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LGBTQ+ Students, Teachers, and Books Just Won Big in Iowa

A federal judge just delivered a major blow to Iowa’s 2023 censorship law, SF496. And for once, we get to say this:

It’s a good day for the First Amendment.

The Case

Iowa Safe Schools and a group of brave families and teachers sued the state over a law that:

  1. Bans K–6 classroom instruction about any gender identity or sexual orientation.
  2. Forces schools to out students who request a different name or pronoun.
  3. Orders school libraries to remove any book that contains a description or image of a sex act (yes, even medically accurate ones or in memoirs).

This week, U.S. District Court Judge Stephen Locher issued a second preliminary injunction, and it’s packed with common sense, legal precision, and a refreshing lack of bigoted culture war nonsense.

Let’s break down the win:

GOOD NEWS: LGBTQ+ Clubs and Visibility Are Protected

The judge blocked the vague and unconstitutional parts of the law that banned “programs” and “promotions” related to gender identity and sexual orientation in grades K–6.

Translation:

  • GSAs (Gender & Sexuality Alliances) are legal—even in elementary schools.
  • Teachers can talk about these clubs, advise them, and encourage students to join.
  • Posters, announcements, rainbow flags, and ally stickers are protected speech.

Judge Locher rightly called out the absurdity of banning these groups while letting other clubs hang posters and recruit members. Apparently, LGBTQ+ support groups were the only ones getting slapped with the “promotion” label.

GOOD NEWS: Library Books Are Safe from the “Don’t Say Gay” Law

Some districts claimed the classroom censorship rules forced them to remove LGBTQ+ books from school libraries.

Nope. That’s not how law—or reading comprehension—works.

Judge Locher didn’t even interpret the “Don’t Say Gay” provision to apply to library books—because it doesn’t. The instruction ban only applies to mandatory lessons, not materials available on the shelf.

Books in the library? Still legal. Including the ones with two moms, queer kids, and yes, penguins with same-sex parents.

Meanwhile, the other part of the law—the one banning any book that mentions a sex act—is still under injunction in a separate case (which Locher also presides over). So:
No, your library can’t be turned into a purity museum just yet.

STILL STANDING: Instruction Limits for Grades K–6 (But It’s Not a Book Burning)

The court upheld a portion of the law that prohibits formal, focused lessons on gender identity or sexual orientation in grades K–6.

But let’s be clear: this applies equally to all identities—LGBTQ+ and straight, transgender and cisgender.

What’s Still Allowed:

Teachers can make casual, age-appropriate references, like:

  • Mentioning their spouse, regardless of gender.
  • Reading a picture book where two dads raise a penguin (hi again, Tango).
  • Assigning a book that includes a trans character, so long as the character’s identity isn’t the lesson’s focus.
  • Letting students write about their own diverse families.

So no, teachers don’t have to pretend all families come from a 1950s sitcom.

And Tango Makes Three book cover

What’s Not Allowed:

Teachers can’t give detailed lessons or normative explanations about:

  • What marriage is—straight or gay.
  • What being transgender or cisgender means.
  • What sexual orientation is, in any form.
  • Who’s “normal” or “not,” valid or invalid.

Judge Locher called it like it is: these limits apply across the board. You can’t teach what heterosexuality is. Or homosexuality. Or why either matters.

 So if you were hoping your second grader would leave math class with a firm grasp of marriage law and gender theory—you’re out of luck. But if you just want your kid to see themselves and their friends reflected in a book? That’s still allowed.

PARTIALLY BLOCKED: Forced Outing Law Narrowed

The law said schools had to notify parents if a student requested any “accommodation” related to gender identity—but didn’t say what that meant.

Judge Locher ruled that was way too vague.

Schools can notify parents only if a student specifically asks to be called by a different pronoun.

But schools cannot be forced to report a student for:

  • Using a different name
  • Wearing different clothes
  • Or generally existing as themselves

This is a big win for student privacy and trust. Forced outing policies don’t protect kids. They endanger them.

Judge Locher Gets It

Let’s take a moment to thank Judge Stephen Locher, who’s rapidly becoming the patron saint of Common Sense in Iowa. His opinion is smart, grounded, and refreshingly free of political theater.

He didn’t fall for fearmongering.
He didn’t pretend LGBTQ+ students are some new threat to public order.
He applied the Constitution.

It’s not flashy, but it’s everything.

TL;DR: This Is a Big Deal

  • LGBTQ+ student clubs are protected—yes, even in elementary schools.
  • Libraries are not subject to “Don’t Say Gay.”
  • Forced outing is mostly blocked.
  • Inclusive stories and casual references are still legal in the classroom.
  • Focused lessons on gender/sexuality are off-limits—for everyone, not just LGBTQ+ topics.

Visibility is not instruction.
Libraries are not classrooms.
And queer kids are not political pawns.