SALT LAKE CITY — The American Civil Liberties Union of Utah has filed a lawsuit on behalf of the estate of Kurt Vonnegut and other acclaimed authors, claiming the state of Utah is "trampling on the protections guaranteed by the First Amendment" by removing books from public schools.
The lawsuit comes one day after the state banned three additional books, including the source material for the popular musical and movie "Wicked," bringing the total number of banned titles in Utah schools to 22.
In its complaint, which also includes award-winning authors Elana K. Arnold and Ellen Hopkins, the ACLU claims the state is partaking in "modern-day book burning" by banning the books from all Utah public schools.
Three of Hopkins' books are banned in Utah schools, along with one by Arnold.
While none of Vonnegut's books are on the state's list, the lawsuit claims his massively popular novel "Slaughterhouse-Five" was recently removed from Washington School District libraries after it was labeled "pornographic."
"Utah’s lawmakers’ determination to ban books like Slaughterhouse-Five denies innumerable young people in Utah the freedom to read, think, and grow; it is antithetical to what my father fought for during World War II and focused much of his literary legacy on addressing," said Vonnegut's daughter, Nanette.
A 2022 Utah law allows a book to be removed from school libraries if at least three local school districts, or at least two school districts and five charter schools, claim its content contains "objective sensitive material."
Utah Attorney General Derek Brown, the Utah State Board of Education and several local school districts and their superintendents are listed as plaintiffs in the lawsuit.
The lawsuit alleges the state law never factors in age or maturity when determining whether to ban a book.
"Once a book is labeled 'sensitive,' it must be taken from the shelf, including the high school library. There is no recognition that a seventeen-year-old preparing for college, navigating identity, relationships, and the realities of adulthood stands in a fundamentally different place than a five-year-old," the filing said.
Joining the acclaimed authors in the lawsuit are two anonymous public high school students in the state who believe library books are where they first "recognize" their own lives and identities.
“Book bans do more harm than simply removing stories. Empty shelves cost us understanding and connection, turning schools from places of learning into systems of control," wrote one of the students. "Censorship does not just make ideas disappear, but also makes schools more confusing and dangerous because of its chilling effect on our right to learn."
In response to the lawsuit, Dalane England, a vice president of Utah Eagle Forum, an advocacy group that supports the book law, said they were "sad that anyone would want to expose our children to inappropriate materials.”
Admitting that she is not an attorney, England doesn't believe the lawsuit will "go anywhere," and believes the book law "doesn't go far enough."
"I think the law is constitutional and legal," she said, "and I don't think anything will happen other than getting people emotionally upset by it."
Rebekah Cummings with Let Utah Read pushes back on those who support the banning of books.
"Of course, not every book belongs in every library," Cummings said, "but we cannot allow the most extreme members of our community to dictate what everybody else gets to read.
"That truly is un-American.”
