E.K. v. Department of Defense Education Activity
What's at Stake
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.
Summary
Between January 20th and January 29th, 2025, President Trump signed Executive Orders 14168, 14185, and 14190, which ban topics such as “gender ideology” and “discriminatory equity ideology” from federally funded K-12 education. Since then, the Department of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA), which provides pre-kindergarten, elementary, and secondary education to approximately 67,000 dependents of military personnel around the world, has removed books, parts of curriculums, and cultural awareness celebrations from school grounds.
DoDEA has placed hundreds of school library books in “quarantine,” reviewing them for permanent removal. These books include award-winning titles such as To Kill A Mockingbird, Fahrenheit 451, The Kite Runner, A Queer History of the United States, as well as hundreds of other books about gender, class, and race. Additionally, DoDEA educators have been instructed to alter their curriculums to remove mentions of gender, race, immigration, and various facets of developmental health.
The ACLU is representing a group of DoDEA students ranging in grades from pre-kindergarten to high school whose educational opportunities have been limited by these executive orders. The lawsuit asserts that President Trump’s Executive Orders infringe on the plaintiffs’ First Amendment rights and seeks the reinstatement of removed books and curricula.
Legal Documents
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06/26/2026
Response/Reply Brief for Appellants/Cross-Appellees -
06/03/2026
Brief of Amici Curiae Vet Voice Foundation and the Fred T. Korematsu Center for Law and Equality -
06/03/2026
Brief of Amici Curiae Secure Families Initiative and PFLAG -
06/03/2026
Brief of Amicus Curiae Pen American Center -
06/03/2026
Brief of Amici Curiae National Education Association, Federal Education Association, Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, and Education Law Center -
06/03/2026
Brief of Amicus Curiae National Academy of Education -
06/03/2026
Brief of Amici Curiae the Authors Guild, MacMillan Publishing Group, and Penguin Random House -
06/02/2026
Brief of Amici Curiae Freedom to Read Foundation and American Association of School Librarians -
05/27/2026
Principal Brief for Appellees/Cross-Appellants -
04/02/2026
Brief of Amicus Curiae Defending Education in Support of Government -
04/02/2026
Brief of Amicus Curiae Alliance Defending Freedom in Support of Government -
03/30/2026
Principal Brief for Appellants/Cross-Appellees -
03/30/2026
Joint Appendix
Date Filed: 06/26/2026
Court: Appeals Court (4th Cir.)
Affiliate: Virginia
Date Filed: 06/03/2026
Court: Appeals Court (4th Cir.)
Affiliate: Virginia
Date Filed: 06/03/2026
Court: Appeals Court (4th Cir.)
Affiliate: Virginia
Date Filed: 06/03/2026
Court: Appeals Court (4th Cir.)
Affiliate: Virginia
Date Filed: 06/03/2026
Court: Appeals Court (4th Cir.)
Affiliate: Virginia
Date Filed: 06/03/2026
Court: Appeals Court (4th Cir.)
Affiliate: Virginia
Date Filed: 06/03/2026
Court: Appeals Court (4th Cir.)
Affiliate: Virginia
Date Filed: 06/02/2026
Court: Appeals Court (4th Cir.)
Affiliate: Virginia
Date Filed: 05/27/2026
Court: Appeals Court (4th Cir.)
Affiliate: Virginia
Date Filed: 04/02/2026
Court: Appeals Court (4th Cir.)
Affiliate: Virginia
Date Filed: 04/02/2026
Court: Appeals Court (4th Cir.)
Affiliate: Virginia
Date Filed: 03/30/2026
Court: Appeals Court (4th Cir.)
Affiliate: Virginia
Date Filed: 03/30/2026
Court: Appeals Court (4th Cir.)
Affiliate: Virginia
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03/20/2026
Order Denying Government's Motion to Dismiss -
10/20/2025
Order -
10/20/2025
Memorandum Opinion -
07/22/2025
Government's Reply in Support of Motion to Dismiss -
07/16/2025
Opposition to Government's Motion to Dismiss -
07/12/2025
Memorandum Order -
05/30/2025
Reply Brief in Support of Motion for a Preliminary Injunction -
05/23/2025
Government Brief in Opposition to Plaintiffs' Motion for a Preliminary Injunction -
05/19/2025
Amicus Brief by Federal Education Association and National Education Association -
05/07/2025
Motion for Preliminary Injunction -
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Index of Exhibits -
Exhibit 1 -
Exhibit 2 -
Exhibit 3 -
Exhibit 4 -
Exhibit 5 -
Exhibit 6 -
Exhibit 7 -
Exhibit 8 -
Exhibit 9 -
Exhibit 10 -
Exhibit 11 -
Exhibit 12 -
Exhibit 13 -
Exhibit 14 -
Exhibit 15 -
Exhibit 16 -
Exhibit 17 -
Exhibit 18 -
Exhibit 19 -
Exhibit 20
Index of ExhibitsCourt: District Court (E.D. Va.)
Affiliate: Virginia
Exhibit 1Court: District Court (E.D. Va.)
Affiliate: Virginia
Exhibit 2Court: District Court (E.D. Va.)
Affiliate: Virginia
Exhibit 3Court: District Court (E.D. Va.)
Affiliate: Virginia
Exhibit 4Court: District Court (E.D. Va.)
Affiliate: Virginia
Exhibit 5Court: District Court (E.D. Va.)
Affiliate: Virginia
Exhibit 6Court: District Court (E.D. Va.)
Affiliate: Virginia
Exhibit 7Court: District Court (E.D. Va.)
Affiliate: Virginia
Exhibit 8Court: District Court (E.D. Va.)
Affiliate: Virginia
Exhibit 9Court: District Court (E.D. Va.)
Affiliate: Virginia
Exhibit 10Court: District Court (E.D. Va.)
Affiliate: Virginia
Exhibit 11Court: District Court (E.D. Va.)
Affiliate: Virginia
Exhibit 12Court: District Court (E.D. Va.)
Affiliate: Virginia
Exhibit 13Court: District Court (E.D. Va.)
Affiliate: Virginia
Exhibit 14Court: District Court (E.D. Va.)
Affiliate: Virginia
Exhibit 15Court: District Court (E.D. Va.)
Affiliate: Virginia
Exhibit 16Court: District Court (E.D. Va.)
Affiliate: Virginia
Exhibit 17Court: District Court (E.D. Va.)
Affiliate: Virginia
Exhibit 18Court: District Court (E.D. Va.)
Affiliate: Virginia
Exhibit 19Court: District Court (E.D. Va.)
Affiliate: Virginia
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04/15/2025
Complaint
Date Filed: 03/20/2026
Court: District Court (E.D. Va.)
Affiliate: Virginia
Date Filed: 10/20/2025
Court: District Court (E.D. Va.)
Affiliate: Virginia
Date Filed: 10/20/2025
Court: District Court (E.D. Va.)
Affiliate: Virginia
Date Filed: 07/22/2025
Court: District Court (E.D. Va.)
Affiliate: Virginia
Date Filed: 07/16/2025
Court: District Court (E.D. Va.)
Affiliate: Virginia
Date Filed: 07/12/2025
Court: District Court (E.D. Va.)
Affiliate: Virginia
Date Filed: 05/30/2025
Court: District Court (E.D. Va.)
Affiliate: Virginia
Date Filed: 05/23/2025
Court: District Court (E.D. Va.)
Affiliate: Virginia
Date Filed: 05/19/2025
Court: District Court (E.D. Va.)
Affiliate: Virginia
Date Filed: 05/07/2025
Court: District Court (E.D. Va.)
Affiliate: Virginia
Date Filed: 04/15/2025
Court: District Court (E.D. Va.)
Affiliate: Virginia
Press Releases
DoDEA Must Return Books to Shelves, Judge Rules
Military Families Seek Preliminary Injunction Against Censorship in Department of Defense Schools
Students Sue Department of Defense Schools Over Curriculum Changes, Book Bans