A school board whose members last week proposed publicly burning books is getting a fierce backlash from local parents and librarians.
Two members of the Spotsylvania County School Board last week proposed burning books that the board had just unanimously voted to ban from high school libraries, on the grounds that parents should see that their children are being protected from supposedly damaging reading materials
But as Fredericksburg Free Lance-Star reporter Adele Uphaus-Conner writes, many parents and librarians came out to challenge the board’s policies during a contentious meeting on Monday.
According to Uphaus-Conner, one librarian slammed the board’s decision to remove the books as symbolic of having weak and insecure intellects.
“If you have a worldview that can be undone by a novel, let me suggest that the problem is not the novel,” the librarian said.
One parent at the meeting singled out board member Rabih Abuismail for criticism, as he was the first member of the board to propose burning the books instead of merely banning them.
“[Your behavior] is the most egregious example of unprofessionalism I have ever witnessed,” the parent said, according to Uphaus-Conner. “The only course of action I see fit for you is a formal public apology to all the librarians in this county and for you to submit your resignation from the school board.
Another librarian in the county also singled out Abuismail for criticism and told him that “you have labeled books you have no knowledge of and placed shame upon them.”