Last week, over 850 folks joined Better Wyoming and emailed the Wyoming Legislature’s Judiciary Committee telling them to “VOTE "NO" ON THE BOOK BAN BILL” This was in opposition to a proposed bill ban books in libraries and punish librarians who don’t comply. That’s a HUGE turnout and it made a difference.
Flooding the lawmaker’s emails wasn’t the only thing that happened. Better Wyoming volunteers and other concerned Wyomingites showed up to testify in front of the committee. For over two hours people gave their opinion on this bill, and with the exception of two “Moms for Liberty” school board members (one of whom actually said she wants to get rid of libraries altogether), every single person who spoke was against the proposed legislation.
Some of the most powerful voices came from Better Wyoming volunteers. Rev. Dan Odell from Casper reminded lawmakers that under the bill’s broad language, even the Bible, the Book of Mormon, and the Koran would be off limits for people under 18. His point was clear, this dangerous proposal isn’t just about targeting books that they deem as immoral, it’s a reckless law that threatens to harm libraries and oppress Wyoming communities.
Jenny Soreneson, a participant of Better Wyoming’s Grassroots Institute, also gave public testimony. She spoke up about the value of letting her kids have access to diverse material from authors on a variety of subjects, but also talked about how, as an English teacher, she has been on the frontline of defending books from getting banned. She personally came under attack simply for teaching a unit on The Diary of Anne Frank to her class, a book that would now face a ban from libraries if this law passes.
Watch Rev. Dan Odell and Jenny’s public testimonies here.
Because of the public’s outreach to the committee they decided to table the bill and they’ll revisit it at their next meeting on October 13 in Cheyenne (where lawmakers have decided to not allow public comment on this bill again). If they move it forward with it during that meeting, it would become a committee bill that will be debated in the 2026 budget session.
This fight is far from over. But one thing is clear, Wyomingites are not going to sit quietly while extremist politicians try to ban books, criminalize librarians and punish community libraries.
Better Wyoming is organizing to keep up the pressure. National groups like Moms for Liberty want to drag their censorship agenda into our communities. But Wyoming residents are standing up and saying loud and clear: We refuse to accept book bans.
Stay tuned for more actions and updates from Better Wyoming on how to fight these book bans.