Book bans violate First Amendment rights, the rights of parents to decide what’s best for their children, waste taxpayer money and resources, undermine the ability of teachers and librarians to effectively manage their classrooms and book collections, and above all, block the essential right of children to learn about themselves and the world while seeing themselves reflected in the pages of a book.
Here’s a brief roundup of how book bans are currently causing harm and creating chaos in communities, and how some communities are uniting to fight back. You can also read GLAAD’s playbook to defeat book bans and build a safer tomorrow for the LGBTQ community.
Arkansas: Federal judge blocks legislation that could have resulted in the incarceration of librarians and booksellers
A federal judge temporarily blocked Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders-signed Act 372 from being enacted, which threatened fines and jail time for librarians who provide minors with allegedly “harmful” books.
Organizations that include Democracy Forward and the Arkansas ACLU filed a lawsuit stating that the legislation violated their First and Fourteenth Amendment rights, and that the vague law was intended to silence LGBTQ voices and topics. U.S. District Judge Timothy L. Brooks agreed, slamming the legislation as vague, inconsistent, and “very poorly drafted.” Quoting Ray Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451, a novel that imagines a world where books are outlawed and burned, Brooks said, “There is more than one way to burn a book. And the world is full of people running about with lit matches.”
This weekend, a federal court made a crucial decision to protect our rights by blocking portions of Act 372, ensuring that our librarians can continue to offer diverse reading materials without fear of prosecution. Let’s stand together to ensure our access to information! #arpx pic.twitter.com/Sjj7eUuv4O
— ACLU of Arkansas (@ArkansasACLU) July 31, 2023
Florida: Media specialists tasked with reviewing a million books (literally)
A key component of Florida House Bill 1069, signed into law in May by Governor Ron DeSantis, requires books that “depict or describe sexual content” to be pulled from school classrooms and library shelves, pending review. In addition, notes Politico, “the new law requires all campuses to digitally chronicle each book shelved and available for students in classroom libraries.” If that sounds like a Herculean task, that’s because it is. Cash-strapped and understaffed libraries are being forced to outsource this work, at a cost of “between $34,000 to $135,000 annually.”
Interviewing with ClickOrlando.com, Maria Vazquez, Orange County Public Schools’ superintendent, said that the vague guidelines have pushed the district to review more than one million books.
This is how school is starting: Kids in Florida don’t have access to books until they are reviewed for approval. Kids don’t have access to AP African American studies or AP Psychology. There are 6 million kids who won’t have access to #bannedbooks because of new laws like this… pic.twitter.com/4b1Fx0hnNY
— Ariel Taylor Smith (@Ariel_Smith_CO) August 16, 2023
Iowa: Urbandale School District backtracks on immediate scope of book ban efforts
Iowa’s vague law prohibiting ”instruction related to gender identity and sexual identity” prior to 7th grade also requires the removal of titles “with descriptions or visual depictions of a sex act.”
School districts hoping for clarification are waiting for guidance that, reports say, Iowa’s Department of Education (DOE) “has no plans to offer.”
Rather than wait for further details, Urbandale Community School District (outside Des Moines) flagged 387 books for removal, including literature by or about LGBTQ individuals or containing LGBTQ subject matter. Titles ranged from Alice Oseman’s Heartstopper graphic novels to a picture book biography of U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg, who won the Iowa Democratic caucuses in 2020, the first out gay man to do so. The district’s efforts gained national attention after anti-censorship organization Annie’s Foundation released a list of books slated for removal.
In an email sent to district parents, Urbandale superintendent Dr. Rosalie Daca backtracked on the larger list, enacting a “pause [on] removing books that reference gender identity and sexual orientation” pending further instruction from the Iowa DOE.” As a result the number of targeted books dropped to 65. Books still on the chopping block include Forever by Judy Blume, Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston, and The Fault in Our Stars by John Green. PEN America shared a letter advocates can send to Urbandale administrators and board members, urging them to keep these titles in classrooms and on school library shelves.
Author @jodipicoult spoke out Monday against the Urbandale, Iowa school district’s recommended book ban list, which includes several of her novels.
Penalties for teachers and administrators who don’t remove prohibited books start Jan. 1, 2024. https://t.co/3VNfAxGgLa via @axios
— PEN America (@PENamerica) August 2, 2023
Michigan: MI Right to Read
The Michigan Library Association launched a new campaign aimed squarely at supporting the state’s public libraries. Dubbed “MI Right to Read,” the six-month endeavor hopes to raise awareness surrounding censorship attempts occurring throughout the state.
MLive reports that efforts to circumvent the freedom to read ramped up in 2022, after residents voted to defund western Michigan-based Patmos Library due to the institution’s refusal to eliminate LGBTQ-centric titles. Other cases, notes Bridge Michigan, include the threat of criminal charges against a Lapeer County library over oft-banned title Gender Queer, and a failed proposal to seek criminal charges against librarians who offer similar titles which those in favor of censorship deem “sexually explicit.”
In an effort to get communities involved, MI Right to Read sets out to educate people about the dangers of book bans, help them understand what’s going on in their communities, and prepare them to fight back.
Protect the Right to Read. Join the coalition today at https://t.co/9ZE52M0hlj pic.twitter.com/3H5rqQy7Vk
— MI Right to Read (@MIRighttoRead) August 16, 2023
American Library Association takes steps to protect LGBTQ library workers
The American Library Association (ALA) announced decisive steps to safeguard LGBTQ workers. In an August news release, the ALA stated that “Discrimination against library workers based on sexual orientation, gender identity, or expression violates their fundamental rights and contradicts the core principles of inclusivity and intellectual freedom that libraries cherish.” In response, the association established a task force to monitor discriminatory practices against LGBTQ library employees and develop a plan of action that includes casting a spotlight on ALA-provided “resources and support.”
View this post on Instagram