to remove them; the board heard the comments during public comment but took no immediate action.
Two parents urged the Omaha Public Schools board on Monday to remove books they described as sexually explicit from district libraries.
Mikaela Khazor, who identified herself and gave her address, told the board that The Poet X is “not education” and read passages she said are inappropriate for middle-school students, including language she quoted from page 130. “This is indoctrination designed to desensitize our children to sin and strip parents of their rightful authority,” Khazor said, and she called on the board to “immediately remove The Poet X and any other pornographic material that is in our libraries.”
Michelle Rogers followed, citing the book Flamer and saying the work has been challenged or removed in other states. Rogers read aloud descriptions of illustrations and passages she said depict sexual situations and urged the board to take action, saying the material has been banned in some jurisdictions.
Board rules required speakers to identify themselves and their address and prohibit board responses during public comment; the board did not respond to the remarks during the public comment period. No motion or formal board action on library holdings was taken later in the meeting; the board proceeded to approve routine business items and then went into closed session for real-estate and legal matters.
The speakers cited other districts and published articles when describing why they find the books objectionable; board policy 83-46 (public comment time limits) and Nebraska statute cited by staff set the requirements for speakers at the podium. Any formal challenge or removal of library materials would require follow-up under district policy and administrative review, and there was no indication in the meeting record that the board directed staff to initiate such a review at this session.
