Tennessee school district takes books off shelves, restricts others after special meeting

FRANKLIN, Tenn. — The Williamson County School Board held a special meeting Monday night to decide the fate of five books some deemed controversial or inappropriate for children.

This decision is necessary to comply with state law after the legislature passed a bill that says school systems need to review books like the ones below called into question.

The following books were removed:

• "Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close" by Jonathan Safran Foer
• "The Perks of Being a Wallflower" by Stephen Chbosky
• "Where the Crawdads Sing" by Delia Owens

The following book were restricted:

• "The Field Guide to the North American Teenager" by Ben Philippe - Accessible only to grades 11, 12
• "Speak" by Laurie Halse Anderson - Accessible only to high schoolers

John Watson took the podium during the public comment period speaking for the restrictions.

“The school library system is not a therapy session," Watson says. "We're here to teach and educate.

School board member Eric Welch argued some of the books in question aren't dangerous and actually support "the educational mission."