Court Rules 8 Books Containing Sexual, Racial Content Must Return to Texas County’s Library Shelves

Eight books will return to library shelves in Llano County. Nine books will remain off library shelves, pending the final outcome of an appeal.

Books line the shelves at the Rice University Library in Houston, Texas, on April 26, 2022. Brandon Bell/Getty Images

A federal appeals court ruled on Thursday that eight books, including those with LGBT and racial themes, must be returned to library shelves in Llano County, Texas after they were removed following a dispute over their content.

In a 2-1 ruling, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit panel said the library in Llano County had violated the defendants’s First Amendment rights to information by removing some of the books from circulation.