Methinks this lady has been out in the sun without a hat

[SeaCat]

So tell me what is wrong with this story?

Mom urges WPB school board to ban 80 books
By LAURA GREEN

Palm Beach Post Staff Writer

Tuesday, July 10, 2007

Eighty books in high school library stacks are corrupting students with tales of abortion, homosexuality and atheism. That's according to a West Palm Beach mother who has appealed to the school board to remove the books from the shelves of Dreyfoos and Royal Palm Beach high schools.

Laura Lopez has been fighting since September to ban these books that she says "promote sin and lies."

Committees at both schools have already shot down her request. So has Superintendent Art Johnson. On Wednesday, she will ask the full school board to intervene.

Palm Beach County School District staff can't recall any book challenges reaching the school board in at least seven years.

Lopez admits she hasn't read a single one of the objectionable books cover-to-cover.

In her appeal, she quotes scripture and blames the Columbine school shootings, drugs, bullies, teenage pregnancy and other ills on what she considers the removal of God from schools.

She targets literary genres ranging from reference books to short stories. Among the books she wants removed are "Medical Ethics: Moral and Legal Conflicts in Health Care," "Warriors of God: Richard the Lionhearted and Saladin in the Third Crusade," "Coping When a Parent is Gay" and "The Cider House Rules," a John Irving novel about a rural doctor who runs an orphanage and performs illegal abortions.

Lopez said the book challenges stemmed from a basic interest in the types of books in her sons' school libraries.

So, she went to the computerized card catalogue and typed in the keywords "homosexuality," "abortion" and "atheism." She was shocked by the dozens of titles that popped up.

"My kids are going to school to learn, not to become a homosexual or an abortion doctor or an atheist," she said.

Lopez requested a meeting with Royal Palm Beach High Principal Jose Garcia.

During the meeting, she didn't name any specific titles, but was generally concerned about the kinds of literature students were being exposed to in the school library, Garcia said.

He told her he couldn't simply pull books off the shelves based on her complaint.

Parents who want to challenge library books or classroom materials must file a written request for reconsideration with the school where the objectionable book, movie or other material was found. Then the principal convenes a committee of parents, students and staff members, which evaluates the objection, reads reviews from professional journals and consults school board policy.

In Lopez's case, committees at Dreyfoos and Royal Palm, where she two teenage sons attended, found no merit in her objections. They said she did not cite specific passages to which she objected, as required, and noted that board policy dictates that materials be chosen to represent "all points of views." Rather than referencing specific pages, Lopez included mostly general comments.

In her objection to "Am I Blue?: Coming out from the Silence," a collection of 18 short stories about gay and lesbian issues, Lopez wrote: "God made Adam and Eve, not Adam and Steve, and not Eve and Sue."

Lopez appealed the decisions of Garcia and Dreyfoos Principal Ellen Van Arsdale to Johnson. He sided with the principals.

Lopez said she doesn't know what her chances are before the school board.

Even within her own home, reaction is split.

"My oldest son doesn't believe in God," she said. "I guess he kind of thinks I'm stupid."

Cat

 

[Guest]

Even within her own home, reaction is split.

"My oldest son doesn't believe in God," she said. "I guess he kind of thinks I'm stupid."

Cat

Is he adopted?

 

[flavortang]

Oh geez, another one of those 'Holier than thou' nutjobs. It's a free country, bitch!

 

[LadynStFreknBed]

so, kids reading those books will become homosexual, atheist abortion doctors? LOL

 

[SeaCat]

The comment that really struck me as strange was how she said she had never read any of the books she wants banned.

Hmmmm, maybe she needs to learn to read? (Reading is bad. It leads to learning which leads to thinking.)

Cat

 

[Sean]

How did the eldest son turn out to be a reasonable human being with a bigoted nutjob for a mother?

 

[Bizkit_Writer]

what is she one of those bible thumping people? good grief! Its a whole other world lady get used to it!

 

[flavortang]

People like that don't want information to get out to the masses that opposes their way of thinking. They want conversion through tyranny and ignorance. They don't want their kids or anyone else's kids to actually choose their path, which to me is despicable. My wife takes our kids to church and they get exposed to all religions and lifestyles. If/when my kids choose a faith, it'll be chosen, not inherited like a lot of these nutjob PTA mothers want.

 

[CeriseNoire]

Ugh. That always drives me nuts. I've been working on which novels to teach my advanced and honors classes next year (the other classes aren't required to read full novels outside of Reading class), and I just kept thinking of all the objections that could come up, so it took me twice as long as planned to make a choice. I must have reread five or six classics this summer so that I could try to anticipate objections, and have my justifications ready. I'm sure I'll get phonecalls regardless

 

[Sean]

Ugh. That always drives me nuts. I've been working on which novels to teach my advanced and honors classes next year (the other classes aren't required to read full novels outside of Reading class), and I just kept thinking of all the objections that could come up, so it took me twice as long as planned to make a choice. I must have reread five or six classics this summer so that I could try to anticipate objections, and have my justifications ready. I'm sure I'll get phonecalls regardless

Set them Oranges Are Not The Only Fruit.I dare ya.

 

[CeriseNoire]

Set them Oranges Are Not The Only Fruit.I dare ya.

Will you be supporting me once I'm fired?

 

[MagicaPractica]

This all sounds so familiar.

 

[WRJames]

The saddest thing is that these "religious" principles don't even have much Biblical justification. Most "fundamentalists" have a completely warped notion of their own religious traditions. A few scattered verses have been taken out of context and used to create a theology of oppression. At least one of her children has some common sense. What scares me is the number of young people who are declaring themselves as social conservatives. It doesn't bode well.

 

[SeaCat]

I wonder how this woman would react if someone were to remove all books that mention religion in a positive note?

Cat

 

[flavortang]

I wonder how this woman would react if someone were to remove all books that mention religion in a positive note?

Cat

You don't hear all the atheists bitching about "too many Bibles!" in the school library. Although, I don't know if there are any in the school library. There should be, just like there should be a copy of every religious text available to students. And why was the mother bitching about "...wanting my kids in school to learn..." when she's referring to God? Does she expect all the professor to preach and proselytize all day? Gimme a break. Why doesn't she just enroll them in a Christian school where all they do is preach and Bible-thump. Geez.

Either that or they should have all public schools start having daily sermons about every religious deity in existence, just so they don't offend anyone of a particular religious faith. Yeah, that'd help. "Excuse me, Ms. Gardner, I need to take a break to give my daily thanks to Ra, the Sun God."

 

[TheeGoatPig]

You don't hear all the atheists bitching about "too many Bibles!" in the school library.

I have actually.

 

[flavortang]

I have actually.

Then they're wrong, too. Freedom of religion, people!

 

[CeriseNoire]

I wonder how this woman would react if someone were to remove all books that mention religion in a positive note?

Cat

There are nutjobs on both sides. I've also gotten complaints from parents because we read passages from "A Christmas Carrol"

 

[Vermilion]

She targets literary genres ranging from reference books to short stories. Among the books she wants removed are "Medical Ethics: Moral and Legal Conflicts in Health Care," "Warriors of God: Richard the Lionhearted and Saladin in the Third Crusade," "Coping When a Parent is Gay" and "The Cider House Rules," a John Irving novel about a rural doctor who runs an orphanage and performs illegal abortions.

L

Warriors of God? You'd think she'd be *happy* about that one. It's how powerful men justified a crusade into another country, destroying and pillaging all in the name of religion and morality...Gee, that sounds familiar...

Bloody idiot woman. How can she expect anyone to take her seriously if she doesn't even put the work in so she at least *sounds* like she knows what she's talking about!

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[slyc_willie]

Strangely enough, I can see Ms. Lopez' side of things. I don't agree with it, mind you, but I understand it.

Here is a frightened woman, apparently divorced, or perhaps never married. I am inferring that from the article, but I doubt I am wrong. She comes from a strong, conservative religious background, one which compels her to view homosexuality, birth control, abortion, casual sex, et al, as evil.

She wants to protect her child, or children, according to the rules and ways she was brought up to believe. Like so many Americans, she has latched on to a singular, stringent code of behavior, mode, and thought that she feels is right. And what she believes precludes the existence of homosexuals, abortion, and anything that does not conform to a limited, narrow interpretation of biblical values.

We shouldn't really be surprised that people like this exist; after all, they are around us in the millions. We shouldn't attack this woman for her beliefs, we should rather pity her and try to help her understand that there are many ways to view things. She is not the only voice in the universe.

Similarly, we should praise her son for his ability to think for himself, while simultaneously coaching him against acting out against his narrow-minded mother.

With time, perhaps they could both help each other . . . .

 

[Liar]

Then they're wrong, too. Freedom of religion, people!

Depends on how many bibles v other scripture there are. If the school is public it shouldn't promote one religion over other.

 

[flavortang]

Depends on how many bibles v other scripture there are. If the school is public it shouldn't promote one religion over other.

Definitely agree on that one.

 

[rgraham666]

I agree with slyc. The woman's acting out her fear in public.

My biggest problem if faced with her would be not laughing.

 

[WRJames]

Okay -- let me play devil's advocate for a moment. Do you think high school students should have access to pornography in the schools? Visual pornography is probably illegal for people under eighteen, so let's limit ourselves to "literary erotica".

What about middle school students?


Elementary?

What kind? Would you exclude any subgenre (Forced/Nonconsent, BDSM)?

 

[Vermilion]

Okay -- let me play devil's advocate for a moment. Do you think high school students should have access to pornography in the schools? Visual pornography is probably illegal for people under eighteen, so let's limit ourselves to "literary erotica".

What about middle school students?


Elementary?

What kind? Would you exclude any subgenre (Forced/Nonconsent, BDSM)?

No way!

Half the fun of being a kid/teenager is hunting out 'dirty' bits in supposedly innocent literature, you'd be depriving all those kids of the delights in sniggering over really quite innocent things in books

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