the claim: the image shows a list of books that are prohibited in Florida schools and libraries
In July, a new Florida law went into effect that allows parents to register concerns about books taught in schools and petition local districts to ban them.
However, many prominent people on social media have claimed that the law immediately banned a large number of books from schools and libraries across the state. They have circulated an image of 25 book titles numbered on a sheet of paper.
You are reading: Banned books in florida
The book list includes novels that have been taught in schools for generations, such as “To Kill a Mockingbird,” “The Catcher in the Rye,” and “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings.” also includes the harry potter series and the biblical song of solomon.
The image of the banned books list was shared by American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten and Star Wars actor Mark Hamill on August 1. 21 and 22. Hamill’s tweet has racked up over 30,000 retweets and 150,000 likes.
Aug. 21 facebook posts with the book list image have been shared 80 times. Post reads: “Florida Current Banned Books List. tragic how many third world totalitarian states exist in the us uu. in 2022.”
but the list is a fiction.
While school districts can ban books through a process created by the new law, Florida has not banned any books statewide, a government spokesman said. ron desantis told united states today.
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In fact, the state department of education has recommended several jobs on the list to school districts.
weingarten corrected and deleted his tweet several hours after posting it. Many other publications with the list, such as Hamill’s, have remained online.
usa today also contacted hamill and another user who shared the post for comment.
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No state-level book bans in Florida
hb1467, an education bill, passed the state legislature earlier this year and desantis signed it into law. allows parents to review and challenge all instructional materials, including books. The law also establishes term limits for school board members, creates school materials selection requirements, and requires districts to hold meetings related to instructional materials in public.
Florida does not issue state bans on specific books, bryan griffin, press secretary for desantis, told usa today in an email. Instead, under the new law, “the state sets guidelines regarding content, and local school districts are responsible for enforcing them,” he said.
these content guidelines require specialists to review reading materials and prohibit reading materials that are “inappropriate for the grade level and age group for which the material is used” or that contain “pornographic content “.
Claims that the books shown in the image are banned in Florida are false, Griffin said.
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“the image is fake, from what I see this is just a completely fictitious list,” he said.
usa today also found no credible source for the list.
In addition, at least five of the books on the list are endorsed as exemplars of a “rich literary tradition” in a guide to the current state educational standards for English language arts, including “to kill a mockingbird” , “1984, “of mice and men”, “the call of the wild” and “lord of the flies”, as griffin noted.
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our rating: false
Based on our research, we rate the claim that an image shows a list of books that are banned from Florida schools and libraries as false. Florida has not issued any statewide book bans, a Desantis spokesperson told USA today. In addition, several jobs on the list have been recommended by the Florida Department of Education in a guide for educators.
our fact checking sources:
- associated press, Aug. 22, florida didn’t ban ‘kill a mockingbird,’ as bogus listing suggests
- bryan griffin, aug. 23, email exchange with us. uu. today
- randi weingarten, aug. 24, statement by email to us. uu. Today
- Florida Department of Education, accessed August 10. 23, Better Standards: English Language Arts
- Florida State Legislature, accessed Aug. 24, Florida Statute 1006.28: Early Learning – Education Code 20
- Florida Senate, accessed Aug. 17, 2022 bill summaries – cs/hb 1467 — k-12 education
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