Judge strikes down key parts of Florida law that led to removal of books from school libraries
Judge strikes down key parts of Florida law that led to removal of books from school libraries
Judge strikes down key parts of Florida law that led to removal of books from school libraries
ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — A federal judge has struck down key parts of a Florida law that helped parents get books they found objectionable removed from public school libraries and classrooms. It is a victory for publishers and authors who had sued after their books were removed.
U.S. District Judge Carlos Mendoza in Orlando said in Wednesday’s ruling that the statute’s prohibition on material that described sexual conduct was overbroad.
Mendoza, who was appointed by President Barack Obama, also said that the state’s interpretation of the 2023 law was unconstitutional.
Among the books that had been removed from central Florida schools were classics like Margaret Atwood’s “The Handmaid’s Tale,” Richard Wright’s “Native Son” and Kurt Vonnegut’s “Slaughterhouse-Five.”
“Historically, librarians curate their collections based on their sound discretion not based on decrees from on high,” the judge said. “There is also evidence that the statute has swept up more non-obscene books than just the ones referenced here.”
Any science textbook that covers animal reproduction could be included in that ban, how stupid. But seeing as they mentioned Supreme Court precedent, it's a solid bet that it will be appealed so that precedent goes away.
You're really leaning into the theory that the material is taught in a meaningful way.
We're entering a phase of US education where students are either forcefed misinformation or told to sit quietly for fear of provoking another reactionary backlash
I mean this a state where their anti-bestiality law already have an explicit exception for "accepted animal husbandry practices", so I'm going to take a wild guess that they're not going to make any attempts to enforce it that way.
https://www.flsenate.gov/Session/Bill/2011/0344/BillText/er/HTML
(Though to be fair these kinds of exception exists in a surprisingly large number of states)