Library Book Bans

The Supreme Court declined to hear an appeal in the Llano County library case, leaving a 5th Circuit ruling in place that allows local officials to remove books deemed objectionable from public libraries. Plaintiffs and librarian Carolyn Foote warned the denial will embolden wider removals — a reversal of a district judge’s order to restore titles such as Caste and They Called Themselves the K.K.K. — and the 5th Circuit’s opinion, which said “No one is banning” books, now carries precedential weight across Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi.