Beaufort, South Carolina, schools return most books to shelves after attempt to ban 97

[riversedge]

Moms of Liberty were involved-as you might have guessed.
It is long article but instructive.

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Beaufort, South Carolina, schools return most books to shelves after attempt to ban 97
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/beaufort-south-carolina-schools-return-most-books-to-shelves-after-attempt-to-ban-97-60-minutes-transcript/

By Scott Pelley March 3, 2024 / 7:00 PM EST

With election season upon us, the forces of politics are pulling us apart and among the sharpest battles recently is a campaign to ban certain books from public schools. There were more than 3,000 book bans in schools last year, a thousand more than the year before. That rise is inspired, in part, by Moms for Liberty—a Florida-based conservative group that says it is fighting for the survival of America. You might expect a sympathetic ear in Beaufort, South Carolina. The county votes Republican and is home to many veterans who did fight for America. But when two people demanded the banning of 97 books, Beaufort found itself in a battle over the true meaning of liberty.

Beaufort has a history in literature and learning. It's the hometown of the late novelist Pat Conroy, Prince of Tides, and in 1862 it opened among the first schools in the South for former slaves. Today, Beaufort County has 21,000 students and Dick Geier is vice chair of the school board.


..........................Karen Gareis: From someone outside looking in, it's almost obvious that most of the books hadn't been read prior to being challenged, that some other source was used to gather these things together. So when that happened, I was like, "OK." I knew we were in for a rough road.

That road began here, a book review website called BookLooks--founded two years ago by a Florida nurse. She declined an interview but told us her book reviews are written by volunteers using BookLooks' own standards. And this is where Beaufort's experience becomes a national story. Across the country, book bans are being demanded based on BookLooks' amateur, volunteer, reviews, often in the hands of Moms for Liberty.
...............

Tiffany Justice: Parents send their children to school to be educated, not indoctrinated into ideology.

Scott Pelley: What ideology are they being indoctrinated into?

Tina Descovich: Let's just say children in America cannot read.

They often dodged questions with talking points.

Scott Pelley: You're being evasive.