Students aren’t taking it quietly, either. Like their peers in Central York High School–a 40 minute drive south of Elizabethtown–students have been protesting the board’s censorship agenda. The protests began in the dead of winter, the weather far from amenable for being outside. But students showed up, their voices and beliefs in an education free from bias and far-right indoctrination more important than anything else.
Among the students who have been showing up is Kylee Wood. Rather than tell the story of Wood and her peers, Wood has offered her personal insights into the ongoing efforts to suppress student education by the school board. She’s also spoken with her fellow students, offering insight into what’s going on and the impact that censorship has on their right to education.
Kylee Wood is a high school junior at Elizabethtown Area High School in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. She is the co-founder of the EAHS Student Activism Collective. Her favorite book is Walden; or, Life in the Woods by Henry David Thoreau.
Literary Activism
News you can use plus tips and tools for the fight against censorship and other bookish activism!
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“I Cannot Let These Doctrines Be The Face of My Education”: Elizabethtown (PA) Students Protest Book Bans
As the book ban virus continues to spread its agenda-driven and harmful contagions, one thing becomes clear: we are in the midst of a censorship crisis that shows no signs of slowing. Falling prey to this harmful rhetoric is the most demeaning action a school board can take, and watching it happen as a student is deeply upsetting.
In October of 2025, the nine members of the Elizabethtown Area School District board in Pennsylvania unanimously voted to remove three books and one poem from the school’s curricula, citing their “mature themes” as reason for removal. These titles include The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls —for being “too troubling” to the young mind, as if the described trauma was some big and hairy monster to be hidden away—and Angie Thomas’ The Hate U Give. Several of these board members had not read a single chapter of either book, yet thought it urgent and obvious to remove them.
It was then up to the educators themselves to create entirely new—and at the same time board-appeasing—lessons for the unit they were to teach in mere months. It is clear to me that these removals aren’t about student safety or “parental rights,” (there was always an option for a parent to opt a student out), but about control. And what the board wants to control is the perspectives we hear: the voices of the oppressed, troubled, and underrepresented.
Months later, the English department presented five new options to the board, and all but two (Little Women and The Great Gatsby) were, again, unanimously voted down. Among the books denied for classroom study was Turtles All the Way Down by John Green—because the board found fault with the main character’s OCD.
John Green himself has recently commented on the matter:
I am deeply distressed to learn that in the Elizabethtown School District, my novel has been denied addition to curricula alongside such significant American novels as Jason Reynolds’ Long Way Down and Emily St. John Mandel’s Station Eleven.
Turtles All the Way Down is neither an obscene book nor a pornographic one. (Indeed, due to her pathological fear of microbes, the narrator is unable to kiss the boy she likes without experiencing panic attacks, which is about as unsexy as a novel can get.) What the book seeks to do is not titillate or offend readers but instead to humanize the experience of mental health disorders and destigmatize people who live with those disorders.
You can watch his entire comment here, as read by a student:
Moreover, it is my personal belief that the sole reason Little Women and The Great Gatsby didn’t join the ranks of removed books is because they are classics, automatically beyond scrutiny and “proven to be good.” To me, this is further proof of how little the board knows of education and literature. The themes worthy of condemnation in more modern titles were exactly what made their beloved classics so revolutionary. The classroom is exactly the place to explore these complex topics. If the board truly believes that sheltering us from them is the best way to teach, then that’s all the evidence I need to say that I do not trust them with my future.
In Elizabethtown, in that meetingroom, the board believes we are all conservative Christians that shy away from views that conflict with our politics. The board believes they are “experts” who can decide that a topic is too mature for a group of students they have never talked to. The board is filled with adults who deliberately make it so the first time children encounter violence or oppression or struggle is on the street and not in the pages of a book, where such topics can be discussed safely among peers and well-trained educators.
I cannot let these doctrines be the face of my education. The students cannot let these doctrines be the face of their education.
Since January 20, 2026, Elizabethtown Area High School students have been in front of the school in protest every week. We plan to be there until concessions are made. In addition to walk-in protests, student organizers meet with the student body monthly to discuss board impact and further action.
What The Students Have to Say
“Books can change lives. When the school board removes books that make them feel uncomfortable from the curriculum, they are restricting education on topics that some students otherwise would not be exposed to, especially when it comes to sexual assault and domestic violence. Though school board members deem these themes “depressing”, how else will we ensure that children will be equipped to deal with these extremely challenging situations? We cannot stop teaching about books that create an opportunity for students to learn about important real-life problems in a safe environment. Because otherwise, the first time they encounter these things will be when something happens to them or their loved ones.” – E, 15
“During meetings, board members have expressed concern over the books being too uncomfortable to read. When we confronted the board, we were told that the main issue was the profanity in the books. I think the real reason the school board is removing these books is because they do not want us to think critically about the power systems that benefit them as white, middle class citizens of a suburban town. They do not want us to read things that evoke negative emotions because they do not want us to question the morality of the people in power.” – E, 15
“I continue to protest because I know it is the only way to have hope. I’ve been to countless school board meetings where I’ve listened to adults say terrible, immoral things, and, to be transparent, dealing with the weight of their words makes it hard to have faith in the goodness of the future. Protesting is a way to reclaim control over my education and the education of students to come, and it also creates a positive environment for many different types of people, all standing up for good.” – E, 15
“They won’t stop at just books, they will try to control the whole curriculum and get rid of teaching kids facts, inserting their opinions instead of letting us form our own.” – C, 17
“As a future educator, I believe it is important to give teachers autonomy in curating their curricula…I don’t think it’s their place, as people who barely interact with the student body and will not be doing the teaching, to make that call one way or the other.”
“So much of our lives today revolve around social media. As such, for many students, reading in class is the only reading that they are doing. Students can access quite literally anything online, so, for more mature content (abuse, poverty, etc.), having a guided space to explore these themes and realities…is very important. Everyone should be able to see themselves in a book, which requires diverse stories and storylines.”
If you could tell the people in support of these book bans one thing, what would it be?
“Being against your child reading a certain book, and wanting to opt them out of that book, is absolutely valid. However, only a minority of parents do this. There are only about 1-2 students who are opted-out of curriculum every 4-5 years, and there are only about 35 students (in all of the district) that are in the opt-out program for library books.
If you are of the belief that the only reason more students aren’t opted out of these books is because their parents are unaware of what content the books contain, then a reasonable first step would maybe be to send a letter outlining the content in the book home. If, after this letter, there is an extremely large uptick in parents who opt-out, then perhaps a conversation about the books can be had. But, to remove these texts from the curriculum, when, as of now, there are hardly any students who actually opted out, it is unfairly restricting other students from texts simply because you deem them inappropriate for your student.”
“The things said about books today are the same things that were said about books 50 years ago. One school board member in our district was in support of the removal of The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls, but later spoke very highly of A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith. Both of these books follow a girl growing up in poverty who has a complicated relationship with her alcoholic father and is surrounded by infidelity and sexual assault, but overcomes it all to become a writer. What makes these two books different? In both, the mentions of sexual abuse are sparse and objective, not gratuitous in any way.
Books like The Great Gatsby, Catcher in the Rye, 1984, and other classics have a slew of references to alcohol and sexual activity, but they are considered classics, and therefore untouchable. This is because when people remember the books, they remember the themes and how they felt when they read it. They don’t remember any objectionable content. …Oftentimes, supporters of book removals will single out one paragraph or stanza as inappropriate without looking at it as part of a whole. Any book is misrepresented when only a portion of it is shown. My guess would be that the school board member noted above did not remember these instances of content in A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, which only emphasizes the point. These portions are necessary to the book, but they do not detract from the overall story. No one walks away from A Tree Grows in Brooklyn thinking ‘Wow, that was much too sexual’. Instead, they think, ‘Wow, what an amazing story of resilience.’ The theme of resilience cannot come across unless you acknowledge the obstacles a character is facing.” – Anonymous EAHS student
“It is awful to feel as if you have no agency. Removing books without consulting teachers or students, and, as was the case with most of the school board, without having read most of the books themselves, emphasizes that this was a political move rather than a practical one. I love Elizabethtown so much, and I would do anything to make everyone else feel the same way that I do about it, but that is never going to happen if we continue to be treated as an afterthought.”
“Books are bridges into those different perspectives, and help us to find empathy within ourselves, and help us to understand others.”
“Kids who might be struggling with mental health or who might be witnessing or hearing stories about abuse and police brutality need to know that their stories matter. If we take away books where the main character has severe mental health issues, these kids are going to think they are a problem and they have to hide who they are. Children who have gone through horrible and vial experiences, such as abuse or assaults of any kind, need to hear these stories and know that they are going to be ok. It is not their fault. Representation matters, and even for those students who are lucky enough to have not experienced any of these horrible situations, they need to know what is happening in the world and be aware of.” – L, 17
“These things are real. They are happening in real life. If we pretend they aren’t happening, we are lying. Kids who reach middle school and high school age need to know what is going on in the world. We cannot shield our children from things that are happening in their schools and in their towns and in their lives.” – L, 17
“I feel for…all these students whose education is impacted by these rash and ridiculous decisions. These students are not able to gain knowledge of the world’s issues. I am ashamed of my school board and I fear for my education.” – L, 17
“The narratives we see in the classroom are important because they give students the opportunity to see the world from different accounts and learn lessons through the experiences of others. Representation is important and shows students life outside of the small, rural, backwoods town we live in. Even if the board is afraid of it, the whole world isn’t exactly like our town, and students deserve to know that.” – D, 17
Our Voices Matter
We are not “contrarians” or “troublemakers,” just young people who believe that books should not be policed. When school boards deliberately dictate what students do or do not see, it sets a horrifying precedent of control and censorship. Politics should not jeopardize the quality of education, and class-defining changes should not be made on a whim.
A message to all students: keep showing up! If not for yourself, then for the students that come after you. Every act of resistance makes a difference. Change will come. People will notice, and there is always someone in your corner.
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Another group working on behalf of protecting access to literature and curriculum in EASD is Read For Liberty Pennsylvania. They, too, wanted to add a little bit to this story, especially when it comes to talking about the power of advocacy–even and especially when it feels like there are more setbacks than successes.
Resisting Censorship–and Supporting Students, Parents, and Educators–in Pennsylvania
There are many educators and library advocates that are in the students’ corner supporting student-led protests against censorship. Read for Liberty PA works with librarians, students, parents, and community members who need strategies to insure K12 students have access to relevant material. As educators and library advocates, we have watched proudly as students of Elizabethtown Area High School have stood in front of their school, protesting board policies, including the school board’s decision to budget $0 for new books in the high school/middle school library. Students in Elizabethtown and in other PA school districts are a powerful grassroots force that demonstrate the First Amendment rights we fight for by speaking at school board meetings in defense of books being removed from the library and school curriculum.
Pennsylvania has been on the frontlines of intellectual freedom battles in K12 schools since 2020 when school districts in our state started making national headlines. The first censorship attacks targeted school libraries. The Pennsylvania School Librarians Association (PSLA) quickly formed an Intellectual Freedom Task Group in 2021 and developed rapid response strategies to support the First Amendment rights of students in our school districts. Through a grant from the American Library Association in 2024, PSLA formed the Read for Liberty PA Intellectual Freedom Helpline and has been able to continue supporting all libraries battling censorship and supporting librarians through trained volunteers throughout Pennsylvania.
Beyond titles that are challenged, many school districts have approved or attempted to pass school library selection policies that restrict access, remove, and prevent acquisition of materials that would be relevant to our K12 students. They have also implemented Administrative Regulations or internal procedures that are not transparent to the community, that restrict access and acquisition, require unwarranted approval processes, add ratings to materials, and force titles off the shelves of the school library. Some battles are in the public eye, but too many are still happening behind closed doors where our librarians are forced to remain silent.
Fortunately, there are school districts where we’ve been able to push back successfully to insure best practice selection policies, school districts where bad policy has been reversed, and where we’ve been able to educate communities about the reality of censorship that is happening in their schools. However, with 500 school districts in our state, there are still many instances where students’ access to school library material has and continues to be restricted. Our biggest obstacle is where there are no certified school librarians employed by the district which currently stands at 59 in Pennsylvania. Additionally we struggle with ensuring that all those working in libraries know who we are, as well as when and how to contact us when intellectual freedom is threatened.
While the culture wars in Pennsylvania have been targeting curricular materials from the beginning, that battleground has recently seen an increase in our K12 schools. Read for Liberty PA stands with classroom teachers and educators as the professional experts to determine what material meets the curricular standards and will impact students in their journey to develop the skills and attributes to be successful academically and personally in work, career and military future.
“Intellectual Freedom will always be at the core of who we are as librarians, teachers, and educators,” says Cathi Fuhrman, Project Director for Read for Liberty PA. “Although there are some in power who want to restrict and control the ideas, information, and stories that our students have access to, there is an army of us who are ready to stand by you, stand with you, and lead the fight for the right to read.”
Any community member, parent, student, or librarian may contact Ready for Liberty PA for support: [email protected]. You can also submit censorship happening in the state alerts via this form. We are also partners with other organizations that support K12 students and libraries through the Pennsylvanians for Welcoming and Inclusive Schools (PA WInS), Authors Against Book Bans, FIRE, ALA Office of Intellectual Freedom, and the Penguin Random House Intellectual Freedom Task Force.
