By Jae Moore
As libraries nationwide prepare programming for National Library Week (April 7-13), a newly released American Library Association (ALA) report eclipses past studies, showing yet another record number of titles being targeted in school and public libraries, the majority about LGBTQ people and other marginalized groups. According to the new report:
- Schools and libraries saw efforts to ban 4,240 unique titles, up 65% from 2,571 titles in 2022.
- Public libraries became a major focus of book banning groups, seeing a 92% increase in the number of targeted titles year-to-year.
- Challenges often encompass dozens to hundreds of titles at once.
- Nearly half of censorship attempts, 47%, are leveraged against LGBTQ titles and books about people of color.
- 17 states saw attempts to ban 100+ titles: Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Idaho, Illinois, Iowa, Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, and Wisconsin.
While the war against intellectual freedom rages on in the classroom, ALA’s data suggests an increasing focus on public libraries.
“When these groups first went to school boards to demand the censorship of books, they said, ‘Well, after all, the reader who wants to read them can just go down the street to the public library,’” noted Deborah Caldwell-Stone, director of the ALA’s Office for Intellectual Freedom, in an interview with NPR. “Already twice they’ve said they’d rather close the library than tolerate books they don’t agree with.”
In 2023, commissioners in Cass County, Michigan, announced plans to review proposed legislation, the “Cass County Child Protection Ordinance,” that would have made it a criminal offense for school and public librarians to offer minors books with “sexually explicit” content. After swift backlash from librarians and supporters throughout Michigan, the proposed ordinance was removed from the county commissioner’s agenda, albeit with the possibility of later review.
In August, the Michigan Library Association launched MI Right to Read, a campaign encouraging Michigan residents to fight back against book ban efforts in Michigan libraries. Ottawa County voters took this to heart last November, when they secured taxpayer support for Patmos Library, ending a bitter battle between residents advocating for free speech, and book banning groups who wanted LGBTQ titles such as Gender Queer removed from library shelves.
As extremist groups like Moms for Liberty see diminishing returns on school boards, grassroots efforts like MI Right to Read are an important tool in stopping the spread of misinformation and combatting censorship efforts in public libraries. But you don’t have to live in Michigan to get involved! As part of National Library Week, Unite Against Book Bans (UABB) is holding Right to Read Day on April 8. Whether you have five minutes, 15, or more, UABB encourages you to take action to protect intellectual freedom for all of us.
