Virginia state delegate Tim Anderson and congressional candidate Tommy Altman have succeeded in banning books from various Virginia School Districts and are now targeting Virginia state libraries, other school districts, independent bookstores, and all Virginia citizens with the goal to make certain books (namely Gender Queer and A Court of Mist and Fury) illegal for anyone to sell or own in the state of Virginia. This is clearly book banning and censorship and is a violation of our First Amendment rights. Please help us protect our right to free speech and the right to read by signing this petition and contacting your representatives.

This petition calls on the State of Virginia to ensure that book banning is not allowed and all previous book bans be overturned. The code § 18.2-384 allows for censorship and should be removed from state law.

The books under fire as of 5/26/2022 include Gender Queer by Maia Kobabe and A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Maas, however, Tommy Altman has stated that this is just the beginning; that there are hundreds of other books that they plan to challenge in the future. Book banning and censorship are a slippery slope and banning one or two books opens the door for any book, or all books, to be banned. It would set the precedent for whoever is in power (Democrat, Republican, or otherwise) to decide what citizens are allowed to read. That means that any book could come under fire at any time.

Parents always have, and always will, have the right to decide whether a book is appropriate for their child. Even in school curriculums, teachers offer alternative reading if a parent decides that a certain book is inappropriate for their child. This is not about parental rights. Parents already have and will continue to have full rights to decide what their children read. And the fact that private bookstores and public libraries are now being targeted is proof that this goes beyond what is available to children. This is about censorship, plain and simple.

In other states, librarians and teachers have been arrested and/or charged for carrying certain books in libraries or teaching certain books as part of their curriculum. And there are already reports of Virginia librarians being targeted. 

Nobody should be able to tell you how to think, what to read, or what is appropriate or inappropriate for you or your children. Don't let congressional representatives, candidates, and our state government tell you what books you can and cannot read either! This is government overreach. This is censorship. And this is not okay. We the people have the freedom to read. 

Libraries and bookstores carry a wide range of reading materials that reflect the diverse lives and experiences of Americans. If one person finds a book to be inappropriate, they have the opportunity to choose a different book from the millions available through our nation's public libraries and bookstores. Other people may have a different opinion regarding what is appropriate for themselves and their families and they have the right to choose different reading material. But no level of government should dictate or censor the reading materials available to citizens.