Florida school district to restore LGBTQ+ books after settlement

Lauren Taylor

IN A LANDMARK SETTLEMENT, A FLORIDA SCHOOL DISTRICT HAS AGREED TO RETURN 36 BOOKS WITH LGBTQ+ CONTENT TO ITS LIBRARY SHELVES — RESOLVING A FEDERAL LAWSUIT THAT CHALLENGED THEIR REMOVAL.

NASSAU COUNTY’S SCHOOL DISTRICT HAS REACHED AN AGREEMENT TO RESTORE PREVIOUSLY BANNED BOOKS TO LIBRARIES, INCLUDING THE BOOK AT THE CENTER OF THE CASE TITLED “AND TANGO MAKES THREE.”

“TANGO” IS THE STORY OF TWO MALE PENGUINS LIVING AT THE CENTRAL PARK ZOO AND RAISING A BABY CHICK TOGETHER.

NASSAU COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICT ARGUED IT HAD THE RIGHT TO REMOVE THE BOOKS FROM SCHOOL LIBRARIES AFTER parents and activists ARGUED THEY CONTAINED INAPPROPRIATE OR OFFENSIVE MATERIAL.

IN THE LAWSUIT, TANGO’S AUTHORS ARGUED THE FLORIDA SCHOOL DISTRICT HAD VIOLATED THEIR FIRST AMENDMENT RIGHT TO FREE SPEECH.

A LAWYER REPRESENTING THE AUTHORS, PARENTS AND STUDENTS IN THE CASE SAID “THIS SETTLEMENT—A WATERSHED MOMENT IN THE ONGOING BATTLE AGAINST BOOK CENSORSHIP IN THE UNITED STATES—SIGNIFICANTLY RESTORES ACCESS TO IMPORTANT WORKS THAT WERE UNLAWFULLY REMOVED FROM THE SHELVES OF NASSAU COUNTY, FLORIDA’S PUBLIC SCHOOL LIBRARIES.”

ALL PREVIOUSLY REMOVED BOOKS WILL RETURN TO LIBRARY SHELVES, WITH SPECIFIC ACCESS RESTRICTIONS FOR CERTAIN TITLES, INCLUDING ‘THE KITE RUNNER’ AND ‘BELOVED,’ WHICH WILL REQUIRE PARENTAL CONSENT OR AN AGE RESTRICTION OF 18 YEARS AND OLDER.

SIMILAR DISPUTES PERSIST ELSEWHERE, INCLUDING AN UNRESOLVED LAWSUIT IN ESCAMBIA COUNTY OVER ‘AND TANGO MAKES THREE.’

FOR SAN, I’M LT.