Students at Pentagon schools sue Hegseth over book bans on race and gender [View all]

Source: The Guardian

Tue 15 Apr 2025 18.12 EDT


Eleven students studying in Pentagon schools in the US and around the world are suing the defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, over the book bans he has instigated to remove titles on race and gender from their libraries.

A lawsuit lodged on the students’ behalf by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) on Tuesday argues that their first amendment rights are being irreparably harmed. The complaint says that the censorship has been applied system-wide across Pentagon schools, and was endangering children by preventing them from learning critical information about health, hygiene, biology and abuse.

The legal action targets Hegseth, the former Fox News host, who has been aggressively pursuing the censorship drive as part of Donald Trump’s war on diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI). It also names as a defendant the head of the Pentagon school system, Beth Schiavino-Narvaez. It blames both for violating the students’ first amendment rights by culling library books, and by making curricula changes such as cancelling Women’s and Black History month.

At the center of the lawsuit is the Department of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA), the federal school system that runs kindergarten through 12th grade schools. It serves about 67,000 children of both active-duty and civilian personnel in the US military.

Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/apr/15/pentagon-school-students-sue-hegseth-book-bans