The ACLU of Texas last week sent a letter accusing San Antonio’s North East Independent School District of violating the First Amendment by permanently banning 110 books from its school libraries last month.
The April 20 letter, first reported locally by the Express-News, also accused the district of violating its own polices with the book removal. The ACLU demands that the district return the tomes to its shelves, apologize for its “grave missteps” and commit to educating its students on the United States’ “history of racism.”
“All books recommended for removal must be placed back on North East ISD shelves as swiftly as possible,” the ACLU writes. “If the district seeks to review any books for removal in the future, it must follow its written policy for doing so.”
In a letter to the ACLU shared Monday with the Current, lawyers representing NEISD denied allegations that the books recommended for removal was discriminatory in nature.
“It is not an effort to marginalize or discriminate against any groups, and it is certainly not the book burning scene from the movie Footloose,” the district responded. “Instead, it has been a measured effort to ensure, among other things, that books on shelves are age appropriate considering the material in the book.”
The ACLU argues that NEISD removed the material in response to a list of 850-plus books sent to the Texas Education Agency by crusading conservative State Rep. Matt Krause. In an October letter accompanying the list, the North Texas Republican — who happens to be running for Tarrant County district attorney — demanded that districts reveal which of the books they posses and the number of copies.
Although Krause has yet to disclose how he compiled his list, he did say the targeted books “might make students feel discomfort, guilt, anguish or any other form of psychological distress because of their race or sex.”
In a letter to parents, NEISD Superintendent Sean Maika initially said the district’s review was to ensure the titles didn’t contain “obscene or vulgar materials,” adding that he believed “the vast majority of those books are appropriate.”
After three months of review, however, the district announced at a March board meeting that 110 of the books under consideration would be removed due to “poor professional reviews” and replaced with “newer editions” that include updated content.
However, most of the titles now banned by North East ISD include themes involving the LQBTQ+ community, reproductive rights and racism — and most have stellar reviews, the ACLU said its letter. Although Maika assured parents the recommended replacements would involve the “very same topics,” the civil rights organization argues otherwise.
One such instance highlighted in the ACLU letter is the removal of The Miseducation of Cameron Post — a story about a teenager sent to a gay-conversion camp after her family becomes aware of her romantic relationship with her best friend. Although the book got rave reviews on Amazon, NEISD instead suggested replacing the title with Just Lucky, a book with mixed reviews about a teen placed in foster care after her grandmother with dementia accidentally sets the house on fire.
NEISD also pulled “The Year They Burned the Books,” a story that discusses sex education and homophobia, according to the ACLU letter.
Citing a 1943 Supreme Court ruling, the ACLU argues that removing these books violates students’ First Amendment rights. Additionally, the group argues the ban runs against the district’s own policies, which state that books may not be removed to deny students access to ideas with which it disagrees.
In their letter to the ACLU, lawyers representing NEISD denied allegations that the book removal was discriminatory in nature, adding that Maika had planned on reviewing the books available in school libraries well before Krause’s letter.
The district’s letter also noted that individuals are free to challenge the administration’s decision to remove a specific book title if they please. So far, no challenges have been filed, according to district officials.
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This article appears in Apr 20 – May 3, 2022.
