Hunter
12/01/23
A second lawsuit has been filed against the State of Iowa seeking to overturn a law passed this year that bans books that depict sex acts from schools.
The Des Moines Register reports the Iowa State Education Association, Penguin Random House and four authors — Laurie Halse Anderson; John Green; Malinda Lo; and Jodi Picoult — filed the lawsuit Thursday in federal court in the Southern District of Iowa. The plaintiffs want to have that portion of the law declared unconstitutional for violating the 1st and 1th amendments of the United States Constitution.
Penguin Random House CEO Nihar Malaviya said in a statement. “We know that not every book we publish will be for every reader, but we must protect the right for all Americans, including students, parents, caregivers, teachers and librarians, to have equitable access to books and to continue to decide what they read.”
The American Civil Liberties Union and Lambda Legal filed suit Tuesday on behalf of eight Iowa students and their families, as well as Iowa Safe Schools, a nonprofit that advocates for LGBTQ students.
Beginning next month, educators who fail to remove books from their classrooms or libraries will face penalties, including written reprimands and possible license suspensions. The Iowa Library Association and Iowa Association of School Librarians are seeking additional guidance from the state on how those penalties will be enforced.