Organization Says It is Unaware of Any Other District Solely Relying on BookLooks.org, Saying it is Like Having ‘a Fox Rule a Chicken Coop’
(NEW YORK)— PEN America today called on a Minnesota public school district to reverse its decision to rely primarily on a website that scans books for “objectionable content” for its book purchasing and challenge policy— a move its own attorney advised against. The free expression organization said this unprecedented step was akin to having “a fox rule a chicken coop.”
Last November, the St. Francis Area Schools Board of Education voted to change its library policy (ISD Policy 606.5 regarding Library Materials) to use the website, BookLooks.org, for purchasing books for libraries and classrooms and as the first resource for resolving book challenges. This decision replaces the librarians and educators who are trained to apply professional expertise, skills, and standards to book selection for the district’s schools with a website whose main purpose is to flag so-called objectionable content in books.
PEN America’s Freedom to Read Director Kasey Meehan said: “School districts rely on trained professionals to make determinations about the books available in their libraries for a reason: because they value intellectual freedom, the pedagogic value of diverse stories, and the expertise concerning what makes books relevant and educational for students. Supplanting this expertise with a website for “concerned parents” that reflects the subjective opinions of private individuals is a sure recipe to limit the range of books and topics that students can access, as they will be effectively put through a narrow ideological litmus test. This will serve the cause of censorship, not the district’s students and families.”
The website, BookLooks.org, was created in 2022 by a former member of Moms for Liberty, a group which has mobilized its members to challenge books nationwide, though the site disclaims any ongoing relationship with that group. Although the website states it does not support “banning books,” it selectively flags content in books its creators deem objectionable, announcing itself as a resource to “find out what objectionable content may be in your child’s book before they do.” The website offers a subjective rating from 0 to 5 for “objectionable” content, paired with selected quotes from texts without any context, flagging content such as violence, profanity, gender identity and sexual orientation, nudity and sexual content, and “inflammatory” commentary regarding race. The website includes neither synopses of titles nor professional reviews or awards, and it does not review books holistically in a manner consistent with the Miller Test, the primary legal test for whether a written or spoken expression constitutes obscenity.
Against the advice of its counsel, the St. Francis Area Schools Board of Education adopted a provision (Item V Section A7) that requires the use of Book Looks for library purchases. “Before any book is purchased for ISD15 libraries (including classroom libraries), the book must be looked up in Book Looks and if listed, have a rating of 0-2 only. No books which are rated 3 … 4 … or 5 may be purchased by any district employee.” The policy also states that any challenged titles with BookLooks.org ratings of 3, 4, and 5 must be automatically removed from the library or classroom library (Item VII Section D1).”
Meehan stated: “This decision is akin to having a fox rule over a chicken coop. We strongly urge the St. Francis Area Schools Board of Education to rescind these harmful policy revisions. PEN America has not yet seen any school district take this unprecedented and damaging step with their book purchase and review policies – we hope St. Francis won’t be the first.”
Since 2021 PEN America has documented the rise of book bans in public schools nationwide, reporting more than 15,000 instances of school book bans, an increase in school book censorship not seen since the Red Scare era of the 1950s.
About PEN America
PEN America stands at the intersection of literature and human rights to protect free expression in the United States and worldwide. We champion the freedom to write, recognizing the power of the word to transform the world. Our mission is to unite writers and their allies to celebrate creative expression and defend the liberties that make it possible. Learn more at pen.org.
Contact: Suzanne Trimel, [email protected], (201) 247-5057