Combating Censorship through Legal Measures

Taking a Stand Against Censorship: Our Legal Initiatives

The act of censoring books through bans is a direct challenge not only to democracy and our constitutional rights but also to our commitment of providing books for all individuals.

For this reason, we are actively defending the freedom of books in the court of law. Below, we offer insights into our ongoing legal actions. As the discourse surrounding book bans continues to gain momentum nationwide, we remain dedicated to sharing updates on the efforts undertaken by Penguin Random House.

PEN America v. Escambia County School District

In a groundbreaking move on May 17, 2023, Penguin Random House collaborated with PEN America, a champion of free expression, authors, and concerned parents to initiate a unique lawsuit. This legal action asserts that the Escambia County School Board in Florida unlawfully restricted access to books addressing themes of race, racism, and LGBTQ+ identities. The lawsuit contends that these removals and restrictions of books violate the First Amendment, further asserting a violation of the Equal Protection Clause of the Constitution. This is rooted in the disproportionate targeting of books by non-white and/or LGBTQ+ authors, often centered around themes of race or LGBTQ+ identity. Authors involved in the suit, including Sarah Brannen, David Levithan, George M. Johnson, Ashley Hope Pérez, and Kyle Lukoff, have experienced removals or access restrictions to their works by the district.

A noteworthy development occurred on July 21, 2023, when an amended complaint was filed. This expanded the lawsuit to include the participation of five additional parents, bolstering the federal lawsuit's unprecedented nature. The case now includes seven parent plaintiffs and represents ten children from diverse backgrounds spanning elementary, middle, and high school levels.

Little v. Llano County

In a collaborative effort, Penguin Random House united with the Association of American Publishers (AAP), Candlewick Press, Hachette Book Group, HarperCollins Publishers, Macmillan Publishers, and Simon & Schuster to file an amicus brief on June 2, 2023. This brief supports the patrons of the Llano County Library System in Llano County, Texas, in the case of Little v. Llano County. This lawsuit alleges that public officials violated patrons' constitutional rights under the First Amendment by prohibiting books based on their content and viewpoints. The case addresses the actions taken by members of the Llano County Commissioners Court, members of the Llano County Library Board, and the Llano County Library System Director. They removed 17 books from the library system, which included beloved children’s books as well as culturally significant works like Caste by Isabel Wilkerson, Being Jazz by Jazz Jennings, and Gabi, a Girl in Pieces by Isabel Quintero.

Arkansas Act 372

Additionally, as an AAP member, Penguin Random House joined forces with other booksellers, librarians, and readers to challenge Arkansas Act 372 through a coalition lawsuit. This act would restrict access to books in bookstores and libraries within the state of Arkansas, potentially penalizing those who make these restricted books available to the public. As of July 29, 2023, Arkansas has been temporarily restrained from enforcing this law.

Texas HB 900

On July 25, 2023, The American Association of Publishers, in which Penguin Random House is a member, collaborated with two Texas booksellers, American Booksellers Association, Authors Guild, and Comic Book Legal Defense Fund, to file a legal challenge against “The Reader Act” (previously Texas HB 900). This lawsuit contends that the bill, which mandates Texas school library material vendors to label books based on sexual content, infringes upon the First and Fourteenth Amendments.

Under this act, vendors, including local and national bookstores, would have to gauge “current community standards of decency” and assign labels like “sexually relevant” or “sexually explicit” to books and library materials. This act disregards the established rights of local communities to determine school material standards within constitutional bounds, compelling private businesses to engage in state-sanctioned censorship or face consequences. The lawsuit seeks preliminary and permanent injunctions to prevent the implementation of the law, signed by the Governor of Texas and set to take effect on September 1, 2023.

The lawsuit argues that this bill violates the First and Fourteenth Amendments by compelling speech, imposing unconstitutional prior restraints, regulating speech with vague and overly broad terms, imposing unconstitutional content-based restrictions, delegating speech regulation to private entities, and infringing upon due process rights for those affected to object, appeal, claim damages, or seek judicial content label determinations and distribution restrictions.