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Public commenter defends transgender-themed middle‑grade title as board prepares library report and book pulls
Summary
A resident urged the board to keep My Life Is a Diamond in middle‑school libraries and criticized an official board post that targeted the book, saying the district should verify claims with media specialists; director reported library lists are posted online and that some books are being pulled consistent with state law and district policy.
A public commenter who identified herself (referred to as Miss Moore in the meeting) urged the board not to target My Life Is a Diamond — a middle‑grade novel about a transgender youth — and said the book is appropriate for middle‑school readers. "As an advocate and ally, I feel confident in saying the experience portrayed is actually pretty true to life for many transgender individuals," the commenter said, urging the board to prioritize accurate verification of claims before resharing social-media posts and to avoid singling out minority children.
Director Leschell told the board the district has posted library inventories on the website in PDF form and that staff will bring a report listing books that are being pulled under state law and district policy. Leschell said the board would receive a list of titles subject to removal in a future report and that the process would be ongoing. No policy changes or votes on specific removals were taken at the meeting.
Provenance: Public comment was delivered during the statements-from-citizens portion (SEG 751–SEG 781 and SEG 792–SEG 809). The director's comments about library listing and book pulls were in the director's report (SEG 1543–SEG 1566).
