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Read the list of LGBTQ+ books NC lawmakers are targeting in some school libraries

N.C. House Majority Leader Brenden Jones tosses a book he finds offensive over his shoulder while questioning Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools Superintendent Rodney Trice and School Board Chair George Griffin during a sometimes tense House committee hearing on Wednesday, Dec. 10, 2025, in the Legislative Building auditorium in Raleigh. During the hearing, Jones cited and tossed several children’s books from a third-party list that had previously appeared on the district’s website.
N.C. House Majority Leader Brenden Jones tosses a book he finds offensive over his shoulder while questioning Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools Superintendent Rodney Trice and School Board Chair George Griffin during a sometimes tense House committee hearing on Wednesday, Dec. 10, 2025, in the Legislative Building auditorium in Raleigh. During the hearing, Jones cited and tossed several children’s books from a third-party list that had previously appeared on the district’s website. Travis Long tlong@newsobserver.com

Republicans in the North Carolina General Assembly have proposed legislation that would ban books with LGBTQ+ content from elementary school libraries amid a standoff with Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools over the Parents’ Bill of Rights.

Ahead of a recent hearing, GOP lawmakers sent Chapel Hill-Carrboro school leaders a list of 155 books currently available in their libraries that supposedly violate the Parents’ Bill of Rights, which prohibits instruction on sexuality and gender identity in kindergarten through fourth grade. These books would presumably be banned if the new bill passes.

Read the full list below.

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Paige Masten
Opinion Contributor,
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Paige Masten is the deputy opinion editor for The Charlotte Observer. She covers stories that impact people in Charlotte and across the state. A lifelong North Carolinian, she grew up in Raleigh and graduated from UNC-Chapel Hill in 2021. Support my work with a digital subscription
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