ACLU, Civil-Society Groups, Urge Congress to Extend Funding for Affordable Internet Program

Whether the Department of Defense Education Activity can remove educational material related to race and gender from its libraries and classrooms in K-12 schools.

QUANTICO, Va. – Students in Department of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA) schools on military bases sued today, arguing that DoDEA’s book removals and curricular changes following several executive orders from President Donald Trump violate their First Amendment rights. DoDEA operates 161 schools across 11 countries, seven states, Guam, and Puerto Rico. The suit was filed on behalf of 12 students from six families, ranging in age from pre-K to 11th grade, that attend DoDEA schools as children of active duty servicemembers stationed in Virginia, Kentucky, Italy, and Japan. Since January, their schools have systemically removed books, altered curricula, and canceled events that the government has accused of promoting “gender ideology” or “divisive equity ideology.” This has included materials about slavery, Native American history, LGBTQ identities and history, and preventing sexual harassment and abuse, as well as portions of the Advanced Placement (AP) Psychology curriculum. “Learning is a sacred and foundational right that is now being limited for students in DoDEA schools,” said Natalie Tolley, a plaintiff on behalf of her three children in DoDEA schools. “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. 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.” In January 2025, President Donald Trump signed three executive orders which led to these removals: Executive Order (EO) 14168 titled “Defending Women From Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government”; EO 14185 titled “Restoring America’s Fighting Force”; and EO 14190 titled “Ending Radical Indoctrination in K-12 Schooling.” The suit names Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and administrators of the DoDEA system, arguing that by revoking students’ access to books and curricula about race and gender, defendants are harming students’ First Amendment right to receive information. “Students in DoDEA schools, though they are members of military families, have the same First Amendment rights as all students,” said Emerson Sykes, senior staff attorney with the ACLU’s Speech, Privacy, and Technology Project. “Like everyone else, they deserve classrooms where they are free to read, speak, and learn about themselves, their neighbors, and the world around them. 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. Our clients deserve better, and the First Amendment demands it.” The Department of Defense has also prohibited cultural awareness months, including Black History Month, Pride Month, Women’s History Month, and National Hispanic Heritage Month. Schools have also released guidance for yearbooks to prohibit students from using them to promote “gender ideology” or “social transition.” Books banned within some DoDEA schools have reportedly included “The Kite Runner” by Khaled Hosseini; “Freckleface Strawberry” by Julianne Moore; “Hillbilly Elegy” by Vice President JD Vance; “The Antiracist Kid” by Tiffany Jewell; and a preparation guide for the AP Psychology exam. “By quarantining library books and whitewashing curricula in its civilian schools, the Department of Defense Education Activity is violating students’ First Amendment rights,” said Matt Callahan, senior supervising attorney at the ACLU of Virginia. “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.” “Our clients have a right to receive an education that includes an open and honest dialogue about America’s history,” said Corey Shapiro, legal director for the ACLU of Kentucky. “Censoring books and canceling assignments about the contributions of Black Americans is not only wrong, but antithetical to our First Amendment rights.” The suit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia by the American Civil Liberties Union, the ACLU of Virginia, and the ACLU of Kentucky. The complaint can be viewed here: https://www.aclu-ky.org/sites/default/files/field_documents/ek_v_dodea_-_2025.04.15_ecf_001_-_complaint.pdf

The U.S. government’s escalating attacks on noncitizens’ right to free speech, including our client Rümeysa Öztürk, should scare us all.

BURLINGTON – In court documents filed on April 10, attorneys for Tufts University Ph.D. student Rümeysa Öztürk argued for Vermont district court Judge William K. Sessions III to confirm that Vermont has jurisdiction in this case and order her immediate release from an ICE detention center in Louisiana. Ms. Öztürk was taken into federal custody by six ICE agents in Somerville, MA, on March 25. That evening, she was driven to Methuen, MA; then, to Lebanon, NH; and, ultimately, to St. Albans, VT, where she spent the night in an ICE detention cell. In the early hours of the next morning, she was transported to Patrick Leahy Burlington International Airport and flown to Louisiana. Because her habeas petition was filed while she was physically in the state of Vermont, a district court judge in Massachusetts ruled on April 4 that Vermont district court was the most appropriate venue for the case. Oral arguments are scheduled for Monday, April 14, at 9:30 AM and will take place in the U.S. District Court building in Burlington, VT. Remote access is also available via Zoom, please see details additional below. Lia Ernst, Legal Director, ACLU of Vermont: “Arguing against human rights violations or criticizing a university for its response to student activism is neither illegal nor a reason for detention. The Trump administration cannot order ICE to silence people who hold political opinions they disagree with. We are urging the court to intervene on Ms. Öztürk’s behalf as soon as possible so she can return to her community in Somerville.” Footage of Ozturk’s abduction by ICE agents raised significant alarm throughout the country in the 18 days since her arrest. Six plainclothes agents—some of whom wore hooded sweatshirts or face coverings, and most of whom had obscured identification badges—quickly closed in on her near her apartment in Somerville before she attended an iftar dinner. According to all available evidence, the government inflicted this ordeal on Ms. Öztürk solely because of an op-ed that she wrote for a student newspaper last spring regarding the university’s response to activism on campus. Jessie Rossman, Legal Director, ACLU of Massachusetts: “Everyone should read the op-ed that Rümeysa co-authored in her student newspaper and then watch the footage of her abduction by ICE agents. The stark contrast between the two is shocking. That single op-ed is the only basis for Rümeysa’s continued detention. She has now been imprisoned in Louisiana for over two weeks without any reasonable justification. Rümeysa’s arrest, transport, and detention are appalling and unlawful violations of her constitutional rights, and we are therefore urging the court to order her immediate release.” In a letter of support submitted to the Court, the president of Tufts University notes that Öztürk’s op-ed was within the bounds of the school’s code of conduct and describes her as a respected and valued member of the campus community whose detention has deeply shaken international students, staff, and faculty at Tufts. A coalition of Jewish organizations represented by David Wright Tremaine LLP, including J Street, Bend the Arc, JALSA, and Temple Emanu-El, has also come to Ms. Öztürk’s defense, submitting a proposed amicus brief on her behalf to the Court. Mahsa Khanbabai, Khanbabai Immigration Law: “Rumeysa’s case is about whether a person in this country is allowed to speak out in support of human rights for all and oppose war crimes against children. Rumeysa is a vehement advocate for children; she has always been and she will always be. We will fight every single day until she is rightfully returned to her home in Massachusetts so she can continue her research and her work for all children, everywhere. Noor Zafar, Senior Staff Attorney, ACLU’s Immigrants’ Rights Project: “Deportation and detention cannot be based on dissent. The federal government’s efforts strip the rights and humanity of those whose speech they disagree with have reached new heights over the last several weeks. No matter where, when, or how the federal government seeks to deny our freedom, the ACLU and our allies will be there to fight back.” Naz Ahmad, Co-director, CLEAR, CUNY School of Law: “The government has confirmed that the sole basis for any of its actions against Ms. Ozturk is her co-authorship of an op-ed. A single minute in detention on this basis is an affront to us all, let alone the near three weeks she has spent in a facility far from any of her community.” Sonya Levitova, Associate, Emery Celli Brinckerhoff Abady Ward & Maazel LLP: “To be clear, the government is trying to punish and deport Rümeysa for co-authoring an op-ed espousing a view the administration doesn’t like, and she’s now been locked in a Louisiana detention center for over two weeks for saying what she thinks. The government cannot be allowed to play hopscotch with Rümeysa’s freedom. She must be released immediately.” Rümeysa is represented by Mahsa Khanbabai, the American Civil Liberties Union, ACLU of Massachusetts, ACLU of Vermont, CLEAR, and Emery Celli Brinckerhoff Abady Ward & Maazel LLP.