this post was submitted on 01 Dec 2023
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The nation’s largest publisher and several bestselling authors, including novelists John Green and Jodi Picoult, are part of a lawsuit filed Thursday challenging Iowa’s new law that bans public school libraries and classrooms from having practically any book that depicts sexual activity.

The lawsuit is the second in the past week to challenge the law, which bans books with sexual content all the way through 12th grade. An exception is allowed for religious texts.

Penguin Random House and four authors joined several teachers, a student and the Iowa State Education Association — the state’s teachers union representing 50,000 current and former public school educators — in filing the federal lawsuit.

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[–] FlyingSquid@lemmy.world 91 points 11 months ago (1 children)

“It’s also created the paradox that under Iowa law, a 16-year-old student is old enough to consent to sex but not old enough to read about it in school,” Novack said.

I'll be interested in finding out how Iowa's lawyers try to pretzel themselves out of that one.

[–] Dagwood222@lemm.ee 44 points 11 months ago (2 children)

1920s New York Mayor Jimmy Walker once vetoed a book ban. "No girl ever ended up in trouble [pregnant] because she was reading a book."

[–] AbidanYre@lemmy.world 15 points 11 months ago (2 children)

What about that girl yesterday who got addicted to porn because she read a book that had kissing? Checkmate liberals.

[–] Dagwood222@lemm.ee 15 points 11 months ago (1 children)

I'll add the link and an explanation.

Conservative book company sent an employee to a public meeting to claim that reading had driven her insane....

https://www.houstonpress.com/news/woman-fighting-scholastic-over-reported-porn-addiction-employed-by-scholastic-competitor-16954734

[–] AbidanYre@lemmy.world 8 points 11 months ago

Thanks for doing the legwork I was too lazy to do myself.

[–] NOT_RICK@lemmy.world 4 points 11 months ago

Crazy how easy it is to get the slut cooties

[–] FlyingSquid@lemmy.world 6 points 11 months ago (1 children)

"He was probably a liberal!"

[–] Dagwood222@lemm.ee 7 points 11 months ago (1 children)

He was a corrupt Tammany Hall wheeler dealer who was mired in scandal. Fun guy to read about.

[–] FlyingSquid@lemmy.world 6 points 11 months ago (1 children)

That pretty much describes every New York mayor for decades though, doesn't it?

[–] Dagwood222@lemm.ee 4 points 11 months ago

None of the others are fun to read about...

Except for LaGuardia,

https://youtu.be/Oq1nAQOQaSU?list=PL0E625A15E21FCA60

[–] surewhynotlem@lemmy.world 75 points 11 months ago (2 children)

I think being sued by John Green must feel a lot like being sued by Mr Rogers.

[–] YoBuckStopsHere@lemmy.world 60 points 11 months ago (1 children)

Conservatives HATE John Green because he is an intelligent member of society informing teenagers on real life issues and has a history of supporting education. These are things they can't stand.

[–] lobut@lemmy.ca 16 points 11 months ago (1 children)

John Green is a Christian and was a student Chaplain at a hospital. I doubt they can do the religion dance with him either.

[–] Kyrinar@lemmy.world 21 points 11 months ago

His brother Hank is Atheist IIRC, and people have asked them before how that affects their relationship. They basically answered "what do you mean, why would it?" So while they can try to take that angle I doubt it'd go over well.

I love the Green bros.

[–] mosiacmango@lemm.ee 28 points 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago)

To those who dont know john, hes an OG youtube guy who along with his brother Hank used to run Vidcon and who still run just buckets of charities, including building a hospital to limit child mortality in Sierra leone.

Most recently, john was so passionate about tuberculosis treatment and how pharmacies were gouging 3rd world countires for the cure, that the internet forced the big players to sell the drugs at cost, which the aid orgs that they work with confirmed. This likely saved millions of lives/yr.

This is a good, thoughtful guy who not only cares, but who actively tries to help.

[–] SketchySeaBeast@lemmy.ca 63 points 11 months ago (4 children)

An exception is allowed for religious texts.

Well, sounds like it's time to abuse the ever living shit out of that.

[–] TWeaK@lemm.ee 37 points 11 months ago

Inb4 Satanic Temple come in.

[–] zaph@sh.itjust.works 9 points 11 months ago (1 children)
[–] zalgotext@sh.itjust.works 4 points 11 months ago

BRB founding a religion where the sacred text is an April 1978 issue of Hustler

[–] Mango@lemmy.world 2 points 11 months ago

Right? Take their exceptionalism and put it in our hats!

[–] captainlezbian@lemmy.world 1 points 11 months ago

There’s a story written by Enheduanna that’s got wonderful room to be used here

[–] charonn0@startrek.website 40 points 11 months ago (1 children)

“It’s also created the paradox that under Iowa law, a 16-year-old student is old enough to consent to sex but not old enough to read about it in school,” Novack said.

Zing

[–] ech@lemm.ee 7 points 11 months ago

That's not a paradox. That's predation.

[–] mercano@lemmy.world 33 points 11 months ago (1 children)

The law also bans books containing references to sexual orientation and gender identity for students through sixth grade, which the lawsuit says is a violation of the 14th Amendment’s equal protection clause.

Ok, so that bans any book where the child protagonist lives with their mother and father, right? Straight is an orientation, too. Arthur, Bernstein Bears, Clifford the Big Red Dog, you’ve all got to go.

[–] TurnItOff_OnAgain@lemmy.world 28 points 11 months ago (1 children)

^bans books with sexual content all the way through 12th grade. An exception is allowed for religious texts.

Let's go ahead and add a first ammendment challenge in there for respecting The establishment of religion in there as well.

And since it's all books I guess you'll need to rewrite your biology curriculum to remove anything related to sex as well.

[–] Jaysyn@kbin.social 19 points 11 months ago (1 children)

And since it’s all books I guess you’ll need to rewrite your biology curriculum to remove anything related to sex as well.

Don't give them any ideas.

[–] captainlezbian@lemmy.world 3 points 11 months ago

Yeah they’ve opposed sex ed since it was a new concept. Even now that we know it reduces teen pregnancy and teen sexual activity rates when done correctly they insist on banning it or doing it in a way that increases these things.

Now I should add, idgaf if teens are fucking each other so long as it’s between consenting peers and they’re not spreading disease or skipping out on their education for it. But these people do have a problem with it and so good sex ed should be a no brainer.

Meanwhile these people probably want to censor the reproductive systems of plants

[–] Dagwood222@lemm.ee 15 points 11 months ago (1 children)

So, the taxpayer has to pay for the law makers to come up with a silly law, and then pay the court costs when it gets challenged. Meanwhile, the people suing have less time and money to work the coming election. Win/win for the fascists.

[–] captainlezbian@lemmy.world 5 points 11 months ago

“Look at where democracy gets you”- the cry of the fascist who abused systems built on an assumption of good faith

[–] Thjoth@kbin.social 11 points 11 months ago (1 children)

Good. I don't know how these book bands haven't gotten them sued before.

[–] FlyingSquid@lemmy.world 9 points 11 months ago (2 children)

Mainly because they're going after schools, where it's already been ruled that the right of free speech can be restricted (they can mandate clothing rules and punish kids for swearing as two examples), but I'm thinking this is a big step too far even for the courts. Unless the courts have been stacked, obviously.

[–] TWeaK@lemm.ee 7 points 11 months ago (1 children)

Unless the courts have been stacked, obviously.

I'm sure glad that hasn't happened.

[–] FlyingSquid@lemmy.world 4 points 11 months ago

I remain hopeful. It's all I can do.

[–] PrinceWith999Enemies@lemmy.world 5 points 11 months ago

The most amusing bit was where they said they could send a student home for wearing a top with spaghetti straps but they could not require the students to wear face masks because that would violate their rights. Fun times.