What’s Happening
The Alberta government is reviewing school library content in Kindergarten to Grade 9 schools after receiving complaints about “graphic and age-inappropriate” material. Four books—Gender Queer, Fun Home, Blankets, and Flamer—have been publicly cited for their sexual content and LGBTQ+ themes.
While Education Minister Demetrios Nicolaides has stated that this is not a “book ban,” the province intends to implement province-wide standards that would limit which books can be included in school libraries.
A public survey is now open for feedback and will close on June 6, 2025.
Survey link: https://your.alberta.ca/school-library-materials/surveys/slme
Source: Calgary Herald, “‘Extremely graphic’ sexual content found in books at K-9 schools, province says,” May 26, 2025.
https://calgaryherald.com/news/local-news/extremely-graphic-sexual-content-found-in-books-at-k-9-schools-province-says
What the Government Is Doing
The provincial government has identified these four titles in 57 schools across Calgary and Edmonton. Minister Nicolaides announced the proposed policy changes at a press conference without prior consultation with school boards. In response, the Calgary Board of Education and Edmonton Public School Board temporarily removed the books for internal review but expressed concern over the lack of collaboration.
The government aims to introduce new selection standards for school library materials by September 2025. These changes apply to school libraries only and will not affect municipal public libraries.
How Book Challenges Are Handled in Canada
Canada does not engage in widespread book bans. Instead, concerns are addressed on a case-by-case basis. When a book is challenged, a committee or school board reviews it and may choose to retain, relocate, or remove it.
Several of the books identified by the Alberta government have already been challenged in Canadian libraries or schools and were not banned (source: Centre for Free Expression – Canadian Libraries Challenges Database: https://cfe.torontomu.ca/databases/canadian-library-challenges-database):
· Gender Queer has been challenged six times in Canada and retained in all cases.
· Blankets was challenged at the Edmonton Public Library in 2016 and subsequently relocated.
· Fun Home faced a challenge in British Columbia in 2023 and was retained.
· Flamer has not been challenged in Canada to date.
Why You Should Care
This is not just a debate about four books. It’s about whether the government should have the power to override educators, librarians, and communities when it comes to deciding what belongs in schools.
Allowing politicians to control school library content sets a harmful precedent for several reasons:
· It undermines educational autonomy: The government made this announcement without consulting educators or school boards. Centralized, top-down control over school materials risks turning education into a political tool.
· It removes decisions from experts: Educators, librarians, and child development professionals—not politicians—should determine what is age-appropriate and educationally valuable.
· It targets marginalized voices: The books singled out focus on LGBTQ+ themes. Removing them disproportionately affects queer youth who are already underrepresented in school materials.
· It avoids honest education: Avoiding complex topics does not equip students with critical thinking skills or resilience. School libraries are one of the few environments where students can explore such content with guidance and support.
· It reflects ideological, not pedagogical, motives: Book bans across North America often stem from religious or conservative ideologies rather than inclusive or evidence-based education policy.
· It silences affirming narratives: For many young people, particularly those exploring their identity, seeing themselves in literature can provide validation and reduce feelings of isolation.
· It ignores digital realities: With the internet at their fingertips, young people already access sensitive topics. School libraries provide context and support that the open web does not.
What You Can Do
The Alberta government has asked for public feedback. If you care about inclusive education, access to information, and resisting politicized censorship, now is the time to speak up.
Please complete the public survey by June 6, 2025:
https://your.alberta.ca/school-library-materials/surveys/slme
Suggested Responses to Open-Ended Survey Questions
If you’re unsure what to write, here is an example submitted by one of our board members:
Q4. What should “appropriate sexual content” mean in school libraries?
Standards should be clear, consistent, and focused on context—not ideology. What matters is whether the content is educational, age-appropriate, and inclusive—not whether it makes some people uncomfortable.
Q8. Do you support the Government of Alberta setting consistent requirements for school boards?
I do not support rigid, politically motivated rules. Decisions about books should be made by educators and communities. One-size-fits-all policies erode local autonomy and diversity in education.
Q13. Do you have anything else to say?
Censorship is not protection—it is control. If we begin removing books for difficult themes, then religious texts should be held to the same standard. Education should prepare students for reality, not protect them from it.