As Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis continues his censorship rampage in schools, public libraries and elsewhere, best-selling author John Green and major publishing houses have filed a lawsuit in return. In August, several authors and publishing houses filed a federal complaint against law HB 1069 that simplifies the process of banning books that contain “sexual conduct” or “pornographic” content.
Big five publishers Harper Collins, Macmillan, Penguin Random House, Simon & Schuster and Hachette, along with SourceBooks, John Green, and author Julia Alvarez all complained that the bill violates their First Amendment rights. The Florida Department of Education told reporters the lawsuit was just a “stunt” and that no books are actually banned in Florida.
However, around the state schools are removing books from shelves. Pink News reports that Charlotte County removed books with LGBTQ+ characters and themes from classrooms, libraries, and college campuses in September of last year, a move meant to comply with a bill HB 1557. This law allows for book bans as a fundamental right of parents to be notified as to what content their child is reading at school.
This would not be the first time the state has claimed they don’t ban books despite plenty of evidence otherwise. In 2022, 21 of 67 Florida counties banned books. In a post on X, Green writes: “I am among those suing the state of Florida to end the state’s unconstitutional and deeply un-American banning of books. The removal of my books (and so many others) from hundreds of libraries is a despicable attack on intellectual freedom in the U.S.”
Publishers not only challenged the state this year, but last fall the big five filed a suit against Escambia County for their removal of thousands of books from local schools.
