A Tennessee judge denied a temporary injunction last week that would have required Rutherford County Schools to restore over 145 books to its library.
In April, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Tennessee sued the school district after it started removing books from its library.
The ACLU represented three anonymous students and their families and PEN America, which is a left-of-center free speech nonprofit, in the case.
In the lawsuit, the plaintiffs alleged their First Amendment rights were being violated by the school district for removing or restricting books, which included topics about race, gender identity, and sexual orientation.
The students alleged their First Amendment rights are being violated because it is preventing them from receiving information. PEN America claimed its members’ First Amendment rights to free expression were being violated because the book bannings interfere “with author members’ ability to share their constitutionally protected books free from viewpoint-based discrimination.”
Rutherford County Schools’ libraries started to remove books in the spring of 2024 without approval of the school board, but rather through “informal requests by board members and director of schools,” the lawsuit said.
The books were removed because the school district “believed their content” violated Tennessee law that prevents the distribution of harmful material to minors, the lawsuit noted.
Some of the books removed from libraries included “All Boys Aren’t Blue,” “Melissa,” and “Homegoing.”
“All Boys Aren’t Blue,” written by George M. Johnson, was the most-challenged book in school libraries in 2024, according to the American Library Association. This book is about Johnson’s life growing up as a queer black man on the East Coast.
“Melissa” is a book about a biological boy who thinks he is a girl. The book discusses how a biological male who identifies as female navigates fourth grade. Alex Gino is the author of this book.
“Homegoing” details two Ghanaian half-sisters in the 18th century whose descendants’ lives took different trajectories. The book discusses the effects of slavery and colonialism on their descendants who live in Africa and America. Yaa Gyasi is the author of this book.
In her ruling, Judge Eli Richardson said the plaintiffs failed to meet the four legal requirements for a preliminary injunction.
“The only issue before the Court is whether Plaintiffs have satisfied the legal requirements underlying a request for a preliminary injunction. For the foregoing reasons, the Court finds that Plaintiffs have not satisfied all of them,” the judge stated.
Richardson said the plaintiffs were not likely to win their First Amendment claims because the book removals were concerned about “legitimate pedagogical concerns.”
The judge said the county removed these books “from a desire to comply with state law.”
Richardson also noted the plaintiffs failed to identify how students were prevented from being able to access these books. She stated the books are available in other areas, “such as public libraries or personal access.”
“The harm asserted by Plaintiffs—although significant in theory—has not been shown to be immediate, personal, and irreparable under established standards,” the judge wrote.
Richardson stated if she were to issue a preliminary injunction, then she would be interfering with the right of the Rutherford County School Board to control its own library content.
On top of this, the plaintiffs did not show how any concrete harm would come to students who couldn’t temporarily access these books, the judge said.
“Plaintiffs’ delay in bringing suit, whatever its cause, undercuts their claim of irreparable harm,” Richardson wrote.
Due to Richardson not finding the plaintiffs showing likely First Amendment violations, she said the public interest is in preventing minors from seeing explicit content.
The ruling came from the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee.
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Zachery Schmidt is the digital editor of The Star News Network. Email tips to Zachery at zschmidt1717@gmail.com.|
