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After Bible ban, Utah school district weighs ban on Book of Mormon

Jun 05, 2023

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A school district in Utah that opted to pull the Bible from elementary and middle school libraries is now considering whether to ban the Book of Mormon. The text is considered sacred to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the largest religious group in the state.

In May, a Davis School District committee deemed the Bible to be age-inappropriate “due vulgarity or violence.” One parent cited over 60 Bible passages as offensive in their complaint, according to Axios.

Despite the new restrictions, the Bible will remain available in the district’s high schools. However, the Book of Mormon is now set to go under review.

These developments come in the wake of a law passed last year in Utah. It allows parents to request the removal of books from schools if they contain “pornographic or indecent material.”

While the district’s ruling determined that the Bible’s content does not violate that 2022 law, Fox reported that within the first five months of the law being in place, parents filed over 250 complaints petitioning for certain books to be removed from schools.

The recent petition to remove the Bible is being viewed by some as a countermove to recent conservative efforts to remove LGBTQ-themed books and books deemed explicit in schools across the country.

According to literary nonprofit PEN America, book bans have been most prevalent in states like Texas, Florida, Missouri and South Carolina. The organization reports book bans in public schools kept rising during the first half of the 2022-23 school year, and nearly a third of them were the direct result of newly-enacted state laws.

An analysis by The Washington Post revealed that sexual content emerged as a top concern behind recent book challenges, with 61% of challenges referencing this issue. Other concerns raised by parents include drugs, inappropriate language and pornographic content.

43% of the filings targeted titles with LGBTQ characters or themes, while 36% targeted titles featuring characters of color or dealing with issues of race and racism, per the Post.

Last year, a Texas school district removed the Bible from library shelves after facing challenges from parents and community members. Similarly, students in Kansas last month requested to have the Bible removed from their school library, seemingly in retaliation over conservatives efforts targeting books.

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A SCHOOL DISTRICT IN UTAH THAT OPTED TO PULL THE BIBLE FROM ELEMENTARY AND MIDDLE SCHOOL LIBRARIES IS NOW CONSIDERING WHETHER TO BAN THE BOOK OF MORMON – A TEXT SACRED TO THE LARGEST RELIGIOUS GROUP IN THE STATE

 

A SCHOOL COMMITTEE DEEMED THE BIBLE AGE INAPPROPRIATE LAST MONTH BECAUSE THEY SAID IT CONTAINED VULGAR LANGUAGE OR VIOLENCE. ONE PARENT CITED OVER 60 BIBLE PASSAGES DEEMED OFFENSIVE IN THEIR COMPLAINT, ACCORDING TO AXIOS

 

DESPITE THE NEW RESTRICTIONS, THE BIBLE WILL REMAIN AVAILABLE IN THE DISTRICT’S HIGH SCHOOLS. MEANWHILE, THE BOOK OF MORMON IS CURRENTLY UNDER REVIEW

 

ALL OF THIS COMES AFTER LAWMAKERS IN UTAH PASSED A LAW LAST YEAR THAT ALLOWS PARENTS TO REQUEST THE REMOVAL OF BOOKS FROM SCHOOLS IF THEY CONTAIN PORNOGRAPHIC OR INDECENT MATERIAL. FOX REPORTS THAT SINCE THE LAW WAS PASSED, MORE THAN 250 COMPLAINTS HAVE BEEN FILED IN UTAH ALONE

 

AND IT’S NOT JUST UTAH – ACCORDING TO PEN AMERICA, BOOK BANS HAVE BEEN MOST PREVALENT IN STATES LIKE TEXAS, FLORIDA, MISSOURI, AND SOUTH CAROLINA. THE ORGANIZATION REPORTS THAT ABOUT A THIRD OF RECENT BANS WERE A RESULT OF NEW STATE LAWS

 

A WASHINGTON POST ANALYSIS FOUND THAT SEXUAL CONTENT WAS A TOP REASON FOR RECENT BOOK CHALLENGES, WITH 61% REFERENCING THIS CONCERN. DRUGS, INAPPROPRIATE LANGUAGE, AND PORNOGRAPHIC CONTENT WERE ALSO CITED AMONG PARENTS’ TOP CONCERNS

 

THIS LATEST PETITION TO REMOVE THE BIBLE IS BEING VIEWED AS A COUNTERPUNCH TO SOME OF THOSE OFTEN CONSERVATIVE EFFORTS TO REMOVE BOOKS DEEMED INAPPROPRIATE, WITH SOME ON THE LEFT LOOKING TO DRAW A SIMILARITY

 

LAST YEAR, A TEXAS SCHOOL DISTRICT PULLED THE BIBLE FROM LIBRARY SHELVES AFTER THEY WERE CHALLENGED BY PARENTS AND COMMUNITY MEMBERS… MEANWHILE A KANSAS SCHOOL DISTRICT WILL REVIEW THE BIBLE AFTER STUDENTS IN KANSAS REQUESTED TO HAVE IT REMOVED IN RETALIATION