June 2 (UPI) — A group of Arkansas public libraries filed a lawsuit on Friday, alleging a new state law that censors what books children can get to in libraries is unconstitutional.
Act 372, which was signed into law by Arkansas Gov. Sarah Sanders, says librarians can be imprisoned for up to a year for giving children reading materials that are deemed to be “harmful to minors.”
The law will go into effect on Aug. 1, but some libraries already have moved out of the children’s sections books about disabled people, puberty, religion and LGBTQ characters.
The Central Arkansas Library System, and a coalition of other libraries, argued that the law violates the First Amendment because the restrictions in the law are overly broad.
“There’s enormous angst and anxiety on the part of librarians in the state,” Nate Coulter, the executive director of the Central Arkansas Library System, told NBC News. “Because not only do they feel like people in the state government don’t respect their integrity, but they’re seen as a hostile party. They’ve been called groomers. They’ve been accused of being pedophiles. They’re basically targeted by a very divisive, angry group of people who are vocal about believing that somehow the library is the problem in our community.”
The law also allows citizens to appeal rulings from library committees about what books are deemed appropriate. Local officials also will have the ability to remove books from libraries.
Dan Sullivan, the Republican state senator who sponsored the measure, said he supported the possibility of librarians being held accountable.
“We don’t exempt doctors from abuse laws. We don’t exempt pharmacists from drug laws,” Sullivan said, according to NBC News. “And I don’t know why we would exempt librarians from these laws about what’s harmful to children.”