23 state and national groups support efforts to block Iowa's book ban law in court

Chris Higgins, Des Moines Register
Updated ·2 min read

Nearly two dozen statewide and national organizations have filed documents in court to support groups who oppose an Iowa education law that bans books and restricts curriculum about gender identity and sexual orientation.

Two separate but overlapping federal lawsuits against the state and various public officials — one led by publisher Penguin Random House and authors whose books have been removed, the other led by the American Civil Liberties Union and LGBTQ advocacy group Iowa Safe Schools — are challenging Senate File 496, a sweeping education law signed by Gov. Kim Reynolds last year.

Among many other things, the law prohibits books that depict or describe sex acts from schools, except religious texts, and bars curriculum or instruction about gender identity and sexual orientation in younger grades. Federal district court judge Stephen Locher blocked enforcement of those two parts of the law in December.

More: Iowa Poll: Half say new law requiring schools to ban books depicting sex acts goes too far

The two lawsuits remain pending in court, and the state of Iowa has appealed the judge's decision to block enforcement.

In recent days, several statewide and national organizations have filed amicus briefs in appeals court to support upholding the district court injunction, which would keep the enforcement block in place while the lawsuits continue. An amicus brief allows an outside individual or group to offer information or an argument that could be relevant to the judge in a case.

The following groups filed amicus briefs in support of the plaintiffs in one or both of the lawsuits, according to online court records:

  • PEN American Center

  • American Booksellers for Free Expression

  • Association of American Publishers

  • The Authors Guild

  • Comic Book Legal Defense Fund

  • Educational Book and Media Association

  • Freedom to Learn Advocates

  • Half Price Books, Records, Magazines, Inc.

  • Independent Book Publishers Association

  • National Press Photographers Association

  • National Writers Union

  • Sisters in Crime

  • National Education Association

  • Freedom to Read Foundation

  • Iowa Library Association

  • American Association of School Librarians

  • Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression

  • One Iowa

  • League of Women Voters of Iowa

  • The Trevor Project

  • GLSEN

  • Iowa School Counselor Association

  • Constitutional Law Professors at Law Schools Throughout the Eighth Circuit

Chris Higgins covers the eastern and northern suburbs for the Register. Reach him at chiggins@registermedia.com or 515-423-5146 and follow him on Twitter @chris_higgins_.

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: National groups support efforts to block Iowa's book ban law SF496