DoJ and 16 states back lawsuit targeting LGBTQ+ book ban in Georgia schoolsCourt briefs outline how book ban creates hostile environment including discrimination based on sex
Link to Full ArticleThe Guardian - Timothy Pratt
Fri 30 Aug 2024 07.00 EDT
Plaintiffs in a federal lawsuit that says censorship laws and policies in Georgia schools are unconstitutional and negatively affect both teachers and gender-nonconforming students have been backed by the US Department of Justice, 16 states and the District of Columbia.
The justice department's brief asserts that "the United States has a significant interest in ensuring that teachers, who often possess unique and direct knowledge of discrimination experienced by students in their schools, can speak out about what they reasonably and in good faith believe to be a hostile educational environment based on sex, without fear of reprisal".
The 16 states – including California, Michigan and New York – and Washington DC argue that Cobb county's "ban of LGBTQ topics in classrooms lacks a legitimate pedagogical purpose, rendering it constitutionally suspect". The states also assert that such policies cause harm to children and impede learning, which could then affect other jurisdictions if those same children and their families move out of Georgia.
The lawsuit alleges that the county's actions violated Title IX, the federal law prohibiting discrimination on the basis of sex in federally funded educational settings; the equal protection clause of the 14th amendment; and first amendment free speech rights.----------