From the ACLU, this is at Liberty.

I'm Kendall Seasmeyer, your host.

Welcome back to At Liberty. We missed you so much in the month of August.

We're so happy to be back with you, and we're excited to bring

you some really important stories impacting students over the next few weeks. Back to school

season is upon us, and here at the ACLU, we've been following the nationwide campaign to

censor education. Be that the censorship of important historical and social context

in school curriculums, or the recent rise in book bans. All of these efforts threaten

students' right to learn. As we chart this issue, our eyes are squarely on Texas. The state

is banning more books than any other, eliminating libraries,

and through these decisions, targeting low-income students of color. This year, some students in the

Houston Independent School District, the largest district in the state of Texas, may be headed

to schools with no libraries or

librarians. In August, the state announced plans to convert libraries into disciplinary centers,

eliminating librarian positions at 28 elementary and middle schools. Another 57 schools are being assessed for the same outcome,

with the goal of, quote unquote, addressing low academic performance in certain schools.

This alarming change comes as part of a sweeping reform program led by the Houston

Independent School District's new superintendent Mike Miles and a new

state-imposed school board, both which replaced the district's formerly elected school board

and superintendent in the spring. They say cutback, we say fight back. Cutback, fight back. The idea of turning a library into a detention room is nuts.

And here's what I'd say, not only to the superintendent, to the board.

Would any of you put your children in a school that does not have a library?

...