Penguin Random House, Hachette Book Group, HarperCollins, Macmillan, Simon & Schuster, Sourcebooks, authors Malinda Lo, David Levithan, and Dashka Slater, and others have filed a lawsuit in Idaho challenging the book removal provisions of a law signed last July that restricts books in public and school libraries. The Idaho law, called HB 710, forbids anyone under the age of 18 from accessing library books that contain "sexual content," regardless of the work's literary or educational merit; the law's definition of sexual content is "broad, vague, and overtly discriminatory," the plaintiffs said.
The law allows county prosecuting attorneys and the state attorney general to bring claims against any school or public library and "incentivizes private citizens to file legal complaints against public libraries or schools through a bounty system." The plaintiffs noted that "many libraries, including those in rural areas that are the sole book providers in their communities, cannot afford to be sued because they cannot cover the cost of a defense."
Plaintiffs charged that the law has "resulted in a chilling effect across the state, with libraries preemptively removing hundreds of books from their shelves. Some libraries have been forced to ban minors from their premises entirely because [the libraries] are too small to segregate 'adult' books. One such case is the Donnelly Public Library, a plaintiff in the lawsuit, which has restricted access to its building for anyone under 18 unless they are accompanied by a parent or guardian."
Plaintiffs said the law has been applied to "classics such as Kurt Vonnegut's Slaughterhouse-Five, Toni Morrison's The Bluest Eye, Margaret Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale, and Maya Angelou's I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings; and bestsellers including Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin, I'll Give You the Sun by Jandy Nelson, The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky, and Forever... by Judy Blume." The law also affects nonfiction, "imperiling access to factual resources such as The "What's Happening to My Body?" Book for Girls by Lynda Madaras, and erasing history by removing books about the Holocaust and other historical events. The law makes no distinction between infants and 17-year-olds--books are classified as harmful regardless of the age and maturity level of the child."
Plaintiffs seek to have the court to declare the law "unconstitutional under the First and Fourteenth Amendments, issue preliminary and permanent injunctions barring its enforcement, and award plaintiffs their costs and attorneys' fees."
Michael Grygiel, an adjunct faculty member with Cornell Law School's First Amendment Clinic, the lead legal representation in the suit, said that the law "has resulted in the removal of classic works of literature from library shelves across Idaho as libraries attempt to protect themselves from liability under the law's vague and overbroad provisions. This type of self-censorship is inimical to First Amendment liberties and has suffocated the right of Idaho students to read books deemed appropriate for their age and maturity level by their parents. In short, the law is an affront to the Constitution. It is a privilege to represent the publishers, authors, libraries, parents, and students who have joined this lawsuit to challenge HB 710 and stand up for the First Amendment rights of all Idaho citizens."
Dan Novack, v-p, associate general counsel at Penguin Random House, emphasized that "Idaho 710 goes even further than previous laws by removing classic books from public libraries in addition to schools."
Penguin Random House, Hachette Book Group, HarperCollins Publishers, Macmillan Publishers, Simon & Schuster, and Sourcebooks have also filed lawsuits against Iowa and Florida public officials, and Penguin Random House is a plaintiff in a lawsuit filed with PEN America against the Escambia County (Florida) School District over books that have been unconstitutionally removed.
In a memo to staff and authors, PRH CEO Nihar Malaviya wrote in part, "This is the third historic lawsuit we've initiated against book banning in just over a year. I want to take this moment to state, in no uncertain terms, that Penguin Random House will unequivocally stand up for free expression and work to protect the right to read. These values go hand in hand with our ongoing goal of increasing the content we're acquiring, publishing, and promoting by creators of all backgrounds and identities. Publishing books that reflect the world we live in is not only necessary for us to truly deliver on our mission to create books for everyone--it is the best way to position ourselves to continue to grow as a business, and the very foundation of who we are and what we do."