A letter has more than 40 signatures from advocacy groups and authors of books removed by the state.
Major publishers and authors are suing Florida over its book ban law
Major publishers and authors are suing Florida over its law banning books deemed to have sexual content, saying the law violates free speech.
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- Florida school districts removed dozens of books deemed “pornographic” by the state attorney general, prompting advocacy groups to accuse officials of violating First Amendment rights.
- Groups requested the Florida Legislature’s Joint Administrative Procedures Committee investigate the removal of books without proper review.
- School boards removed books without review after pressure from state officials, including the attorney general and education commissioner.
Advocacy groups accused Florida officials of violating First Amendment rights and undermining the state’s review process for library books after school districts across Florida removed dozens of books the state’s attorney general called “pornographic.”
In a June 17 letter, a coalition of advocacy groups and authors of books prohibited in Florida school libraries asked the Florida Legislature’s Joint Administrative Procedures Committee to investigate the orders for local school districts to objectionable library books, without conducting a review process under state law.
The Joint Administrative Procedures Committee is a committee made up of seven House and seven Senate members. It oversees the executive branch and its actions, which includes the governor and the attorney general, and it ensures that statutes and state procedures are followed in state directives.
“The actions of these appointed state officials not only undermine the rule of law but also set a dangerous precedent for censorship without accountability,” the letter read. “We ask you to defend the rights of Florida’s students, teachers, and communities by ensuring the law is respected.”
The letter comes after State Board of Education members scrutinized a Hillsborough County superintendent for keeping “pornographic and inappropriate books” in its schools. Attorney General James Uthmeier and Education Commissioner Manny Diaz Jr. wrote letters to the superintendent, mounting the pressure on book removals.
This book review process is outlined in a Florida law signed by Gov. Ron DeSantis in 2023, which granted parents the ability to object library materials in schools through the School Board, who houses media specialists and review committees to evaluate challenged books. The board would then decide to approve the parent’s appeal or to remove or restrict the book from library shelves.
Yet in recent weeks, school districts have pulled titles from the state’s list of more than 50 objectionable books. The letter said school boards across the state have acted in caution and removed the books without any review process, per directives from the state education board.
The letter has more than 40 signatures from advocacy groups, such as the American Civil Liberties Union of Florida, PEN America, the Florida Freedom to Read Project and the American Library Association. Some of the signatures are also authors of the books in the state’s list, including Ellen Hopkins who wrote “Tilt” and “Tricks” and Malinda Lo who wrote “Last Night at the Telegraph Club.”
The Florida Joint Administrative Procedures Committee is pending comment. One of the alternating Republican chairs, Sen. Erin Grall, previously sponsored a bill that established the “Parents’ Bill of Rights” in 2021. This gave parents the right to access and learn about education materials and books in schools.
Books swept off shelves statewide
Public school districts across Florida pulled dozens of library books after Hillsborough superintendent Van Ayres was grilled by the state board of education over some library materials in schools.
In heated questioning, state education board members told Ayres on June 4 that the books listed by the state as inappropriate did not need a review process to be pulled off shelves.
After that meeting, the Orange County School Board removed 13 books in a June 10 meeting, but the board was largely critical of state officials, saying that officials were infringing First Amendment rights by not allowing the books to undergo its review process by law.
“Today it’s books, tomorrow it could be something else,” said Angie Gallo, an Orange County school board member.
In Osceola County, officials removed 14 books to comply with state directives, said district spokesperson Dana Schafer. Santa Rosa County also pulled six books to comply with state orders, said Nadia Colin, a spokesperson in the district.
St. Johns County superintendent Tim Forson directed school officials June 16 to remove four titles from the state’s list, per emails received through a public records request. These books included “A Stolen Life” by Jaycee Dugard and “Storm and Fury” by Jennifer Armentrout.
“Moving forward, the SJCSD will not add to our book collection any title deemed inappropriate by the Florida Board of Education,” Forson wrote.
In a June 17 meeting, Escambia County school board members removed three books from the state’s list, saying they were complying with orders from the attorney general to remove “inappropriate” materials.
Florida’s book ban record
Florida public schools have been central in book restriction debates nationwide, since its schools have been a significant increase in book removals.
DeSantis, however, disagrees with the accusation that Florida bans books. For years, DeSantis has defended the book review process to be a procedure that empowers parents to prevent their child from reading “inappropriate” materials in classrooms.
Florida’s former attorney general, Ashley Moody, wrote in a 2023 legal brief that public school libraries convey the government’s message. His administration has doubled down on this argument repeatedly, saying the removal of books in public schools falls under “government speech” not “free expression.” Moody was appointed to the U.S. Senate earlier this year, and former DeSantis chief of staff Uthmeier filled her role.
Driven by legislation and support from the DeSantis administration, state public schools focus on empowering parents to challenge materials considered inappropriate, which has led to removing thousands of books with LGBTQ+ themes or focuses on race.
The state’s action against books, including classic literature, lead nationwide controversy, where critics and advocacy groups claim Florida violates First Amendment rights by censoring book titles.
In November, PEN America, a free speech group, reported Florida having the most book bans in the nation. At the time, it said Florida had more than 4,500 instances of books being removed from classroom libraries, removed pending a review or restricted based on grade or parental permission.
This reporting content is supported by a partnership with Freedom Forum and Journalism Funding Partners. USA Today Network-Florida First Amendment reporter Stephany Matat is based in Tallahassee, Fla. She can be reached at SMatat@gannett.com. On X: @stephanymatat.
