We know that lawsuits will be the way forward in challenging legislation meant to ban books at the local and state level. Today, several major publishers, alongside authors, students, parents, and others, filed a new lawsuit in the state of Florida over provisions in the state’s House Bill 1069. Those provisions restrict books in school libraries.
Publishers Penguin Random House, Hachette Book Group, HarperCollins Publishers, Macmillan Publishers, Simon & Schuster, and Sourcebooks, alongside authors Julia Alvarez, Laurie Halse Anderson, John Green, Jodi Picoult, and Angie Thomas are among those pursing litigation against public officials in the state. Also involved in the case are the Authors Guild, two parents, and two students.
“As publishers dedicated to protecting freedom of expression and the right to read, the rise in book bans across the country continues to demand our collective action. Fighting unconstitutional legislation in Florida and across the country is an urgent priority,” the publishers said in a joint statement. “We are unwavering in our support for educators, librarians, students, authors, readers—everyone deserves access to books and stories that show different perspectives and viewpoints.”
The lawsuit points to the requirement that school libraries remove any and all material that can be considered “sexual content.” The educational value of the material does not need to be taken into consideration, nor does the work as a whole need to be considered. This means materials do not need to fail the Supreme Court designated Miller Test for obscenity in order to be removed. HB 1069 allows for a parent or resident of a county to file a complaint about a book and the school must remove it from shelves within five days. The material will continue to be inaccessible until a resolution–keeping, removing, or otherwise restricting it–is found. If the person who filed the complaint is unhappy with the outcome, they can then appeal that to a state-appointed magistrate who is empowered to make a determination on the material’s “appropriateness.”
“Book bans censor authors’ voices, negating and silencing their lived experience and stories,” said Mary Rasenberger, CEO of the Authors Guild. “These bans have a chilling effect on what authors write about, and they damage authors’ reputations by creating the false notion that there is something unseemly about their books. Yet, these same books have edified young people for decades, expanding worlds and fostering self-esteem and empathy for others. We all lose out when authors’ truths are censored.”
The bill, which went into effect in July 2023, has led to the removal of hundreds of books state wide.
“Florida HB 1069’s complex and overbroad provisions have created chaos and turmoil across the state, resulting in thousands of historic and modern classics—works we are proud to publish—being unlawfully labeled obscene and removed from shelves,” said Dan Novack, VP, Associate General Counsel at Penguin Random House. “Students need access to books that reflect a wide range of human experiences to learn and grow. It’s imperative for the education of our young people that teachers and librarians be allowed to use their professional expertise to match our authors’ books to the right reader at the right time in their life.”
This lawsuit focuses on both the House Bill’s violation of the Miller Test. It hopes to restore the right for trained professionals in the education system–library workers and teachers–to do their job without the state’s interference.
It is not the first lawsuit filed in the state of Florida over the removal of books from school shelves by a publishing house. Penguin Random House and PEN America are currently suing Escambia County Schools for their removal of more than a thousand books from shelves. Penguin Random House, Hachette Book Group, HarperCollins Publishers, Macmillan Publishers, Simon & Schuster, and Sourcebooks also filed a lawsuit against Iowa officials over the state’s SF 496, which a federal appeals court allowed to go into effect (and has led to the removal of dozens of books statewide, including 50 at Dubuque Schools this week).