'Girls Who Code' book series temporarily banned in Pennsylvania school district

The Girls Who Code book series was temporarily banned by a school district.

Four books from the Global Women's Center, a national non-profit organization working to close the gender gap in tech, were included in an index of banned books compiled by the organisation.

The Girls Who Code is a group of girls who are interested in coding. According to reports, all four titles were banned from classrooms.

Girls Who Code founder Reshma Saujani, Stacia Deutsch, and Jo Whittemore were among those condemning the ban.

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"To say that I find this unnerving would be an understatement," wrote the man in a statement. Our books have stood the test of time because we always said that you can't be what you can't see. We work to help young people who haven't imagined themselves in a career in science, technology, engineering and mathematics to use coding to help themselves and their communities.

Dr. Tarika Barrett, CEO of Girls Who Code, with college students. Credit: Girls Who Code

"Banning our books, and any of the 1,651 titles that have been banned so far this year, is a blow to any efforts to build a more equitable world." You don't belong here, that's what it says to our students. Representation doesn't matter. It doesn't matter what you know. The status quo is the best way to go about it. Don't get on the boat.

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The Girls Who Code books were banned for a period of 10 months. The Central York School District denied that the books had been banned. The series was removed from the Central York School District in November of 2020 but was restored by the Board of Directors the same month.

The Girls Who Code middle-grade book series was banned by some school districts as part of the Mom's for Liberty effort to ban books. I can't breathe because I'm so angry.

There is a group called Moms for Liberty, founded in Florida, who have launched a series of powerful efforts to ban certain books and learning resources. They are a force in the fight against books.

The Central York school district came under scrutiny for its attempts to ban hundreds of books in its classrooms. A documentary film about writer James Baldwin was one of the banned titles. The ban was reversed by a group of people.

According to Pen America's research, 41 percent of banned books in America have lesbian, gay, bisexual, and queer themes. The majority of central characters are people of color. Issues of race and racism are dealt with by 21 percent of the population.

It is the books that have fought for a place on the shelf that are being targeted.

The movement to ban books is on the rise in America. A total of 136 school districts in 32 states were banned from July to June of this year. There is a need to preserve both literature and academic spaces.

Some are fighting. Banned books can be read for free here.