Avenues for Engagement? Testing the Democratic Nature of Library Book Challenge Processes

• In Event: Private Intervention in Constitutional and Federal Law

Abstract

The 1982 Supreme Court case Island Trees School District v. Pico remains the lasting judicial precedent for interpreting public school students' First Amendment rights as they interact with school library books. We examine 29 policies in school districts that experienced a publicly reported book challenge between 2013 and 2018 in order to understand relationships between district book challenge policies and the Pico precedent. Our findings offer insights into the role of non-school board members, the setting of decision-making, and the limited roles for public involvement during school library book challenges. These findings call into question the alignment between the law as written and the law in practice as well as the ability for citizen involvement during school library book challenges.

Authors

• Joel Miller, University of Maryland
  Presenting Author

• Pamela C. Callahan, University of Maryland
  Presenting Author