School Boards vs Intellectual Freedom

This is the kind of thing that makes me embarrassed to be an American. You'll note it's being reported in the foreign press. My local paper puts pro sports scores on the front page; international news and real issues barely exist.

"An Indiana teacher who used a much lauded bestseller, The Freedom Writers Diary, to try to inspire under-performing high-school students has been suspended from her job without pay for 18 months."
http://books.guardian.co.uk/news/articles/0,,2288658,00.html

In the anime world, Toshokan Sensou is winding down its tale of censorship and resistance. Here's the Japan Library Association statement that was the inspiration for the original novels:
JLA Statement of Intellectual Freedom in Libraries

Thanks to tbll57 for the Brit news, and to haya5h1 for the link to the JLA's English translation!