Serving the community since 1903
VOLUME 121 | ISSUE 35
Americans are leery of book bans, survey says
WEEK OF AUGUST 29, 2024
TOURING DOWNTOWN BRIGHTON
Democratic candidates visit local businesses P5
But respondents don’t oppose all restrictions BY ERICA MELTZER CHALKBEAT COLORADO
A majority of Americans worry more about children losing access to books that could teach them something about the world than they do about children being exposed to potentially inappropriate material. And most trust teachers and school librarians to make good choices about the books they stock at school. But they also think age appropriateness is a legitimate reason to restrict book access, especially for elementary students. And there are big differences on the issue between liberals and conservatives, between LGBTQ adults and others, and between parents and non-parents. That’s all according to new polling from the Knight Foundation that examines public attitudes toward book restrictions in public schools. Knight talked to more than 4,500 adults, including 1,413 parents of children aged 18 or younger, and oversampled parents of color to better capture their perspectives. SEE BOOK BANS, P19
HIGH ALTITUDE, HIGH STAKES Mountain emergency response teams are on the scene P16
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