On Tuesday, the Lucia Mar Unified School District (LMUSD) held a board meeting to discuss concerns raised by local parents about two books on the shelves of district libraries.
During the LMUSD board meeting, the board voted to continue offering "Push" by Sapphire and "Gender Queer: A Memoir" by Maia Kobabe in district libraries.
The controversial decision came after dozens of community members and students made public comments regarding the books.
"These representations are very graphic and very, very explicit," said Paul Masters, who was appealing the offering of "Gender Queer: A Memoir".
Gary Adams, who was appealing the offering of "Push," also spoke out at Tuesday's meeting.
"The content of the book is inappropriate for students and should be removed," said Adams.
"Gender Queer: A Memoir" has been offered in district libraries since 2022. According to the district, it has been checked out three times as of September of this year.
"Push" by Sapphire has been offered in libraries since 2019, but as of September 2025, it has not been checked out yet.
41 people spoke during public comment regarding these books, both for and against keeping them in school libraries.
"After reading both of these titles, I feel even more strongly that our students should have access to these books in our school's library," said one community member.
"The book "Push" in particular just is as has been mentioned, pretty, gross and graphic," said another community member.
Other speakers commented on students' rights to education, and advocated for getting "the porn out of our schools."
The board of supervisors voted to allow the meeting to go past the normal board meeting ending time of 10 p.m., making the final decision on the books around 10:35 p.m.
The votes to continue allowing "Gender Queer: A Memoir" and "Push" in school libraries were both 4-3.
