CALGARY—The Alberta government plans to develop guidelines for school library book selection after finding “sexually explicit” content in a number of K–12 libraries in Edmonton and Calgary.
The province made the announcement at a May 26 press conference, where Education Minister Demetrios Nicolaides said his ministry had identified several “inappropriate” books in kindergarten to Grade 12 school libraries containing graphic content on topics such as sexual activity, nudity, and molestation, after first hearing about them from concerned parents.
He said new guidelines will be created after receiving public input through an online survey, where Albertans can share what they believe is appropriate for school library collections. He added the province will also engage with school board trustees and other administrators to get their feedback on how to manage book selection.
“As a parent, it is extremely concerning to me to find out that books explicitly depicting sexual acts are available to students in some school libraries,” Nicolaides said.
“We are going to do something about this serious issue by consulting Albertans and creating standards to ensure students do not have access to age-inappropriate materials in school libraries.”
Other topics identified in the material deemed inappropriate by the province include profanity, self-harm, violence, and alcohol and drug use. Samples shared with the media and available through the public survey show explicit sexual content involving both heterosexual and same-sex couples, as well as references to sex between people with large age differences.
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While the province sets voluntary guidelines for teaching and learning materials, there is currently no province-wide standard for how school boards choose age-appropriate books for their libraries, the minister said. The new guidelines would apply only to school libraries, not to public ones.
Nicolaides said the idea to introduce new safeguards came after a group of parents raised concerns, providing excerpts from books with graphic content and evidence that those books were available in elementary school libraries. He said the ministry conducted a two-month review and confirmed the parents’ findings.
Some of the books identified as “inappropriate” by the province include “Gender Queer,” a graphic novel by Maia Kobabe; “Fun Home,” a graphic novel by Alison Bechdel; “Blankets,” a graphic novel by Craig Thompson; and “Flamer,” a graphic novel by Mike Curato.
These books were found in schools overseen by the Edmonton Public School Board and the Calgary Board of Education, according to the province.
In response, the two school boards issued a joint statement the same day, saying they were “deeply concerned” about the province’s “unilateral” announcement.
“Both our divisions follow established, rigorous processes to ensure that library resources are age-appropriate and relevant for students,” the statement reads. “We recognize that coming-of-age books, often available for students to choose independently, have historically been topics of discussion.”
They added they “remain committed to ensuring students have access to library resources that support their learning and development, while upholding community values and established protocols.”
The minister noted that some of the books identified by his ministry as inappropriate are considered by their authors as not suitable for children, and said the province will investigate how they ended up in school libraries.
“I want to get a little bit of a better understanding of how this occurred in the first place, and how these books ended up on school shelves,” he said.
“I don’t want to point fingers, I don’t want to cast aspersions or blame anyone—there’s clearly something with respect to process and procedure that has faltered here.”
When asked if the measures amounted to book bans, the minister said he does not have the authority to ban books, but that his ministry can develop policies related to education, and in this case, it will develop guidelines for schools to follow.
Asked what the province would do if any school refused to adopt the guidelines, he said the province will engage with institutions to address their concerns.
“I don’t think it should be a big problem to follow guidelines that broadly say ‘You can’t have graphic sexual images in elementary schools or in junior high schools,’” he said.
The online public survey will be open until June 6. The new guidelines should be implemented by school boards by the start of the 2025–26 school year, the province said.
