Half in poll say Iowa’s book ban goes too far
Half of Iowans believe the state’s new book ban law – which has resulted in the removal of more than 1,000 books from public schools – goes too far, a new Des Moines Register/Mediacom Iowa Poll finds, while a third view the law and subsequent removals as “about right.”
Thirteen percent believe “this does not go far enough,” and 3% aren’t sure.
In May 2023, Gov. Kim Reynolds signed Senate File 496, a sweeping education law that bans nearly all books depicting sex acts from public schools, among other changes. The law exempts religious books.
The Iowa Poll asked respondents to give their opinion on “Iowa’s new law requiring schools to ban books depicting sex acts,” which “has resulted in the removal of more than 1,300 books from Iowa public schools.”
The Des Moines Register documented more than 1,300 book removals from public schools due to the law by midFebruary, when the poll question was written.
The Register is now aware of about 1,820 books – 615 of which are unique titles – removed from schools since the law went into effect July 1, 2023.
A federal judge has since blocked the state from enforcing the book ban as two lawsuits work their way through the courts.
The poll of 804 Iowa adults was conducted by Selzer & Co. Feb. 25-28 and has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.5 percentage points.
Michelle Leaverton, of Urbandale, a poll respondent who agreed to a followup interview, described banning books as “absurd.”
The 51-year-old Democrat said depriving children of the ability to make choices about what they read and of perspectives they may see reflected in their own lives is damaging – including for her own children who identify as LGBTQ+.
Iowans with children under the age of 18 show more support for the law and book removals: 39% say it goes too far, 40% say it is about right, and 16% say it does not go far enough. Five percent of parents with school-age children are not sure.
Independent voter Tracy Alberts of Cedar Rapids, 45, a poll respondent who agreed to a follow-up interview, feels the ban does not go far enough.
“I think parents should be put in charge of what is in the school’s library and what is applicable for the grade level,” said the mother of three.
Outside of history, schools should allow books only on topics that a person can safely discuss in an office – meaning sexual content and politics do not have a place in schools, said Alberts, who works in human resources.
Divide by party, gender
A large majority of Democrats (75%) and most independents (55%) view the book ban and removals as going too far. The plurality of Republicans (44%) see this situation as about right. Almost a quarter of Republicans (23%) say it does not go far enough.
The poll also shows a large gap by gender: 60% of women feel the law and book removals have gone too far, while 41% of men feel that way.
Republican Steven Davies of Corning, 54, feels the ban is about right for his family, but he has mixed emotions about outright banning of books for other students.
“Do I think that certain books in school shouldn’t be in there? Absolutely,” Davies said. “I also acknowledge it is a slippery slope, because where does it end? And who’s going to be the judge and jury of what gets banned?”
The divisive issue turned politically potent, and Iowa legislators took notice.
The Des Moines Register documented 99 challenges to 60 books from August 2020 to May 2023, before Reynolds signed the book ban law. Nearly 90% of Iowa school districts had no challenges in that time frame.
About three-quarters of challenges ended with retaining the book without restrictions.
About 76% of challenges that gave specific reasons were due to books’ sexual content, while about 26% cited profanity and 14% involved violence. (More than one reason was sometimes cited.)
The most-challenged books before the book ban passed were LGBTQ+ coming-of-age memoirs “Gender Queer,” by Maia Kobabe and “All Boys Aren’t Blue” by George M. Johnson, alongside the semi-autobiographical novel “The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian” by Sherman Alexie.
About 55% of challenges before the law passed were for books about people of color; about 47% of challenges were for books featuring LGBTQ+ people; and about 25% of challenges were for books about people who survived sexual violence.