Iowa Asks Appeals Court to Bless Sweeping LGBTQ+ School Book Ban

Iowa is urging a federal appeals court to bless one of the country’s most sweeping school book bans, in a case that could reshape what students are allowed to read far beyond the state’s borders.

On Tuesday, a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit heard arguments over Iowa’s 2023 law, Senate File 496, which orders public schools to remove any library book with a description of a sex act and effectively sweeps in most titles with LGBTQ+ themes. The law also restricts classroom instruction on gender identity and sexual orientation in lower grades.

State Says Book Removal Is ‘Government Speech’

Iowa Solicitor General Eric Wessan asked the court to overturn lower-court orders that partially blocked the law, arguing that school library “curation” is itself government speech and therefore not protected by the First Amendment. Because libraries exist to “advance the curriculum,” he said, Iowa is not required to carry books that are “inconsistent” with that goal, according to reporting from Courthouse News Service.

U.S. District Judge Stephen Locher previously halted enforcement of the law’s library provisions, finding them facially unconstitutional because they forced schools to remove books that are neither pornographic nor obscene. He also called parts of the statute “unconstitutionally vague,” including a requirement to notify parents whenever a student seeks an accommodation that affirms their gender identity.

The law has already prompted districts to pull nearly 1,000 titles from shelves, from modern YA bestsellers to classics like 1984, Beloved and The Handmaid’s Tale, according to Iowa Public Radio. One federal judge in an earlier phase likened the statute to a “bulldozer,” criticizing how far beyond explicit sexual content it reaches.

Publishers, Authors and Students Push Back

The Eighth Circuit showdown stems from two major lawsuits. One was filed by Penguin Random House, HarperCollins, Hachette, Macmillan, Simon & Schuster and other publishers, along with bestselling author Jodi Picoult and several Iowa parents. The other came from Iowa Safe Schools, an LGBTQ+ advocacy group, on behalf of students and educators.

Attorney Frederick J. Sperling, representing the publishers, told the court that SF 496 “removes all of the discretion teachers and librarians historically had.” By applying a single standard from kindergarten through 12th grade, he said, the law requires districts to yank books that might be inappropriate for a kindergartner but vital for a high school senior preparing for college and civic life.

In briefs, opponents argue the state is misusing both the “government speech” doctrine and school-speech precedents, turning what is supposed to be local educational judgment into a rigid statewide mandate. The case is also unfolding against a larger backdrop of First Amendment battles, including how the Supreme Court’s recent Moody v. NetChoice decision shapes when governments can control access to information, as noted by the ACLU of Iowa.

The Iowa fight is one flashpoint in a national pattern of aggressive book challenges. Recent cases in Texas, Florida and Missouri have tested how far lawmakers can go before courts step in to protect readers’ rights, from a Supreme Court order that left Texas library removals in place to a Missouri ruling striking down a school book ban law. For a broader look at those trends, see our coverage of record school book bans and the earlier appeals crossroads for Iowa’s law.

Penguin Random House and its fellow plaintiffs warn that SF 496 is already limiting access to works by John Green, Jodi Picoult, Toni Morrison, George Orwell and many others with deep classroom and library readerships. With similar laws spreading and major authors now suing states from Utah to Florida, the Eighth Circuit’s eventual decision will be closely watched by publishers, librarians and readers worried about the future of school library shelves.