Press Release: Texas Freedom to Read Project Fights for Parents' Rights to Direct Children's Education & for Children's First Amendment Right to Read

September 14, 2024

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

September 14, 2024

(New Orleans, Louisiana)- On Tuesday September 10, 2024, Texas Freedom to Read Project (TXFTRP) filed an Amicus Brief with the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit in the case of Little, et al., v. Llano County, et al, a landmark case for parents’ rights and the freedom to read in public libraries.

TXFTRP co-founders Anne Russey, Frank Strong, and Laney Hawes–all currently raising school-aged children in Texas– have an especially vested interest in the outcome of this case. Laney Hawes explained, “The public library has always been a magical place for our family. It’s full of books with important diverse perspectives different from what my husband and I can share with our four children. The idea that any individual could simply come in and decide what is or isn’t acceptable for my children to read is chilling, and quite frankly, un-American.”

The case began when a group of individuals, led by Llano resident Bonnie Wallace, raised concerns about specific books in their local public library. These books were pulled from the library based on the challengers' personal disagreements with the viewpoints and ideas within their pages. The removal of the books quickly sparked a debate about the first amendment, parents’ rights, and censorship in public libraries. Soon after, seven library patrons sued Llano County library system officials and the county government, claiming that the removals were an “illegal government squelching of viewpoints.”

In their brief, TXFTP asserts, “Courts have held that an individual’s personal, religious, or social beliefs cannot justify a book’s removal from a library—yet in this case, defendants seek to do just that. The panel should reject these attempts to unconstitutionally restrain children’s First Amendment rights and parents’ right to direct their children’s education.”

TXFTRP acknowledges that parents in Texas may differ in opinion when deciding what’s best for their children. They explain in the brief, “It comes as no surprise that, in a world marred with political, religious, and social conflict, parents have differing views on what is ‘right’ or ‘wrong,’ and that these differences extend to a difference in opinion of what information is appropriate for a child to learn. These differences underline the importance of a parent’s right to choose the materials and methods for educating their child outside of a traditional curriculum. Indeed, it is up to parents—not elected officials and certainly not a neighborhood busybody— to decide what is orthodox for their children to read.”

The brief further reads, “Such is the beauty of a public library: it is open to all, including parents both concerned and unconcerned about any given book. Indeed, if a parent wishes to prevent her child from reading a particular book, that parent can and should accompany the child to the Library, and should not prevent all children in the community from gaining access to constitutionally protected materials.’”

TXFTRP co-founder Frank Strong shared, “Public libraries are a valuable resource and asset to communities and families. Protecting the freedom to read and access to a diverse and vibrant collection of ideas for all citizens, especially children, is vital to a well-informed citizenry in a healthy democracy. This case isn’t only about the specific books in Llano, the outcome of this case will have far-reaching implications for the freedom to read and for public libraries across America.”

TXFTRP continues to affirm the importance of protecting children from access to obscene materials, but warns in the brief, “The narrow doctrine of obscenity provides no cover for censorship motivated merely by intolerance to ideas with which one person disagrees.”

TXFTRP respectfully requests that the Court adopt the opinion of 5th Circuit Court Judge Wiener in full and require Llano County to return all banned books to the shelves of its public library. After the filing of the brief, TXFTRP co-founder Anne Russey shared, “Censorship has no place in a free society and we will continue to fight for the First Amendment rights of all Texans, but especially young readers.”

Click here for PDF of Amicus Brief

About Texas Freedom to Read Project

We strive to defend and protect the rights of Texans-especially students-to freely read and access information and ideas. We are parent-founded and parent-led. Our mission is to support, connect, and mobilize parent & community initiatives fighting against censorship and book bans in Texas.

Texas Freedom to Read Project thanks attorneys Katherine Raunikar and Sydney Rupe and their law firm Jordan, Lynch, and Cancienne PLLC for their generous work in preparing and filing the Amicus Brief with the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit on behalf of our organization. You can read the entire brief here.