Over the past year, book challenges and bans have reached levels not seen in decades, according to officials at the American Library Association and the National Coalition Against Censorship.
Until a year ago, Stephana Ferrell’s political activism was limited to the occasional letter to elected officials. Then came her local school board meeting in Orange County, Florida and an objection raised to Maia Kobabe’s graphic novel “Gender Queer: A Memoir.” And the county’s decision last fall to remove it from high school shelves. “By…