U.S. Florida schools pulled hundreds of books last year

NEW YORK, Nov. 14 (Xinhua) -- School districts in the southeastern U.S. state of Florida axed about 700 books from school libraries in the 2023-2024 school year, according to a Florida Department of Education list.

PEN America, a free speech advocacy group, estimates that 4,561 books have been removed from Florida school libraries since July 2021, The Washington Post reported.

Some of the removed titles are works of classic literature, including "A Clockwork Orange" by Anthony Burgess, "Slaughterhouse-Five" by Kurt Vonnegut and "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings" by Maya Angelou, according to PEN America's online tracker.

The book removals follow a law that allows parents or local residents to push for the removal of any book that "depicts or describes sexual content" or is "pornographic." The office of Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has previously said the law "protects children from indoctrination" and gives parents "the ability to object to inappropriate materials."

"Florida has been at the forefront of a national clash over how race, history and sexuality can be taught in school," reported The Washington Post about the development. In August, a group of major publishers, authors and parents sued Florida education officials, alleging the law that allows local residents to limit what books are available in school libraries violates the First Amendment.