Missouri librarians are suing over a new law that bans sexually explicit material from schools, leading to districts removing hundreds of books — including classic novels, human anatomy texts and Holocaust history books, according to a lawsuit filed in Jackson County Court.
The American Civil Liberties Union of Missouri is suing Jackson County Prosecutor Jean Peters Baker, in her role and as a representative of all county prosecutors across the state, on behalf of the Missouri Library Association and Missouri Association of School Librarians. The suit argues the law is unconstitutional, amounting to government censorship and the suppression of students’ First Amendment rights.
The law, which was approved last year as part of a larger bill addressing sexual assault survivors’ rights, threatens librarians or other school employees who violate it with a misdemeanor, risking up to a year in jail or a $2,000 fine.
