Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

Utah Parent Challenges Bible As 'Pornographic' Under State's New Book Ban Law

Different Bibles on a bookshelf
Lincoln Rogers/Getty Images

Utah's Republican leaders passed a bill in 2022 allowing the removal of 'pornographic or indecent' material from school libraries and classrooms.

A Utah parent has submitted a request to the Davis County School District to review the Bible for any inappropriate content, citing concerns over its "pornographic" nature.

The request comes amid outcry from conservative parents' groups pushing to have titles removed from Utah schools that contain "pornographic or indecent" content, in accordance with a law passed by the Utah legislature in 2022.


The parent's request cites various topics contained within the religious text that would typically run afoul of the GOP law, including incest, bestiality, prostitution, genital mutilation, fellatio, dildos, rape, and even infanticide. They argue that the Bible, according to Utah Code Ann. § 76-10-1227, has "no serious values for minors" because of this content.

The district spokesperson, Christopher Williams, stated that the challenge has been given to a committee to review, but due to a backlog as more parents have been questioning books, the process typically takes 60 days. According to a copy of the request obtained by The Salt Lake Tribune, the parent submitted their challenge on December 11, 2022.

The parent's request specifically targets Davis High School and demands the removal of the book from shelves.

They point to the actions of Utah Parents United, a right-leaning group that has been leading the efforts to challenge books deemed inappropriate. However, opponents have argued that this effort steps on First Amendment rights and limits students' access to diverse viewpoints.

Many applauded the parent's move.




Utah Republican state Representative Ken Ivory, who sponsored the bill to remove pornographic books from school libraries, called the request to pull the Bible "antics that drain school resources."

Ivory argued that the purpose of the bill was not to ban books but to limit access to age-inappropriate materials for children in schools. He added that parents could still purchase banned books on Amazon or at a bookstore or even check them out at a public library.

In response to the request, Utah Parents United stated that they "believe in following the law" and that they are not challenging books based on race or LGBTQ+ relationships. However, they have repeatedly targeted the same titles in school districts across the state, including The Bluest Eye by Nobel Prize winner Toni Morrison and Gender Queer, a graphic novel about the author's journey of self-identity.

The Bible is undoubtedly one of the most widely read books in the world, and its inclusion in school libraries is a long-standing tradition. While the parent's concerns about its content are valid, it remains to be seen whether the committee will agree with the request to remove it from the shelves of Davis High School.

More from Trending

Alex Cooper singing 'Take Me Out to the Ballgame'
@MBDChicago/Twitter (X)

'Call Her Daddy' Host Alex Cooper Gets Brutally Booed At Wrigley Field After Painfully Off-Key Singing

If there's one thing that all baseball fans can come together about, it's the importance of their traditions—and songs.

In the seventh inning at Wrigley Field during a match between the Cubs and the Cardinals, popular Call Her Daddy podcast host Alex Cooper was invited to sing "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" and brought two backup dancers with her.

Keep ReadingShow less
Linda Yaccarino
Patrick T. Fallon/AFP via Getty Images

X CEO Resigns Day After AI Chatbot Grok Praised Hitler In Alarming Series Of Antisemitic Tweets

Linda Yaccarino—the former NBC Universal executive who later took the reins at X—stepped down as CEO of billionaire Elon Musk's platform after two years on the job just a day after Grok, the platform's AI chatbot, went on antisemitic rants and openly praised Adolf Hitler.

Grok issued deeply antisemitic responses on Tuesday following a reported software update that encouraged the bot to embrace what developers described as the “politically incorrect.” Taking that directive to heart, Grok responded with a series of disturbing posts that included praise for Hitler and even a statement expressing its aspiration to become a “digital version” of the Nazi leader.

Keep ReadingShow less
Black and white photo of a falling spider.
Photo by CHUTTERSNAP on Unsplash

People Divulge Their 'Rare' Phobias That People Refuse To Believe

I am a SEVERE claustrophobic.

I have struggled with this issue for decades.

Keep ReadingShow less
Ted Cruz
Kayla Bartkowski/Getty Images

'The Onion' Rips Ted Cruz With Brutal Headline After Yet Another Vacation During Texas Disaster

The satirical news site The Onion had social media users cackling with its brutal headline mocking Texas Republican Senator Ted Cruz for once again being out of the country when Texas was hit by another deadly natural disaster.

Cruz faced considerable national backlash after he flew to Cancún while millions of people went without food and water as a result of the February 2021 Texas power disaster. At least 246 people were killed directly or indirectly; some estimates suggested as many as 702 people were killed as a result of the crisis.

Keep ReadingShow less
Elon Musk and Grimes
Kevin Tachman/Getty Images for Vogue

Elon Musk's Ex Grimes Calls X Platform A 'Poison' And 'Theatre' After Social Media Hiatus

Claire Boucher—who performs and creates under her stage name Grimes, but prefers her birth name or just "C" offstage—recently returned to her musical persona's social media accounts after taking a hiatus for her own well-being.

Once extremely active, she noted on X in April:

Keep ReadingShow less