SC school board rejects challenge to graphic novel about addiction. What to know
A South Carolina school board narrowly voted to keep a graphic novel about a family’s struggle with substance abuse on elementary school library shelves. The decision came after a parent challenged the book following her third-grader’s check-out.
FULL STORY: Graphic novel on drug addiction survives SC school district challenge
Here are key takeaways:
• The Lexington-Richland 5 school board voted 4-3 Monday night to keep “Sunny Side Up” unrestricted in district libraries, rejecting a parent’s request to limit access by grade level and require parental permission for checkout.
• The challenge was filed after a mother’s third-grade daughter checked the book out from Piney Woods Elementary School. The mother objected to substance abuse references, characters drinking and smoking and a scene where one character hits another.
• “Sunny Side Up,” written by Jennifer Holm with illustrations by Matthew Holm, follows a girl named Sunny who is sent to live with her grandfather in Florida while her family deals with her brother’s substance abuse.
• Board member Kevin Scully, who voted to keep the book unrestricted, said he saw himself in the story. “For children like me, who were exposed to it very early, this type of book shows you that you’re not alone,” he said. Board member Catherine Huddle, who voted to restrict access, cited Motion Picture Association guidelines that place drug use content at PG-13 and above.
• The same district previously removed “A Court of Thorns and Roses” after a parent challenged sexual content. Last year, the Chapin-Irmo area district removed and then returned a picture book biography of Billie Jean King, while neighboring Lexington 1 rejected an attempt to ban “The Hunger Games.”
The summary points above were compiled with the help of AI tools and edited by journalists. The full story in the link at top was reported, written and edited entirely by journalists.
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