ACLU of Colorado sues Elizabeth school district over book ban

The ACLU of Colorado filed a federal lawsuit against the Elizabeth School District over book bans Thursday, alleging the district’s actions violated federal and state free speech protections.

The district, which is in Elbert County, east of Douglas County, 19 books were banned from school libraries in August after an educational committee reviewed the books for things like graphic violence, racism/discrimination, ideas of self-harm or mental illness, and sexual content.

The plaintiffs argue that the removal of these books violates both the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution and the Free Speech Clause of the Colorado Constitution. THE trial said the ban deprives students of access to a diversity of information and viewpoints. He said book removals deprive authors of their right to share their books with students without censorship based on their views.

“The school district and school board members are trying to impose their own partisan political orthodoxy,” said Tim Macdonald, legal director of the ACLU of Colorado. “They are trying to prevent children from having the opportunity to learn ideas and principles that conflict with their partisan ideology and the courts and the Constitution say that is not possible.”

The ACLU of Colorado represents CC, a student at Elizabeth High School, ES, a student in the district, the Rocky Mountain NAACP and Authors Guild, a national professional organization of writers that advocates for free speech and protection of copyright.

The district received the lawsuit Thursday afternoon.

“We are disappointed that the district is the victim of a political attack,” said Superintendent Dan Snowberger. “He intends to vigorously defend himself and make decisions in the best interests of our children.”

Political change within the school board

Elizabeth’s board meetings were peaceful and businesslike until the 2021 board elections, when ideological and religious influences began. amplify and divide the small neighborhood. Some board members resigned while remaining members pledged to instill “conservative values” in the district. The lawsuit alleges that many parents fear being bullied or harassed if they publicly express views that do not align with those of the board.

At an August board meeting, board member Mary Powell said the board’s actions did not constitute a book ban.

“They are not on our shelves because we believe they are not following the educational protocols that we believe in for this district,” she said.

As part of the process of identifying so-called “sensitive” books earlier this year, the committee identified 19 books that the school board considered “highly sensitive” and which should be “suspended” from school libraries. He placed them outside the meeting room, away from the public, to give their opinions. The school board announced in September that “suspended” books would be permanently removed from school libraries.

The lawsuit says the board failed to return the books to the library because they contained same-sex relationships, included LGBTQ+ characters, discussed racism, involved police brutality or called board members “disgusting.”

The 19 books are:

• “The Hate You Give” by Angie Thomas
• “Beloved” by Toni Morrison
• “The Bluest Eye” by Toni Morrison
• “The Kite Runner” by Khaled Hosseini
• “You Should See Me With a Crown” by Leah Johnson
• “#Pride: defending LGBTQ rights” by Rebecca Felix
• “George/Mélissa” by Alex Gino,
• “It’s your world: if you don’t like it, change it” by Mikki Halpin
• “The Perks of Being a Wallflower” by Stephen Chbosky
• “Thirteen Reasons Why” by Jay Asher
• “In Search of Alaska” by John Green
• “Nineteen minutes” by Jodie Picoult
• “Crank”, “Glass”, “Fallout”, “Identical”, “Burned” and “Smoke”, all by Ellen Hopkins
• “Speak” by Laurie Anderson was never returned to the library but is banned.

Macdonald said the ban disproportionately targets books written by and about black and brown people and LGBTQ+ people.

He said it’s important that students have access to a wide range of authors and decide for themselves which books they like and which books they don’t. Macdonald said students in the Elizabeth district told him, “This list of banned books made me feel like I didn’t belong, that who I was wasn’t seen or heard.” or that it was somehow inappropriate or wrong for them to somehow be a part of this community.

“It’s tragic,” Macdonald said. “This is not what a school district should be.”

He said that while the district has discretion on certain circular issues, it cannot block students’ access to information contained in their school libraries based on the board’s policy preferences or views expressed by the authors.

The lawsuit also includes the Rocky Mountain chapter of the NAACP. The lawsuit says members include parents of students who attended Elizabeth Schools but left because of restrictions on students’ access to books. A Black fifth grader is an avid reader who enjoys exploring different perspectives and cultures through books.

“As one of the few Black students in her class, it is important to her that she and her peers have access to stories by Black authors about Black characters. »

The student was enrolled at Running Creek Elementary School until November.

“Sensitive books”

The board also voted to place an additional 100 pounds on a “sensitive topics” list. If a student views one of these books, such as “The Diary of a Young Girl” by Anne Frank, a parent can choose to be notified when their child views a “sensitive” book, according to the district.

The lawsuit claims there is no way for a parent to opt out of receiving notifications about their children viewing sensitive books.

“It’s their right to know what their child is testing for,” school board Director Mary Powell said at a summer board meeting. “We need to be sure to protect our students from controversial topics. »

Books on the “sensitive” list include “The Catcher in the Rye,” “The Hunger Games,” “To Kill a Mockingbird,” “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings” and several books on religion, including the Bible and the Koran. Powell considered the books on the list to be “beyond any educational value.”

Some of the books on the “sensitive” list are books about the Holocaust that were used by Elizabeth’s teachers.

Additionally, the district prohibits students from sharing books.

The lawsuit also alleges that a teacher was threatened with termination and left his job because he was unwilling to remove books from his classroom library, including “To Be a Slave” and “The Giver.” .

In 2023, 142 titles were challenged in 12 attempts to restrict access to books in Colorado public libraries, almost the same number as in the border state of Utah, according to data of the American Library Association.