Penguin Random House and Iowa Education Association File Lawsuit to Keep Sexually Explicit Books on School Shelves
Major publisher Penguin Random House and the Iowa State Education Association have filed a lawsuit against Iowa State Board of Education officials in an effort to keep sexually explicit books on school library shelves.
The lawsuit, filed on Thursday, claims that a state law banning pornographic books in schools is unconstitutional.
The law in question, SF496, was signed by Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds in May. It states that books discussing gender identity are prohibited in kindergarten through sixth grade. It also prohibits books containing descriptions or visuals of sex acts across all grades.
“First, under the pretext of protecting students from ‘pornography,’ Senate File 496 prohibits books in school libraries and classroom collections that contain a description or visual depiction of a ‘sex act,’” the lawsuit states.
