Banned book lesson thrusts Oklahoma teacher into campaign

Former Norman High School English teacher Summer Boismier holds up a T-shirt with a QR code link to the Brooklyn Public Library at the Green Feather Book Company in Norman, Okla., on Oct. 6, 2022. Boismier found herself at the center of a political firestorm in Oklahoma after providing the QR code to her students and ultimately left her teaching job. (AP Photo/Sean Murphy)

NORMAN, Okla. (AP) — A high school English teacher from Norman, Oklahoma, intended to spark a discussion in her classroom when she covered her bookshelves with butcher paper and a sign that read: “Books the state doesn’t want you to read.” Instead, Summer Boismier found herself out of a job and at the center of a political firestorm.

The Republican candidate for state superintendent even called for Boismier’s teaching license to be suspended. She and other teachers have found themselves at the center of a renewed conservative interest in public education as a political issue. The movement has broadened, with some people focusing on issues they say clash with conservative values – such as teaching about social justice, gender, race, and history.