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Youth legislature votes to make school book bans illegal in memorial
Summary
Delegates passed Senate bill 5.11, a memorial aimed at preventing school-level book bans and protecting access to diverse literature; proponents said bans silence marginalized voices, while the attorney general’s office raised federalism concerns.
The youth senate approved a memorial (Senate bill 5.11) calling for prohibitions on school book bans.
Proponent Howie Howard (S5) argued that book bans disproportionately target works featuring LGBTQ+ characters and people of color and that removing such titles harms students’ access to diverse perspectives. “Book bans can have negative effects on the social skills and societal understanding of the children affected,” he said during opening remarks (Howie Howard, S5).
The attorney general’s representative told the chamber the memorial could raise constitutional and federalism issues, noting the federal government does not directly set school policy and that the bill’s wording risked being overly broad. Proponents responded that the memorial was intended to protect students’ access while allowing schools discretion over curricula and purchases; the proponent repeatedly said schools could still choose what to carry and parents would retain opt-out rights.
A governor’s cabinet representative urged support for the measure, stressing access to diverse literature and the educational value of confronting difficult topics. After closing statements and a voice vote, the memorial passed with an obvious majority.
