The Education Department said on Friday that it would no longer investigate schools that remove books from their libraries, emphasizing its new stance by dismissing 11 pending civil rights complaints related to book bans in public schools.
The move, immediately hailed by conservative groups, represents a significant whittling-down of the department’s traditional authority as President Trump’s incoming administration makes rapid strides toward its goal of relinquishing oversight of education to the states.
Reacting to an aggressive wave of book challenges in public schools, particularly to books about sexual and racial identity, the Biden administration in 2023 created a book ban coordinator role intended to monitor what experts called an alarming trend.
That coordinator also had oversight of the department’s response to the challenges, as the Education Department is generally legally required to pursue investigations into complaints that allege civil rights violations.
Under the new Trump administration, that role no longer exists, the Office for Civil Rights announced, and said that it “has rescinded all department guidance issued under the theory that a school district’s removal of age-inappropriate books from its libraries may violate civil rights laws.”
“By dismissing these complaints and eliminating the position and authorities of a so-called ‘book ban coordinator,’ the department is beginning the process of restoring the fundamental rights of parents to direct their children’s education,” Craig Trainor, the acting assistant secretary for civil rights, said in a statement accompanying the announcement.
Under Mr. Biden, the department got involved in cases that were tossed out on Friday after receiving civil rights complaints that schools had removed books that covered topics such as teenage pregnancy, L.G.B.T.Q. relationships or sexual violence.
In one prominent case in Forsyth County, Ga., the department found that the school district had “created a racially and sexually hostile environment” for its students when it removed a number of titles, including Toni Morrison’s “The Bluest Eye,” and George M. Johnson’s “All Boys Aren’t Blue.”
According to the announcement, incoming officials reviewed all pending complaints immediately after Mr. Trump took office on Jan. 20 and then moved to dismiss them.
PEN America, a nonprofit organization dedicated to free expression by journalists and authors, has documented more than 10,000 instances of individual book bans across the country since the 2023-24 school year. In many cases, books singled out for removal have shared common themes such as featuring L.G.B.T.Q. characters or delving into discussions of race and racism in American history.
Conservative groups that have fought for more localized control over schools applauded the decision.
“For years, parents have said they deserve to know if sexually explicit materials were available to young children, and they were maligned by the media and the Biden Administration for it,” Nicole Neily, the president of Parents Defending Education, said in a statement. “This debate has always been about the age appropriateness of available materials and transparency, two things parents have demanded.”
By proclaiming that the department would not intervene in cases where students or parents felt they were harmed by the removal of certain titles, the announcement appeared to clear the way for states to enact more restrictive policies.
“The department adheres to the deeply rooted American principle that local control over public education best allows parents and teachers alike to assess the educational needs of their children and communities. Parents and school boards have broad discretion to fulfill that important responsibility,” Mr. Trainor said in the statement. “These decisions will no longer be second-guessed by the Office for Civil Rights at the U.S. Department of Education.”
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