Book Bans ‘Coming At Us At An Unprecedented Rate’: Librarian

Good morning! It’s Tuesday, Nov. 16. Thanksgiving is a little more than a week away. Have you picked up a turkey yet? There are plenty of birds to go around, but supply chain issues mean it may be difficult to get turkeys on the Thanksgiving table.

Here are some of the other stories we’re following:

• Librarians in Virginia warn intellectual freedom is at risk if school districts continue to ban books.
• Six teenagers were shot Monday in Aurora, Colorado.
• The jury in the Kyle Rittenhouse murder trial heard closing arguments Monday.
• Attorneys for the two men accused of killing Ahmaud Arbery as he jogged through a Georgia neighborhood asked for a mistrial after the Rev. Jesse Jackson appeared in court with Arbery’s family.
• A California woman couldn’t make it to the hospital, and a Ring doorbell camera recorded her as she gave birth.

• In national news, Steve Bannon promised to fight the “misdemeanor from hell” after he made an initial appearance on criminal contempt charges.

Book Bans 'Unprecedented'

School boards in several states are yanking books with LGBTQ, gender or racial themes. In Virginia, that’s ringing alarm bells among librarians and anti-censorship groups.

The Virginia Library Association and the Virginia Association of School Librarians are partnering with the American Library Association's Office of Intellectual Freedom to address books being pulled from shelves.

For decades, parents and members of the public have challenged certain books in school and public libraries. But the current wave of calls for books to be removed is reaching new heights.

"They're coming at us at an unprecedented rate now," Virginia Library Association Executive Director Lisa Varga told Patch about the level of book removals. "We're here to protect the First Amendment rights of students and the public."

Of particular concern are statements by two members of the Spotsylvania County School Board who said books they disapprove of should be burned, "a statement more in keeping with the 1940s than the 2020s," the group wrote in the letter. » Librarians Warn Of Threat To Intellectual Freedom In Virginia Schools, via Falls Church, Virginia, Patch

6 Teens Hospitalized After Shooting

Six teenagers were hospitalized after they were shot Monday afternoon at Nome Park in Aurora, Colorado, police said.

The six victims — ages 14 through 18 — were all hospitalized with injuries that weren't life-threatening, Aurora Police Chief Vanessa Wilson said in a news conference. All six were Aurora Central High School students. » 6 Teenagers Shot In Aurora Park, via Denver Patch

Rittenhouse Trial Wrapping Up

The jury in the Kyle Rittenhouse murder trial in Kenosha, Wisconsin, heard final arguments from the prosecution and defense Monday. Rittenhouse, now 18, killed two men and wounded a third on Aug. 25, 2020, as protests and riots gripped Kenosha in the wake of a shooting by a white police officer of Jacob Blake, a Black man, that left him partially paralyzed.

The prosecution said Rittenhouse provoked bloodshed when he brought the semi-automatic rifle to a protest and walked away like a “hero in a Western” when the shooting stopped. Rittenhouse’s defense attorney said his client was ambushed by a “crazy person” who he feared would wrest his gun away and use it to kill him. » Rittenhouse Trial: Prosecution, Defense Give Closing Arguments, via Mount Pleasant-Sturtevant Wisconsin, Patch

Mistrial Request In Arbery Death Trial

Defense attorneys in the murder trial of three white men accused of killing Ahmaud Arbery requested a mistrial when civil rights leader the Rev. Jesse Jackson was seen in the courtroom Monday. The judge quickly rejected the request.

"There is no reason for these prominent icons in the civil rights movement to be here," defense attorney Kevin Gough said. "With all due respect, I would suggest, whether intended or not, that inevitably a juror is going to be influenced by their presence in the courtroom." » Attorneys For Men Accused Of Killing Ahmaud Arbery Want Mistrial After Jesse Jackson Shows Up, via Atlanta Patch

Baby Greets The World On Ring

Michael and Emily Johnson of Vacaville, California, realized they weren’t going to make it to the hospital when Emily went into labor last week. What they didn’t realize was that their son’s birth on the front lawn of the couple’s home would be recorded by their Ring security camera. » Ring Camera Captures Woman Giving Birth In The Front Yard, via San Francisco Patch

World Series Shortstop Dies

Former major leaguer Julio Lugo, best known for being the Red Sox starting shortstop on Boston's dominant 2007 World Series team, has died. His 46th birthday would have been Tuesday.

Family members told ESPN's Enrique Rojas he is believed to have died from a heart attack.

"The Red Sox mourn the loss of former shortstop and 2007 World Series Champion Julio Lugo," the team said Monday afternoon. "We send our thoughts and love to the Lugo family." » Julio Lugo, Former Red Sox World Series Shortstop, Dead At 45, via Boston Patch

Weird News — Snake Stowaway: Ahoy, mate. Yes, that was a 7-foot python that hitched a ride on a sailboat and traveled across south Florida, via Miami Patch.

Around ‘The Patch’

• Lasting Effects Of Segregation In NoVA Detailed, via Falls Church, Virginia, Patch
• Konkol Column: Ken Griffin Exposes Crack In Pritzker Campaign: Chicago Violence, via Chicago Patch
• Ohio Agency Sues Facebook, Claims Platform Harms Children, via Cleveland Patch
• Green Fireball Mystifies Scientists, via Jersey City, New Jersey, Patch
• Did You Feel It? Earthquake Reported, via Newport Beach, California, Patch
• Beto O’Rourke To Run For Texas Governor, via Austin, Texas, Patch
• Former Illinois CEO Gets Jail Time In Capitol Riot, via Arlington Heights, Illinois, Patch

National News

President Joe Biden signed his $1 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill into law Monday. He also ordered several Cabinet departments to work together to combat human trafficking and crime on Native lands, where violent crime rates are more than double the national average. And Steve Bannon made his initial appearance in court on criminal contempt charges, promising he will defend himself against the “misdemeanor from hell.”

Keep up with national news on Across America Patch

• U.S. Journalist Jailed In Myanmar For Nearly 6 Months Freed
• ‘Sesame Street’ Debuts 1st Asian American Muppet

Today In History

“The Sound of Music” made its Broadway debut on Nov. 16, 1959. The musical is loosely based on the 1949 biography of Maria von Trapp, a former nun who married Count Georg von Trapp and became stepmother to his large brood of children. The liberties taken in the script by writers Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse and composer and lyricist Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II did cause problems for Maria von Trapp and the real-life von Trapp family singers, via History.com.

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