last week ‘milk and honey’ was banned in utah’s largest school district, along with 51 other books. these books are all being removed from the libraries of the alpine school district. my heart breaks for all the students in this district who rely on school libraries to access the literature they need. in the past few years book bans and the attempts to ban books are increasing across the united states at alarming rates. just a few months ago i posted about the attempts to ban ‘milk and honey’ and countless others in texas, oklahoma, and oregon. why milk and honey? because it explores themes of sexual assault, abuse, and feminism. i wrote ‘milk and honey’ to process my pain and trauma. i shared it with the world in the hopes that anyone who experienced what i did might find comfort. a majority (42%) of the targeted literature on this specific list touches on lgbtq+ themes. other banned books touch on women's issues, racism, and anti-blackness. these bans are an attack on young readers who need access to these books the most. students, teachers, and librarians have rallied around books that are being banned and have been fighting hard to get them back on shelves. i stand with them and support librarians and readers being targeted.