ANDREW ATTERBURY, Politico; Florida county restoring dozens of books to school libraries after ‘book ban’ lawsuit
"A northeast Florida school district this week agreed to restore 36 books that were challenged and previously pulled from campus libraries in a settlement of a federal lawsuit fighting how local officials carried out the state’s policies for shielding students from obscene content.
The settlement reached by Nassau County school officials and a group of parents, students and the authors of the removed children’s book “And Tango Makes Three” marks a significant twist in the ongoing legal battles surrounding Florida’s K-12 book restrictions, which have been derided as “book bans” by opponents. Under the agreement, that book and others such as the “The Bluest Eye” by Toni Morrison and the “The Clan of the Cave Bear” by Jean Auel will once again be available to students after being removed last year...
As part of the agreement, Nassau school officials acknowledged that “And Tango Makes Three” — a kids book about a penguin family at New York’s Central Park Zoo with two dads — contains no “obscene” material and is suitable for students of all ages. This book and the authors are also plaintiffs in a separate lawsuit challenging how the work was removed from school libraries in Escambia County, a case that remains ongoing.
These federal lawsuits target how local school boards are enacting policies crafted by Republican lawmakers and Gov. Ron DeSantis’ administration — specifically how parents and others can raise objections about potentially inappropriate books at schools."
