ELIZABETH, Colo. — The American Civil Liberties Union filed a federal lawsuit this week against the Elizabeth School District, alleging that the district’s book ban violates students’ freedom of speech.
At the beginning of this school year, the Elizabeth School District (ESD) Board of Education voted to take nearly two dozen books off its library shelves. In addition, more than 100 books were added to a sensitive topics list.
Under the protocol, parents can opt their children out of being able to check out books that have certain topics, including profanity/obscenity, racism/discrimination and religious viewpoints. Parents will also receive an email if their child does check out a book that’s in the “sensitive topic” catalog.
The sensitive topic book catalog includes “Anne Frank: Diary of a Young Girl,” “To Kill A Mockingbird,” and the Bible.
Education
Elizabeth School District takes 19 books off library shelves
The lawsuit was filed on behalf of an Elizabeth High School student, a preschool student in the district, the Rocky Mountain NAACP, and the Authors Guild. It argues the book ban violates federal and state rights to free speech.
“The real ask is to really take politics out of the decision-making for what kind of books children can read,” said ACLU’s legal director Tim Macdonald.
Read the lawsuit below:
Denver7 sat down with a woman with strong ties to the Elizabeth School District who hopes the lawsuit holds district leaders accountable. She asked that her identity be hidden due to a fear of retaliation.
“I feel that there’s a lot of discrimination. There’s a lot of hate,” she told Denver7. “I hope this is a start, and I hope it makes a difference because the heart of all of this is kids and the kids’ future. And the board and the superintendent aren’t true to that.”
In response to the lawsuit filed Thursday, Superintendent Dan Snowberger released this statement saying, “We are disappointed that the district is being tied up in a political attack. It intends to vigorously defend itself and decisions made in the best interest of our children.”
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