ACLU seeks information on book removals from six Wisconsin school districts

Six Wisconsin school districts are the subject of a records request from the American Civil Liberties Union of Wisconsin about books the districts have removed from libraries.

The ACLU of Wisconsin announced in a news release Dec. 13 that it had filed requests with the Elkhorn, Elmbrook, Howard-Suamico, Menomonee Falls and Kenosha Unified school districts seeking information about their decisions to remove the books.

In its release, the ACLU said that "removing books from school libraries threatens the First Amendment rights of students and their families."

"The Supreme Court held over 40 years ago that 'local school boards may not remove books from school library shelves simply because they dislike the ideas contained in those books,'" the ACLU said in its release.

More: These 43 books have been banned from school libraries in Wisconsin in 2023

ACLU interim legal director Tim Muth said in the news release the ACLU is "particularly troubled by the dangerous anti-LGBTQ+ rhetoric accompanying much of the recent book-banning advocacy."

“Under the guise of protecting students from ‘inappropriate’ materials, school districts that remove books are violating students' First Amendment rights to receive information from various viewpoints, even challenging perspectives and views that may not sit well with conservative majorities,” he said in the news release.

The ACLU also included a statement from Grassroots Menomonee Falls: “At a time when the world is in turmoil, we have the opportunity to bring liberation and connection. There is freedom within libraries and public schools to be a sanctuary for diverse perspectives, expression, and healing. Banning books in our school district is akin to closing the door to understanding ourselves, each other, and the world.

"Grassroots Menomonee Falls Area stands with the professionals in our public schools and libraries in advocating for the rights of books to remain on the shelves for all to explore and guide us toward a future where knowledge and hope know boundaries. Let every book be a beacon, not a forbidden fruit."

Waukesha School District

"We have been and remain committed to having age appropriate materials available in our school libraries," said Waukesha School District superintendent Jim Sebert in an email to a reporter.

Sebert also referred a reporter to a district webpage that explains how parents can receive information on the materials their children check out from school libraries.

The webpage suggests that students, parents, staff or district residents can file complaints and encouraged that person to meet with the principal or staff member to "informally resolve the concern."

For concerns that cannot be resolved at the school level, a committee convenes to discuss the complaint and make a recommendation. The committee comprises teachers, administrators, library media specialists, a coach/coordinator and a student services representative.

Recommendations could include making no change, limiting access to require parent permission, moving the materials to a different school level or removing the material as "deemed harmful to minors."

The superintendent, or designee, then considers the recommendation and makes a final review and decision.

If the complainant is not satisfied with the superintendent's ruling, the complainant can appeal to the school board president within 10 days. A board committee, appointed by the board president, then reviews the appeal and makes a decision, which is final.

According to a public spreadsheet of challenged books the district maintains, there were 101 books challenged in the 2021-22 school year, six in 2022-23 and none so far for the 2023-24 school year. Six books — “This Book is Gay” by Juno Dawson; "Not My Idea: A Book about Whiteness" by Anastasia Higginbotham; "It's Perfectly Normal" by Robie H. Harris; "Queer: The Ultimate LGBT Guide for Teens" by Kathy Belge and Marke Bieschke; "Jack of Hearts" by Lev A.C. Rosen; and "Lucky" by Alice Sebold - were removed. One of the removed books — "Queer: The Ultimate LGBT Guide for Teens," was only available on the Sora library app. Fifteen other books were made available only to older students. "Tricks" by Ellen Hopkins was restricted to students with parental permission.

Elkhorn Area School District

Elkhorn Area School District superintendent Jason Tadlock responded to the ACLU by forwarding a Dec. 5 email he sent to parents about 444 books challenged by a parent from the district's middle and high school.

"At this time, no books have been 'banned,'" he wrote in that email. "Nor do I anticipate the "banning" of any books as an outcome of working through our process. However, I do anticipate that in accordance with our review process, we may have some books placed on a restrictive use classification, meaning students will need guardian permission to check them out.

"The majority of the books challenged were quickly reviewed and approved for continued use and returned to circulation. Once both principals complete their review, I will share their decisions with the community," Tadlock wrote in his email.

Tadlock also included in his response to the records request a list of the 444 books the parent had challenged, among other things.

The district's policy says the principal of the school where the book is being challenged is the first to review a challenge. Books are temporarily withdrawn from circulation while reviewed. The principal can decide to keep the book, discontinue using the book or restrict the book to certain ages. The complainant can appeal the principal's decision to a committee consisting of the district's superintendent, a library media specialist of the assigned grade level and the district's director of instruction. If still not satisfied, the school board would oversee an appeal of the committee's decision.

Elmbrook School District

The district's chief strategy officer, Chris Thompson, said in an email to a reporter the district is "disappointed that the ACLU chose to group six districts together based on the recent decisions of one or two school districts," but said the district will respond to the request per state records law as it has done with 116 previous requests.

"The District would like to remind the ACLU of our commitment to the success of all students in the Elmbrook Schools and our continued efforts to promote transparency and trust in our community. This is the 117th public records request received this year and the 295th request over the past three years. We have responded to these requests while maintaining our standing as one of the top-performing school districts in Wisconsin," Thompson said in his email.

Thompson said the district's students have access to over 190,000 unique titles in print and digital formats and check out over 530,000 books from its libraries each year.

The first step in challenging a book is an informal discussion between the complainant and school officials. If not resolved at the school level, the challenge advances to a district committee that includes representatives from the administration, school board, library, teachers, parents, and a student. The materials remain in circulation while the reviews are being done.

Appeals of committee decisions go to the superintendent. If still unsatisfied, the complainant can appeal to the school board.

Thompson also said the district's library policy requires publishing an annual book acquisition list. The district sends a weekly email about what books students have checked out.

In late 2021, the district removed seven books from its libraries: "Embrace" by Jessica Shirvington, "Perfect" by Ellen Hopkins, "The Infinite Moment of Us" by Lauren Myracle, "This Book is Gay" by Juno Dawson, "Traffick: The Sequel to Tricks" by Ellen Hopkins, "TTYL" by Lauren Lyracle and "Queer: The Ultimate LGBTQ Guide" by Kathy Belge and Marke Biesche.

Howard-Suamico School District

Howard-Suamico School District Director of School and Community Relations Kimberly Uelmen confirmed that the district had received the ACLU's request and is reviewing the request.

The Green Bay Press-Gazette found over 30 books were removed from the district's libraries since 2019, according to records obtained by the Green Bay Press Gazette from a records request.

Some of the books that were removed include "Deogratias: A Tale of Rwanda" by Jean Philippe-Stassen, from Bay Port High School; "The Perks of Being A Wallflower" by Stephen Chbosky from Bay View Middle School and "Something Happened In Our Town: A Child's Story About Racial Injustice" by Marianne Celano, Marietta Collins and Ann Hazzard from the district's elementary schools. Reasons cited for the books removal included low circulation," publication date, "age appropriate reviews" and "reviews by committee."

The Green Bay-Press Gazette also made an open records request Nov. 2 asking for "all individual requests to review select books" in the district and any records reflecting the outcome and decision rationale for those reviews, but that request remains unfulfilled.

Menomonee Falls School District

The Menomonee Falls School District did not immediately respond to a reporter's questions seeking information on the district's response to the ACLU.

The Menomonee Falls School District this fall removed 33 books from Menomonee Falls High School's library, claiming the books violated district policy on sexually explicit content and profanity. The decision led parents to pack a school board meeting in October to speak out on the action.

Some of the 33 books included "Slaughterhouse Five" by Kurt Vonnegut, "The Kite Runner" by Khaled Hosseini; "The Freedom Writers Diary" by The Freedom Writers and Erin Gruwell; "Nineteen Minutes" by Jodi Picoult and "The Perks of Being a Wallflower" by Stephen Chbosky.

When a challenge is made to library materials, the request is reviewed by the school administrator and library media specialist. If unsatisfied with their decision, the complainant can appeal to a reconsideration committee that includes school staff and parents. From there, they can appeal to the superintendent and ultimately the school board.

Kenosha Unified School District

The Kenosha Unified School District also has not responded to a reporter's request about its response to the ACLU.

Under its library resources policy, residents who can't resolve their challenges at the school level can have their challenges heard by a superintendent-appointed committee comprising library media teachers, administrators and residents. Appeals of that committee's decision go to the school board.

A Wisconsin Examiner report from October identified four books as having been removed from school libraries this year: "This Book is Gay" by Juno Dawson, "Gender Queer" by Maia Kobabe, "Let’s Talk About It" by Erika Moen and Matthew Nolan and "All Boys Aren't Blue" by George M. Johnson.

Contact Alec Johnson at (262) 875-9469 or alec.johnson@jrn.com. Follow him on Twitter at @AlecJohnson12.

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: ACLU seeks info on book removals from six Wisconsin school districts