Mother and Daughter Rejected $26M Offer to Sell Farmland to Build 2,000-Acre Data Center, but Say Others Haven’t; People, March 26, 2026

Karla Marie Sanford

Karla Marie Sanford

Karla Marie Sanford has contributed to PEOPLE since 2026. Her work has previously appeared on the Los Angeles Times, Washington Post, and New York Times.

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, People ; Mother and Daughter Rejected $26M Offer to Sell Farmland to Build 2,000-Acre Data Center, but Say Others Haven’t

“They call us old stupid farmers, you know, but we’re not,” said Ida Huddleston, 82

"A Kentucky mother and daughter are continuing to open up about their decision to keep their farmland rather than accept a multi-million payout that could pave the way for a data center, which may still be happening anyway.

“My grandfather and great-grandfather and a whole bunch of family have all lived here for years, paid taxes on it, fed a nation off of it,” Delsia Bare told CBS affiliate WKRC. “Even raised wheat through the Depression and kept bread lines up in the United States of America when people didn’t have anything else.”

Bare and her 82-year-old mom Ida Huddleston own hundreds of acres of farmland outside Maysville, according to WKRC. Together, the two have rejected over $26 million to sell part of the farmland to an undisclosed Fortune 100 company."

KY library book challenges rose 1,000% in 2024. That’s not a typo. What happened?; Lexington Herald Leader, June 30, 2025

John Cheves , Lexington Herald Leader; KY library book challenges rose 1,000% in 2024. That’s not a typo. What happened?

"Challenges to Kentucky public library books soared by 1,061% last year, rising from 26 incidents in 2023 to 302 incidents in 2024, according to a recently released state report. That eye-popping number is buried in small type at the bottom of page six of the annual Statistical Report of Kentucky Public Libraries, published in April by the Kentucky Department of Libraries and Archives."

Kentuckians challenged these 395 library books. Is your favorite listed?; Indianapolis Star via Courier Journal, October 17, 2024

John Tufts , Indianapolis Star via Courier Journal; Kentuckians challenged these 395 library books. Is your favorite listed?

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"Roughly 150 public libraries, library associations and bookstores this Saturday will observe Freedom to Read Day. Advocates have said the event is a reminder that while Banned Books Week might've ended last month, the fight against book censorship continues.

More than 10,000 books were banned or challenged in U.S. schools last year, according to a September report released by PEN America. The free speech advocacy group found efforts to censor books nearly tripled in 2023-2024, a significant jump from the 3,362 instances documented over the previous school year.

A separate report released by the American Library Association during Banned Books Week (September 22-28), gave contrasting data, however...

What is Freedom to Read Day?

On Oct. 19, 2024, the ALA and ALA-funded Unite Against Book Bans campaign will celebrate libraries across the country and encourage civic participation with Freedom to Read Day, an event meant to draw attention toward fighting book censorship...

What books did Kentucky residents challenge in 2023?

Kentucky, according to an updated ALA report, challenged 395 books in libraries across the state — from Maia Kobabe's "Gender Queer: A Memoir" to John Green's "Looking for Alaska."

The Courier Journal has provided a full list of challenged books toward the bottom of this article.

The majority of challenges were directed toward books with LGBTQ+ themes and characters, as well as books featuring people of color...

C-D; Books that Kentuckians challenged, from 'Call Me By Your Name' to 'Dune: House Atreides'

• "Call Me By Your Name" by André Aciman
• "Calvin" by J.R. Ford
• "Camp Quiltbag" by Nicole Melleby
• "Can I Touch Your Hair? Poems of Race, Mistakes, and Friendship" by Irene Latham
• Can't Take That Away" by Steven Salvatore
• "Captain Underpants and the Sensational Saga of Sir Stinks A-Lot" by Dav Pilkey
• "The Cardboard Kingdom" by Chad Sell
• "Carry On: The Rise and Fall of Simon Snow" by Rainbow Rowell
• "Catwoman: Soulstealer" by Sarah J. Maas
• "Cemetery Boys" by Aiden Thomas
• "Change Sings" by Amanda Gorman
• "Check, Please! #hockey" by Ngozi Ukazu
• "Check, Please! Vol. 2: Sticks & Scones" by Ngozi Ukazu
• "Chosen" by P.C. Cast
• "Cinderella is Dead" by Kalynn Bayron
• "Clap When You Land" by Elizabeth Acevedo
• "Clara Lemlich [She Persisted Series]" by Deborah Heligman
• "Class Act" by Jerry Craft
• "Clockwork Princess" by Cassandra Clare
• "Concrete Rose" by Angie Thomas
• "Cool for the Summer" by Dahlia Adler
• "Crank" by Ellen Hopkins
• "Critical Perspectives on Gender Identity" by Nicki Peter Petrikowski
• "The Crown of Midnight" by Sarah J. Maas
• "Cut" by Patricia McCormick

'No one wants to be censored':People are supporting 'book sanctuaries' despite politics

• "Damsel" by Elana K. Arnold
• "Darius the Great" by Jamie Poolos
• "Darius the Great Deserves Better" by Adib Khorram
• "The Dead and the Dark" by Courtney Gould
• "Dear Martin" by Nic Stone
• "Dear Sweet Pea" by Julie Murphy
• "The Deep & Dark Blue" by Niki Smith
• "Defining Sexual Consent: Where the Law Falls Short" by New York Times Educational Publishing
• "Diary of a Misfit: A Memoir and a Mystery" by Casey Parks
• "The Difference Between You and Me" by Madeleine George
• "Disarmed" by Sarah Rees Brennan
• "Doll Bones" by Holly Black
• "Doodleville" by Chad Sell
• "Drama" by Raina Telgemeier
• "Dress Codes for Small Towns" by Courtney C Stevens
• "The DUFF: Designated Ugly Fat Friend" by Kody Keplinger
• "Dune: House Atreides [Series]" by Brian Herbert"

Kentucky school district bans more than 100 books, citing anti-LGBTQ+ law; Louisville Public Media, October 19, 2023

Jess Clark, Louisville Public Media; Kentucky school district bans more than 100 books, citing anti-LGBTQ+ law

"The law is the subject of several legal challenges by opponents who say its restrictions on speech and LGBTQ+ young people violate the state constitution.

Which books are banned?

It is unclear why each book was found objectionable under SB 150, but many of the books banned from Boyle County Schools feature LGBTQ+ characters and themes...

“Anne Frank” by Sid Jacobson is also banned from Junction City Elementary. It’s a graphic novel based on Anne Frank’s “Diary of a Young Girl” and depicts the teen’s hiding during Nazi occupation of the Netherlands.

Fifty-five titles have been removed from Boyle County High School. They include many nonfiction books on LGBTQ+ identities, such as “Teens and LGBT Issues,” by Christine Wilcox and “Stonewall: Breaking Out in the Fight for Gay Rights,” by Ann Bausum...

Here is a link to a list of the banned books, originally obtained by The Advocate Messenger."