Another Children's Literature Classic Banned in Florida.....

Pensacola, FL - Adding to a long list of books that have been banned in recent months because of the concerns of a small number of conservative adults, Pickles the Atheist Pig's Pointless Day will no longer be found on library shelves in Florida's Escambia County School District.

Pickles the atheist pig, shown here watching his friend Patches being led to an uncertain future by powerful forces beyond his control and wondering if there is any point to his existence or if is he no better than the ants crawling under his feet, ants whose world will end in a cataclysm with the next hard rain as ours will end engulfed in the expanding fire of the Sun that once gave us all, ants and atheist pigs alike, a few moments of warmth in a cold and empty universe

"This is a book that has been recommended by experts in childhood education and development to provide young learners with a wider range of viewpoints and life experiences," author Jake Leblanc explained. "What about the teachers who rely on my book to teach their students that nothing matters, or how ultimately we will all end up rotting in the ground and forgotten by a world that has, at most, only a few decades of remaining cohesive societal organization. That there is no god or gods who will suddenly appear and save any of us."

The ban of Pickles the Atheist Pig's Pointless Day is yet another example of right-wing groups seeking to remove books from school libraries that discuss race, racism, LGBTQ+, and other identities that they feel aren't consistent with conservative Christian values. Some parents, such as Pensacola native and Mothers Against Grooming Atheists member Frandra Debbin, are concerned that these books undermine parental rights to teach their children in the way they deem best. "I have nothing against atheists. I love my atheist friends. I hang out with them all the time and I support their right to live the life they want. I just don't want them and their wicked beliefs in our schools because I don't want my kids to burn eternally in the fires of Hell, which is all any good mother really wants...right?"