Forsyth County is the only hotbed for school library book challenges in Georgia — so far

Books sit on shelves in an elementary school library in suburban Atlanta on Friday, 18, 2023. Although not new, book challenges have surged in public schools since 2020, part of a broader backlash to what kids read and discuss in school. (AP Photo/Hakim Wright Sr.)

When Allison Strickland urged the Forsyth County School Board in June to remove four books from school libraries, she was following a path cleared by Georgia’s Republican lawmakers.

But after the bitterly debated Georgia law took effect Jan. 1, The Associated Press found few book challengers are using it.

One key element restraining complaints: The law only allows parents of current students to challenge books.