Students sue school over book banning

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) has filed a lawsuit on behalf of two young students against the Wentzville School Board in St. Louis, Missouri, claiming they violated civil rights by banning a handful of books from school libraries. 

The students in question were not identified as they are minors, but they have been referred to as C.K.-W and D.L. 

According to the class action lawsuit, the recent vote to ban certain books is part of a “targeted campaign by the St. Charles County Parents Association and No Left Turn in Education’s Missouri chapter to remove particular ideas and viewpoints about race and sexuality from school libraries.”

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Among the books banned are ‘The Bluest Eye’, a book that deals directly with racism from the point of view of a black character, by Pulitzer Prize winner Toni Morrison, as well as ‘Modern Romance’, a book penned by comedian Aziz Ansari. 

‘The Bluest Eye’ was removed last month after the school board voted in favor of a challenge regarding the novel’s inclusion of sexual and violent material. Other books have also been banned while they are under review by the school board. 

Tony Rothert, the director of advocacy for ACLU of Missouri, asserts that the school district’s actions do not equate to “just any old book burning” where “school districts disagree with the ideology of a book.”

“Here Wentzville has targeted and removed books that are from the perspective and viewpoint of racial or sexual minorities,” he said, according to the Associated Press.

The activist added that removing books while they are under review makes it too easy for anyone challenging published material to get their desired goal of a book being banned, at least temporarily. 

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