Draconian book bans take effect in four more states | Libraries in Idaho forced to become ‘adults-only’
“Any book worth banning is a book worth reading.” — Isaac Asimov
Book bans have been rapidly spreading across the country, touching districts in 42 states since 2021. In the 2022–23 school year alone, PEN America recorded 3,362 instances of book bans in public school classrooms and libraries, removing access to over 1,500 unique book titles. The majority of the targeted books discuss race or racism or include LGBTQ+ characters or themes. Other frequently banned materials contain references to sexual assault or abortion, removing an important lifeline for young women dealing with traumatic situations:
According to PEN America data from the 2021–22 and 2022–23 school years, 19 percent of books banned through June 2023 include depictions of rape and sexual assault. Many of these books were specifically written for young adult audiences; YA as a genre commonly explores challenging topics, including sexual assault and rape, to help educate young readers and in some cases to help them understand their own feelings or experiences. And when it comes to sexual assault, that understanding can be crucial: according to RAINN, 1 in 9 girls and 1 in 20 boys under the age of 18 experience sexual abuse or assault. For those millions of students, books can be a lifeline.
In response to her book Milk and Honey being banned across the country, poet Rupi Kaur said on her Facebook page, “i remember sitting in my school library in high school, turning to books about sexual assault because i didn’t have anyone else to turn to.”
The states that have banned the most books are those that have enacted either explicit book bans, critical race theory bans, or “Don’t Say Gay”-type legislation, some containing the threat of civil and criminal charges. These states also tend to have the most aggressive extremist groups, like Moms for Liberty, that instruct community members on how to challenge the inclusion of books in libraries and schools. In combination, these two forces result in (a) policies that require the removal of specific titles, (b) a snowball effect once one district removes a specific title, and (c) the preemptive removal of any book that might potentially be challenged.
Groups like Moms for Liberty have been highly effective at weaponizing the concerns of a handful of parents to ban books for all students in districts across the country. For example, an analysis by the Washington Post found that “just 11 people were responsible for 60 percent” of book challenges in 2021-2022. “In some cases,” the Post continues, “these serial filers relied on a network of volunteers gathered together under the aegis of conservative parents groups such as Moms for Liberty.”
American Library Association’s Top 10 Most Challenged Books of 2023
Utah
A new law took effect in Utah last month, expanding a 2022 law that prohibits “sensitive materials,” defined as “pornographic or indecent,” in public schools. The expansion, HB29, signed into law by Gov. Spencer Cox in March, allows a book to be removed from schools across the state if at least three school districts (or two school districts and five charter schools) determine that it contains sensitive material.
Opponents argued that the new law gives too much power to a handful of school boards to ban books statewide while standards may vary from community to community.
“This is the antithesis of local control,” Rep. Carol Spackman Moss, D-Holladay, who has worked as a teacher, said on the House floor on Jan. 30 while arguing against it. “With this bill, just a couple of individuals can take away the rights of parents statewide to make choices that best fit their children’s needs.”
HB29 also applies retroactively to all books banned before the law took effect on July 1, leading to an automatic statewide ban of 13 books before the school year even begins. The titles include "Forever" by Judy Blume, a coming-of-age book that touches on sexuality; "Oryx and Crake" by Margaret Atwood, a post-apocalyptic novel; and "Milk and Honey" by Rupi Kaur, a poetry book about "violence, abuse, love, loss, and femininity."
Whereas school boards were previously permitted to take into consideration whether a book containing sensitive material had artistic merit, HB29 now requires education agencies to prioritize “protecting children from the harmful effects of illicit pornography over other considerations.” The new provision will likely lead to more local bans, which will, in turn, lead to more statewide bans.
Idaho
A new law went into effect in Idaho last month requiring libraries to create a separate adults-only area for materials “harmful to minors,” which can include topics like “masturbation, homosexuality, [and] sexual intercourse.”
HB710, signed into law by Gov. Brad Little (R) in April, also allows parents to sue libraries if they find material “harmful to a minor” in an unrestricted section and the library does not relocate that material to an adults-only area within 60 days. If the library fails to comply, the parent is entitled to $250 in statutory damages. Nothing in the law allows the library to challenge the charge that a book is harmful to minors.
As a result, some Idaho libraries have become entirely “adult only,” not admitting people under 18 years old without a parent present or a parent-signed permission slip waiving their right to sue under HB710.
A coalition of independent schools, libraries, parents, students, and patrons sued the state, seeking to block the enforcement of HB710 on 1st and 14th Amendment grounds:
On its face, the Act encompasses works of significant cultural, historical, literary and scientific import that are central to an informed education. Indeed, the broad language of the Act subjects the Private Entity Plaintiffs to suit for providing minors with health education textbooks, images of canonical works of art like Michelangelo’s David, significant works of literature like Toni Morrison’s The Bluest Eye, and even the Bible, if a Defendant or citizen complainant subjectively believes members of their community would find them offensive. The Constitution does not permit the State to engage in content-based censorship to mollify a community’s most sensitive and censorious members.
South Carolina
The South Carolina State Board of Education imposed new regulations in June that require every public school to remove all books that include “descriptions or visual depictions of ‘sexual conduct,’” no matter the intended age group. Under this standard, 18-year-olds are banned from reading common high school books like “The Color Purple” and “1984.”
The Board of Education is under the purview of the Department of Education, led by Superintendent Ellen Weaver—an ally of Moms for Liberty who spoke at their national conference last year.
The regulations were supposed to be voted on by the legislature before the regular session ended in May. However, lawmakers claim that they didn’t realize that not holding a vote would result in automatic approval of the regulations.
“We were all operating under the belief it would time out,” [Senate Education Chairman Greg Hembree] told the SC Daily Gazette…
As initially filed, the regulation itself indicated legislators had until March 2025 to reject or approve it. It was assumed — wrongly, it turned out — that the normal 120-day window wouldn’t apply once the regular session ended. And then someone — it’s not clear to the Gazette who — realized the language to stop that clock was missing from the legislation governing the session’s adjournment…
...if the regulation does cause problems, [Hembree] said, legislators will fix it when they return in January with a law that would override the agency’s regulation.
Parents of children in the public school system can challenge up to five books a month. If a local school board decides to keep the book in the library against the parent’s wishes, the parent can appeal to the State Board of Education. The Board’s decision to remove a book will apply to every public school in the state.
Tennessee
A new law took effect in Tennessee last month introducing a blanket ban on any books containing scenes with nudity, “sexual excitement,” “sexual conduct,” or “excess violence” in public schools. Like in South Carolina, the rule applies no matter the intended age group.
HB843, signed into law earlier this year by Gov. Bill Lee (R), also prohibits material that is “patently offensive” or “appeals to the prurient interest”—vague terms that can be used to ban books dealing with LGBTQ+ issues and racism. Moms for Liberty members spoke in favor of the law during hearings in June:
"I don't trust district leadership or the library science department," said Sheri Super, Chair of Knox County Moms for Liberty. "They are clearly aware that these materials are available in our school libraries and have done nothing about it."
Furthermore, school boards are required to evaluate all books challenged by parents within 60 days to determine “whether the material is appropriate for the age and maturity level of the students who may access the materials.” Failure to make a determination within 60 days will result in the Tennessee Textbook and Instructional Materials Quality Commission, staffed entirely by Republican appointees, making a decision for the district.