Latest news with #NatalieTolley
Yahoo
16-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Military Families Sue over Defense Department School Book Bans, Other Anti-Diversity Measures
A dozen students at Defense Department grade schools across the globe are suing the department after books were removed from libraries, school yearbooks were allegedly censored, and class curriculums were sanitized to implement President Donald Trump's anti-diversity and anti-LGBTQ+ executive orders. Alleging First Amendment violations, the American Civil Liberties Union filed a federal lawsuit Tuesday evening against the Department of Defense Education Activity and the Pentagon on behalf of 12 students in pre-K through 11th grade from six military families who attend schools on bases in Virginia, Kentucky, Italy and Japan. "The implementation of these EOs, without any due process or parental or professional input, is a violation of our children's right to access information that prevents them from learning about their own histories, bodies and identities," Natalie Tolley, a parent from one of the military families suing, said in a statement released by the ACLU. "I have three daughters, and they, like all children, deserve access to books that both mirror their own life experiences and that act as windows that expose them to greater diversity. The administration has now made that verboten in DoDEA schools." Read Next: 2 Marines Killed, One in Serious Condition After Vehicle Incident During Southern Border Mission A DoDEA spokesperson declined to comment on the lawsuit Wednesday, saying that "as a matter of policy, the DoDEA does not comment on ongoing litigation." Among his first acts in office, Trump ordered every federal agency to get rid of all policies and materials related to "gender ideology," a right-wing term for being transgender, and the ill-defined concept of "diversity, equity and inclusion." In practice, at the Pentagon, those orders have resulted in the erasure of minorities, women and LGBTQ+ people from public websites and databases; restrictions on what soldiers can write in academic papers; and the elimination of advisory groups seeking to improve troops' quality of life, among other effects. Some actions, such the removal of webpages about Navajo Code Talkers and Jackie Robinson, were reversed after public outrage. At DoDEA schools, books have been pulled from school libraries ranging from classics such as "To Kill a Mockingbird," to a picture biography about the late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, to an award-winning fiction novel about a transgender teen participating in a national debate competition, to Vice President JD Vance's own memoir "Hillbilly Elegy," according to the lawsuit. Class curriculums have also been sterilized to remove content the administration objects to, according to the lawsuit. In addition to the widely reported elimination of gender and sexuality chapters from Advanced Placement Psychology textbooks, the lawsuit also alleges that textbooks for health classes have been censored. Chapters that have been cut from health class textbooks include: "Communicable Diseases: Sexually Transmitted Diseases;" "Unwanted Sexual Activity: Sexual Harassment;" "Human Reproductive System, Menstrual Cycle, and Fetal Development;" "Abuse and Neglect;" and "Adolescence and Puberty," according to the suit. Middle school health classes also are no longer teaching a chapter called "What Is Sexuality?" that "simply defines terms, accurately and without bias, that are commonly used in everyday conversation," the lawsuit says. Student yearbooks have also been instructed not to include "any visual depictions, written content or editorial choices that would directly or indirectly support the instruction, advancement, and/or promotion of 'gender ideology' and/or 'social transition,'" according to the lawsuit. And, in line with a Defense Department memo declaring "identity months dead," Black History Month assemblies and Women's History Month events were banned, the lawsuit says. While "host nation engagement" events are allowed, the lawsuit calls that distinction "nonsensical," citing the fact that a Guam History and Chamorro Heritage Day celebration was allowed under that category despite the fact that Guam is a U.S. territory and not a host nation. "Students in DoDEA schools, though they are members of military families, have the same First Amendment rights as all students," Emerson Sykes, senior staff attorney with the ACLU's Speech, Privacy and Technology Project, said in a statement. "Like everyone else, they deserve classrooms where they are free to read, speak and learn about themselves, their neighbors and the world around them." DoDEA's implementation of Trump's orders has sparked a level of pushback not typically seen publicly from military families. In addition to the lawsuit, hundreds of DoDEA students have participated in walkouts despite the threat of punishment from school administrators and Pentagon officials. Military family members also protested when Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth visited a base in Germany in February. Meanwhile, Trump administration book bans at Pentagon institutions have not been isolated to the DoDEA. The Naval Academy recently pulled nearly 400 books from its libraries, including books about the Holocaust and Maya Angelou's acclaimed autobiography, "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings." The Associated Press reported Tuesday that the libraries at West Point and the Air Force Academy have also been directed to review their collections for any books to remove. Related: Banned Books, School Walkouts, Child Care Shortages: Military Families Confront Pentagon's Shifting Rules
Yahoo
16-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Department of Defense sued over book removals, curriculum changes in its schools
A group of 12 students sued the Department of Defense Education Activity (DODEA) over changes that have been made to curriculum and book removals in its schools. The lawsuit accuses the DODEA of eliminating curriculum that deals with subjects such as slavery, Native American history, and LGBTQ issues, taking books off shelves and canceling events the government says are promoting 'gender ideology' or 'divisive equity ideology.' The changes come after President Trump signed several executive orders aimed at the military, transgender people, and diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives. Military schools are under the direct control of the administration, which allows for implementation of these changes at a much quicker rate. 'Learning is a sacred and foundational right that is now being limited for students in DoDEA schools. The implementation of these [executive orders], without any due process or parental or professional input, is a violation of our children's right to access information that prevents them from learning about their own histories, bodies, and identities,' said Natalie Tolley, a plaintiff on behalf of her three children in the department's schools. 'I have three daughters, and they, like all children, deserve access to books that both mirror their own life experiences and that act as windows that expose them to greater diversity. The administration has now made that verboten in DoDEA schools,' she added. The 12 students, ranging from pre-K to 11th grade, represent six families stationed in Virginia, Kentucky, Italy and Japan. The suit was filed by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), the ACLU of Virginia and the ACLU of Kentucky in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia. A DODEA spokesperson told The Hill that the department does not comment on ongoing litigation. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
16-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Students sue Defense Department over book bans in military schools
The American Civil Liberties Union along with a group of military students and family members sued the Defense Department on Tuesday over book bans and curriculum changes instituted in recent weeks to comply with President Donald Trump's efforts to root out diversity and equity programs within federal agencies. The lawsuit, filed in federal court in the Eastern District of Virginia, states that moves by Department of Defense Education Activity leaders have unnecessarily harmed learning opportunities for students. The case involves 12 students from six families who attend military-run schools in Virginia, Kentucky, Italy and Japan. 'Learning is a sacred and foundational right that is now being limited for students in DoDEA schools,' said Natalie Tolley, one of the plaintiff parents in the lawsuit. 'The implementation of these executive orders, without any due process or parental or professional input, is a violation of our children's right to access information that prevents them from learning about their own histories, bodies, and identities.' Military school students' test scores lead the nation Since January, the department's schools system — which encompasses 161 schools across 11 countries, including multiple sites in the United States — has begun removing books and changing classroom curricula related to 'gender ideology' or 'divisive equity ideology.' Officials from the ACLU said that has included banning some texts about slavery, Native American history, LGBTQ+ history and sexual harassment prevention. 'These schools are some of the most diverse and high achieving in the nation, making it particularly insulting to strip their shelves of diverse books and erase women, LGBTQ people and people of color from the curriculum to serve a political goal,' said Emerson Sykes, senior staff attorney with the ACLU, in a statement. 'Our clients deserve better, and the First Amendment demands it.' Defense Department officials have not yet publicly commented on the lawsuit. Leaders have defended similar moves — such as banning cultural awareness months and eliminating diversity and inclusion offices — as necessary to remove distractions and political ideology from military operations. The lawsuit asks for a full revocation of the administration's executive orders and reinstatement of all books, classroom materials and course guidelines to the Defense Department schools. 'The government can't scrub references to race and gender from public school libraries and classrooms just because the Trump administration doesn't like certain viewpoints on those topics,' said Matt Callahan, senior supervising attorney at the ACLU of Virginia. Last week, hundreds of students at DoDEA schools staged walkouts over the controversial changes. Department leaders are still considering disciplinary action against individuals involved in those protests.
The Hill
16-04-2025
- Politics
- The Hill
Department of Defense sued over book removals, curriculum changes in its schools
A group of 12 students sued the Department of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA) over changes that have been made to curriculum and book removals in its schools. The lawsuit accuses the DoDEA of eliminating curriculum that deals with subjects such as slavery, Native American history, and LGBTQ issues, taking books off shelves and canceling events the government says are promoting 'gender ideology' or 'divisive equity ideology.' This comes after President Trump signed several executive orders aimed at the military, diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives, and transgender people. Military schools are under the direct control of the administration, which allows for implementation of these changes at a much quicker rate. 'Learning is a sacred and foundational right that is now being limited for students in DoDEA schools. The implementation of these [executive order]s, without any due process or parental or professional input, is a violation of our children's right to access information that prevents them from learning about their own histories, bodies, and identities,' said Natalie Tolley, a plaintiff on behalf of her three children in DoDEA schools. 'I have three daughters, and they, like all children, deserve access to books that both mirror their own life experiences and that act as windows that expose them to greater diversity. The administration has now made that verboten in DoDEA schools,' she added. The 12 students, ranging from pre-K to 11th grade, represent six families stationed in Virginia, Kentucky, Italy and Japan. The suit was filed by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), the ACLU of Virginia and the ACLU of Kentucky in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia.
