Another Rushed, Perfunctory Book Ban Meeting

Committee members and staff are not required to read the books before banning them.

Correction: This piece originally stated that Superintendent Ellen Weaver spoke to the Post and Courier about book bans. In fact, Weaver was speaking at a meeting of the Steel Magnolias Republican women’s group.

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Thank you, perfect timing.

-Instructional Materials Review Committee Chair Christian Hanley

Yesterday, South Carolina’s Instructional Materials Review Committee met for the first time since committee member Cheryl Collier’s op-ed complaining about the negative publicity created by its book removals. (Perhaps this was part of a larger PR strategy; Superintendent of Ellen Weaver was quoted in an article in the Post and Courier this week, where she responded to a question about book bans while speaking at a Republican women’s group. She also, as the headline put it, “bristled” at her book removals being compared to those of the Nazi Party during World War II.)

But, given the opportunity to explain their think…