Banned Book Summer Reading List

CSES Staff • June 21, 2022


All American Boys (2015) by Jason Reynolds and Brendan Kiely is a Young Adult (YA) novel about two high school students, Rashad, who is Black, and Quinn, who is White. Rashad is wrongfully accused of shoplifting potato chips and attacking a woman. A White police officer immediately takes Rashad out to the sidewalk and beats the boy without any questioning. Bleeding internally, Rashad goes by ambulance to the hospital.

 

Quinn witnesses the beating and quickly leaves the scene. He is torn by witnessing a violent injustice and knowing the offending police officer. This officer has mentored Quinn since his father died in Afghanistan. A video of the beating goes viral and divides the students in the school.

 

Quinn attends a protest with Rashad’s family and others. At the police station, the demonstrators lie on the ground in a “die in.” Rashad and Quinn, together at the protest, look at each other, suggesting a good relationship in the future.

 

Objections to the book cite the portrayal of racial profiling, of police violence, and of foul language.

 

 

All Boys Aren’t Blue (2020) is a YA memoir about growing up Black and queer. In it, LGBTQ+ activist George M. Johnson writes about being bullied, deals with issues of consent, agency, and sexual abuse, and depicts a sexual encounter and statutory rape. Johnson says young people need stories of their lived experiences and identity struggles.

 

In 2021, All Boys Aren’t Blue was named to the Teen Top 10 Titles by the Young Adult Library Services Association; the list is a “teen choice” list. This book is also No. 3 on the American Library Association’s Top 10 Most Challenged Books of 2021. The book has been removed from schools in at least 15 states because of its LGBTQ+ themes and profanity, and because it is considered sexually explicit.

 

 

Between the World and Me (2015) by Ta-Nehisi Coates is a semi-autobiographical letter to his teenage son about the realities of being Black in the United States. He looks at American history through the lens of how racist violence and White supremacy are woven into the social fabric of the United States. His book was inspired by James Baldwin’s 1963 epistolary novel, The Fire Next Time. The title is from a poem by Richard Wright. The author shows no optimism with regard the overcoming White supremacy.

 

This book won the National Book Award in 2015, and it remained at the top of the New York Times bestseller list for nonfiction for three weeks that year. Many colleges and universities have it as their common reading for first-year students. After complaints, however, some local school districts have nixed it for classroom instruction as being racist and anti-police.

 

 

Gender Queer (2019) by Maia Kobabe is a graphic memoir about coming of age and exploring gender identity. Kobabe passes through stages of anxiety and confusion while trying to establish an identity. At one point, Kobabe writes, “I don’t want to be a girl. I don’t want to be a boy, either. I just want to be myself.”

 

Critics label the book unsuitable for young people because it depicts a man touching a youth’s penis as well as oral sex and masturbation. A South Carolina governor called the memoir “sexually explicit” and “pornographic.” A Virginia judge ruled that parental permission must be granted before students may read the book. The ALA labeled it the most challenged book of 2021. School libraries in Florida, North Carolina, and New York have removed the book from circulation.

 

 

Heather Has Two Mommies (1989), by Lesléa Newman, is an early children’s book about life with lesbian parents. The ALA ranked it the ninth most frequently challenged book in the U.S. in the 1990s. It was criticized by people opposed to same-sex marriage and by some LGBTQ+ individuals who thought the portrayal wasn’t acceptable. However, the book also received high praise for highlighting lesbian parents.

 

Heather’s parents are her biological mother, who gave birth after artificial insemination, and her biological mother’s same-sex partner. At playgroup, Heather is upset when she finds out that many of the other children have a daddy and she does not. One child has two daddies. The caretaker of the playgroup makes sure the children understand that all families are special and no family type is better than any of the others. By the end of the book, Heather is no longer sad and she expresses gratitude for her mothers.

 

One complaint was that when Heather cries because she has no daddy instead of wondering why she has two mommies, it suggests that there’s a problem with having two mommies. Another criticism is that the queer relationship wasn’t realistic. Another criticism was about including artificial insemination. The author deleted this part in later editions because of objections that it was not child-friendly, but aimed at adults.

 

The book received high praise and, in time, publishers became more accepting of queer children’s literature. Heather was a trailblazer. Newman recently wrote: “But LGBT kids are still getting teased, beat up, and even murdered. If you think things have really changed, walk into a high school boys’ locker room. Books are a way to educate people and help the world become a better place. Progress is not as fast as we’d like it to be, but we’re moving in the right direction. It’s a new era, a new day for Heather, and a new day for the world.” The book has remained in print and at its 25th anniversary, Newman prepared an updated edition. The book is again challenged 33 years after its first publication.

 

 

Lawn Boy (2018) by Jonathan Evison is the story of Mike Muñoz, a 22-year-old Chicano in Washington State. Mike is struggling to find his way as those who propose to help him in employment take advantage of him. Mike is a creative and talented landscape architect, though he has had no formal training. He seems to be a natural artist and also dreams of writing a novel, but he constantly runs into the excesses of an out-of-control capitalism. The novel is narrated in the first person by Mike and has become controversial largely because of a scene of sexual exploration between Mike and another boy, when they were in the fourth grade.

 

The controversy began when a woman at a Leander, Texas, school board meeting complained that the novel was full of profanity and pedophilia. After her strenuous objections spread on the internet, school systems around the country removed it from their school libraries. Although there is no pedophilia, there is a significant amount of profanity, which may make the book inappropriate for elementary school libraries. Toward the end of the novel, Mike recognizes that he is, in fact, gay, after he establishes a relationship with a new friend. That process of self-discovery is beautifully handled by the author. The novel offers a strong critique of racism and classism in the United States, but without preaching, and demonstrates the importance of diligence, hard work, and following your dreams in the face of adversity.

 

 

Maus by Art Spiegelman is the only graphic novel to win a Pulitzer prize (Special Award in Letters), in 1992. Published chapter-by-chapter in the underground comic magazine Raw from 1980-91, Maus portrays Spiegelman’s interviews with his father about being imprisoned in the Auschwitz concentration camp during World War II. The subtitle, “A Survivor Bleeds History,” indicates the intensity of the father’s story of life as a Jew in Nazi Germany.

 

Spiegelman’s characters are anthropomorphized animals — Jews are mice, Germans cats, Poles pigs, Americans dogs, and so forth. While this is an obvious imitation of the Walt Disney style of comic storytelling, on a deeper level it comments on the Nazis’ genocidal tendency to see other ethnic groups as non-humans.

 

The author plays with this in various ways as the story progresses, with Jews wearing pig masks as disguises, and Nazis using guard dogs in the prison camp. Maus is widely recognized as one of the most important examples of the graphic novel, as well as a significant work of Holocaust literature.

 

Scholars have criticized the book on various grounds, including the author’s generally unsympathetic portrayal of his father, and the danger of reinforcing stereotypes by showing humans as animals. But Maus drew another kind of criticism in 2022, when the trustees of McMinn County schools in Tennessee decided to ban the book on grounds of profanity, violence, and nudity. In response, the book has found unprecedented attention, topping bestseller lists at Amazon and Barnes & Noble as readers decided to see for themselves what the book had to say — and to support the author.

 

 

Me and Earl and the Dying Girl (2012) by Jesse Andrews. Greg Gaines is just trying to make it through his senior year of high school inconspicuously when he is forced to deal with his friend Rachel’s cancer and impending death. With bluntness and humor, the New York Times bestseller describes a situation — and reactions and emotions — that young people may have to confront.

 

This book ranks seventh on the ALA’s Top 10 Most Challenged Books of 2021 mainly because of complaints about vulgar and offensive language and content. The author tweeted in response: “It’s a potty-mouthed book about how hard it is to process pain and grief, and how hard it is to grow up. The idea that this harms anyone is beyond stupid. That is how a lot of teenagers talk.”


 

Melissa (2020) is the story of a transgender girl in fourth grade who was called George by everyone until she found a way to reveal that she knew she was a girl. When her teacher announces that their class play will be Charlotte’s Web, Melissa wants to play the role of Charlotte. When her teacher says she can’t try out for the part of the female spider because she’s a boy, Melissa—with help from her best friend—comes up with a plan to play Charlotte and to let everyone know who she is, once and for all.

 

Under the original title George, this was the most banned, challenged, and restricted book in the U.S. in 2020. The author, Alex Gino, realized that not recognizing Melissa’s real sense of herself by titling the book George gave the message that it was OK to use an old name for a person when they have chosen a name that works better for them, so he asked everyone to cross out the title of the book and write “Melissa’s Story” instead. The book was republished as Melissa in 2022.

 

The novel deals with gender identity, but with no sexual activity. Melissa’s older brother thinks she is a gay boy, but she says she doesn’t “know who she liked, really, boys or girls.” Her brother also mentions looking at porn and “dirty” magazines as something boys do. Some parents object to the book because of these comments. It is clear that many parents are uneasy with sexual topics and think that children should not read this book until they are in seventh grade. However, children tend to recommend it for 9-year-olds.

 

The book won prestigious awards as well as high praise from major reviewers, and is an appropriate book for adults and children to read.

 


 Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You (2020) by Ibram X. Kendi and Jason Reynolds is a non-fiction book for ages 12 and up. Based on Kendi’s National Book Award-winning Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America (2016), this remix/sequel has been re-written in a more conversational style and considerably shortened. The complex language and ideas have been adapted for a younger audience by the popular children’s book author Jason Reynolds.

 

Both the original book and the teen version have been criticized for “selective story-telling” and for not presenting a fuller, more complex history of racism and inequality. Also, some public statements by Kendi have been criticized as divisive. It has been defended and praised as a powerful book that helps young people and adults understand past and present racism in America. It has been included in — and objected to — in the curriculum of numerous school districts.

 

 

The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison. Published in 1970, Morrison’s first novel is about growing up Black in the 1940s in a predominantly White community in Ohio. We follow Pecola Breedlove as she faces persistent racism from the townspeople and sexual abuse by her alcoholic father beginning at 9 years old. Pecola develops a severe inferiority complex after being criticized as “ugly” because of her dark skin. The title reflects her desire for the blue eyes she associates with Whites. Ultimately, Pecola’s trauma leads to a mental breakdown, reflected in the novel’s increasingly chaotic narrative structure.

 

In 1970, the New York Times praised Morrison’s novel for its break with the predominant culture and its broad emotional range, though some readers were put off by its deliberately simple style and challenging subject matter. Morrison’s selection for the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1993 established her status as one of America’s leading authors, and her debut novel is a landmark in her career.

 

Even so, The Bluest Eye has come under fire for its inclusion of “sexually explicit material,” “disturbing language,” and what some apparently perceive as “an underlying socialist communist agenda.” On these grounds, a number of school districts have tried to remove it from their curricula and libraries. The ALA has included it on its list of “most challenged books” since the 1990s. From 2010 to 2019, it was the 10th most frequently banned, according to the ALA.

 

 

The Hate U Give (2017) by New York Times best-selling author Angie Thomas tells the story of a 16-year-old African American girl, Starr Carter, who lives in a poor neighborhood but is a student at a posh and snooty prep school in a wealthy neighborhood. One day after a party, Starr is the main witness to the killing of her best friend by a police officer. As the murder makes national headlines, Starr’s world is turned upside down and she’s harassed and threatened.

 

This YA novel has been challenged as having excessive profanity and an anti-police theme. Dealing with race relations and police brutality, the novel has been defended for balancing Whites, Blacks, and police officers as both good and bad. It has won numerous awards, including two Goodreads Choice Awards.

 


Common Sense for the Eastern Shore

The ICE Man Cometh II

By John Christie • September 23, 2025
In a case concerning the proper standards employed by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) when detaining people suspected of being in the United States illegally, the ideologically split Supreme Court — acting on the 23rd emergency request filed since January 20 — handed another win to the Trump administration. Noem v. Perdomo (September 8, 2025). Lower federal courts had approved a temporary injunction to prevent roving patrols of armed and masked ICE officers from detaining people without satisfying the Constitution’s reasonable suspicion requirement. The Court’s majority — as it has too often — offered no explanation for its decision to vacate the injunction. Justice Sotomayor wrote a dissent, joined by Justices Kagan and Jackson. The result would appear to allow all Latinos, U.S. citizens or not, who work at low-wage jobs to be seized at any time, taken from their workplace, and held until they provide proof of their legal status to ICE agents’ satisfaction. --------------------------------------------------------- Launching “Operation At Large” in early June, the government conducted large immigration enforcement raids in Los Angeles and its surrounding counties. During the raids, teams of armed and masked agents pulled up to car washes, tow yards, farms, and parks and seized individuals on sight, often before asking a single question. As discussed in an earlier Common Sense article (August 12, 2025), a California federal District Court found that these raids were part of a pattern of conduct by the ICE agents that likely violated the Fourth Amendment requirement that any detention be premised upon facts that reasonably warrant the suspicion that the individual may be illegally in the country. Based on the evidence before it, the court found that the government was stopping individuals based solely on one or more of four factors: (1) their apparent race or ethnicity; (2) whether they spoke Spanish or English with an accent; (3) the type of location where they were found (such as a car wash or bus stop); and (4) the type of job they appeared to work. Concluding that stops based on any one of these four factors alone, or even when taken together, could not satisfy the Fourth Amendment’s requirement of reasonable suspicion, the District Court temporarily enjoined the government from continuing its pattern of unlawful mass arrests while it decided if longer-term relief was appropriate. The District Court stated, the ICE “officers cannot rely solely on generalizations that, if accepted, would cast suspicion on large segments of the law-abiding population.” The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals refused to interfere, noting that the government did not dispute that these detentive stops had been based solely on the four enumerated factors and did not challenge the District Court’s findings that those stops were part of a pattern of conduct that has apparent official approval. In the context of the Central District of California, the four factors, even when considered together, describe only a broad profile and do not demonstrate sufficient “reasonable suspicion” for any particular stop. The Trump administration sought emergency relief from the Supreme Court and on September 8, it received the relief it sought, thereby allowing continued stops based upon any one of these four factors alone. The votes of at least five justices would have been required for such an outcome but only one of those justices, Justice Kavanaugh, explained his vote. Kavanaugh asserted that the “high prevalence” of undocumented immigrants on the Central District would make it inevitable that immigration officers would target any Latino person, or any person speaking Spanish or any person in a low wage job. However, nearly 47% of the Central District’s population identifies as Hispanic or Latino. For that reason, as explained by Justice Sotomayor in her dissent, the Fourth Amendment prohibits exactly what the government is attempting to do here: seize individuals based solely on a set of facts that would embrace a very large category of presumably innocent people. The four factors are no more indicative of illegal presence than of legal presence and surely in no way reflect the kind of individualized inquiry the Fourth Amendment demands. In deciding such an issue, the Court typically must also “explore the relative harms to both sides, as well as the interests of the public at large.” The government’s sole argument on this score was that the injunction “chills [its] enforcement efforts.” However, the injunction does not prevent the government from enforcing its immigration laws, provided it stops individuals based on additional facts on top of any one of all the four factors listed. Moreover, the on-the-ground reality appears to contradict the administration’s and Justice Kavanaugh’s claim of a chilling effect. Since the issuance of the injunction, Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem has called the district judge an “idiot” and vowed that “none of [the government’s] operations are going to change.” ICE’s chief patrol agent in the Central District has stated that his division will “turn and burn” and “go even harder now,” and has posted videos on social media touting his agents’ continued efforts “chasing, cuffing, and deporting” people at car washes. Balanced against the “chilling effect” claim, it is the people of Los Angeles and the Central District who will suffer. As characterized by Justice Sotomayor in her dissent, “countless people in the Los Angelos area have been grabbed, thrown to the ground, and handcuffed simply because of their looks, their accents, and the fact that they make a living by doing manual labor.” Nor are undocumented immigrants the only ones harmed by the government’s conduct. United States citizens are also being seized, taken from their jobs, and prevented from working to support themselves and their families. As stated by Justice Sotomayor, the Fourth Amendment protects every individual’s constitutional right to be “free from arbitrary interference by law officers.” In her opinion, the Court’s decision is “unconscionably irreconcilable” with our nation’s constitutional guarantees. John Christie was for many years a senior partner in a large Washington, D.C. law firm. He specialized in anti-trust litigation and developed a keen interest in the U.S. Supreme Court about which he lectures and writes. 

Checks? Balances? Where?

By Jan Plotczyk • September 23, 2025
We, the People, like our system of government. At least in the abstract. We like its checks and balances. We like its oversight. We like how the Founding Fathers created a system to prevent any one branch of government from wielding too much power. But we’ve never had a president who wanted to be a dictator and who has convinced Congress and the Supreme Court to give him carte blanche to carry out an extreme right-wing agenda. The results of four recent polls illustrate how Americans feel about the state of our three branches of government and the theory of checks and balances right now. (Links to the polls are at the end of this article.) Voters overwhelmingly support our system of checks and balances. Large majorities of voters feel that democracy is strengthened by congressional oversight (78%), judicial review (70%), and congressional power of the purse (68%).

300,000 Marylanders Will See Big Increase in Health Insurance Premiums Due to Harris, OBBBA

By Jan Plotczyk • September 23, 2025
Health insurance premiums for nearly 300,000 Marylanders will increase dramatically next year because of the Trump/GOP One Big Beautiful Bill Act signed into law in July. Our Congressman, Maryland District 1 Rep. Andrew P. Harris voted for that bill. Who will this affect? People who buy individual health insurance plans through Maryland’s Affordable Care Act Marketplace. How much will the increase be? 13.4% on average; policy holders will pay hundreds more for health insurance in 2026. Why is the increase happening? Federal tax credits that help keep costs down for low- to middle-income Marylanders are scheduled to expire at the end of 2025 because the OBBBA did not renew the credits. The Maryland General Assembly approved funding this year that will cover some, but not all, of the increase. An estimated increase of 6.5% in medical and pharmaceutical costs also contributes to the rate hike. What does this mean for Marylanders ? A 30-year-old individual earning $39,125 per year could see their monthly premiums increase by 97% ($61/month to $121/month for a Silver plan). However, without Maryland’s new financial help, they would have seen an even bigger increase of 348% (from $61/month to $275/month for a Silver plan) Why are the tax credits ending? The enhanced health insurance premium tax credits provided by the American Rescue Plan and Inflation Reduction Act will expire on December 31, 2025. The tax credits were not extended in the Trump/GOP OBBBA. What is the likely outcome? People who can no longer afford their plans will drop their insurance. Can anything be done? As part of negotiations to prevent a government shutdown on Oct 1, Democrats are pushing to preserve health care programs , including the permanent restoration of the federal tax credits and reversal of Medicaid cuts in OBBBA. Reactions in Maryland: “Under this new federal administration, Washington has shirked its duty to help middle-class Americans and families in poverty get affordable health care. Congress should act without delay to avoid these federal tax credits being ripped away from hardworking families,” said Maryland Gov. Wes Moore . “In Maryland, we will continue to do everything in our power to keep costs low for families and preserve access to affordable care.” “This can still be fixed,” said Vincent DeMarco, president of the Maryland Health Care for All coalition. “If Congress fails, it will hurt Marylanders.” While we're talking about health insurance, we should not forget the severe cuts to the Medicaid program that will affect many people on the Eastern Shore. Rep. Harris voted for those, too. Read more here and here . This article was updated to include an example increase. Jan Plotczyk spent 25 years as a survey and education statistician with the federal government, at the Census Bureau and the National Center for Education Statistics. She retired to Rock Hall.

“First Trump Came For…”

By Gren Whitman • September 23, 2025
(With apologies to the Rev. Martin Niemoller) First Trump came for undocumented immigrants, and I did not speak out because I was a citizen from birth. Then Trump swept up citizens in their immigration raids, and I did not speak out because my skin is not brown. Then Trump came for several white-shoe law firms in NYC and the District, and I did not speak out because I’m not an attorney. Then Trump came for Goldman Sachs, and I did not speak out because I’m not an economist. Then Trump halted collective bargaining for most federal workers across two dozen agencies, and I did not speak out because I’m no longer in a union. Then Trump came for Columbia, Penn, Brown, Princeton, Cornell, Northwestern, UCLA, Duke, UVa, and UMaine, and I did not speak out because I am no longer a student. (I did speak out as a Harvard grad.) Then Trump came for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the Federal Reserve Board, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency, and I did not speak out because these federal agencies lacked spines. Then Trump came for Los Angeles with U.S. Marines and California National Guard, and I did not speak out because I’m not an Angelino. Then Trump came for the District of Columbia, but I had nothing to do with that city and said nothing. Then Trump threatened to come for Chicago, New York, and Baltimore, but ran into stiff resistance from Democratic mayors and governors and decided instead to come for Memphis, and I did not speak out. Then Trump came for Federal Reserve’s Lisa Cook, and I did not speak out because she’s fighting back in court and will likely win. Then Trump came for NPR and PBS, and I did not speak out because my news is from other sources. Then Trump came for New Jersey’s state’s Democratic governor and attorney general over immigration policies, and I did not speak out because I wasn’t directly affected. Then Trump came for a Wisconsin judge for allegedly obstructing ICE, and I did not speak out because Wisconsin’s a long way from the Eastern Shore. Then Trump came for former Special Prosecutor Jack Smith, and I did not speak out because if there was anyone on the planet who can take care of himself, it’s Smith. Then Trump came for NY AG Leticia James and Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg, and I did not speak out because they’re also fully capable of resisting threats and imprecations from Trump and his thugs. Then Trump came for Stephen Colbert and Jimmy Kimmel and I did not speak out because the other shoes — Seth Meyers, John Oliver, Jimmy Fallon, and John Stewart — have yet to drop. Then Trump promised to target “radical left lunatics,” and I did not speak out because, really, this is too nutty to be taken seriously, isn’t it? Then Trump threatened to “go after the NGO network that foments, facilitates and engages in violence,” and I did not speak out because, again, so very difficult to take seriously. Then Trump sued the NY Times for defamation, and I did not speak out because I believed his suit would be summarily tossed (as it was). Then Trump came for me and there was no one left to speak for me. As a community organizer, journalist, administrator, project planner/manager, and consultant, Gren Whitman has led neighborhood, umbrella, public interest, and political committees and groups, and worked for civil rights and anti-war organizations. 

Maryland Issues New, Unambiguous Respiratory Vaccine Guidelines

By Jan Plotczyk • September 23, 2025
To combat confusion and misinformation from the federal government, the Maryland Department of Health has taken the following steps to protect vaccine access for Marylanders: Issued new, clear recommendations for respiratory vaccines for individuals based on science Issued a statewide standing order giving all Marylanders access to the covid-19 vaccine Joined the bipartisan Northeast Public Health Collaborative to protect public health and access to vaccines The recommendations are for covid-19, RSV, and flu vaccines and follow science-based guidance issued by the American Academy of Pediatrics, American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, and American Academy of Family Physicians. The clear, understandable recommendations were adopted to replace the confusing and restrictive federal standards that are being issued by the Trump administration. In a clear departure from federal guidelines, MDH makes the following recommendations: Covid-19 vaccination is for: All children 6 months–2 years Children 2 years–18 years old who are at risk All adults RSV immunization is for: Infants under 8 months Children 8-19 months with risk factors Anyone pregnant People 50-74 who are at risk People over 75 Flu vaccine is for: Everyone older than 6 months Adults older than 50 years should get higher dose

Good News About Offshore Wind

By CSES Staff • September 23, 2025
Construction on the Revolution Wind project off the coast of Rhode Island is back on after U.S. District Judge Royce Lamberth blocked the Trump administration’s most recent attempt to shut it down. The project is already 80% complete and will soon provide 704 megawatts of clean power to Rhode Island and Connecticut. Its supply chain spans 34 states, with shipyards in Louisiana and New England, steel production in New York, cable manufacturing in South Carolina, and hundreds of union jobs in Providence. This is proof that offshore wind is about more than turbines. It’s about jobs, investment, and energy independence. This matters here at home. Just as with his other stunts, Trump’s lawsuits against wind power projects in Maryland and Delaware are on track to fail. That means offshore construction for US Wind is still slated to begin in 2029, and the Eastern Shore will be at the center of it. Here’s what’s on the line: Rebuilding and expanding the deteriorating 45-year-old pier in West Ocean City into a modern operations and maintenance facility, complete with dredging guaranteed for 30 years. That project alone will support about 100 full-time local jobs. US Wind has also committed $20 million to the Fishing Community Resilience Fund, with $13.5 million dedicated to Maryland fishermen for offloading, ice services, harbor maintenance, and seafood marketing. The project will create nearly 2,700 jobs a year over seven years, power 718,000 homes with clean energy, and bring $815 million in investments to Maryland, with more than 50 companies already contracted. At Sparrows Point in Baltimore, US Wind is partnering with Haizea Wind Group to build a 100-acre monopile factory. At Wagner’s Point, Hellenic Cables is setting up a new undersea cable plant. These are well-paying, union-backed jobs that strengthen Maryland’s manufacturing base. For our Eastern Shore community, it means opportunity. US Wind has partnered with the Lower Shore Workforce Alliance, which received $700,000 from Maryland Works for Wind, to train the next generation of local workers. Our community college is already structuring its trades curriculum around offshore wind. These are careers for the future, right here at home. The project also sets a new standard for environmental protection. Turbines will be spaced to minimize migration impacts. Lights will remain off unless aircraft are nearby, thanks to aircraft detection lighting systems. Construction will be monitored with bubble curtains, acoustic listening for whales, and strict shutdown zones to protect marine life. These are the reasons that groups like the National Audubon Society, American Bird Conservancy, National Wildlife Federation, Interfaith Partners for the Chesapeake, and Greenpeace all support this project. In total, US Wind’s Maryland project will deliver two gigawatts of clean power — the equivalent of two nuclear plants and enough to serve about a quarter of Maryland homes. Four phases, 114 turbines, four offshore substations, and a record of decision already in hand from the federal Bureau of Ocean Energy Management. The fight is far from over, but the momentum is on our side. Trump and 1st District Rep. Andrew P. Harris can waste our tax dollars in court, but they can’t stop progress. Offshore wind is how we build good jobs, reduce bills, protect our Shore, and power a cleaner future, and is worth every ounce of the fight.
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