12 Book Censorship Posts to Revisit: Book Censorship News, June 20, 2025

Having written this column since mid-2021, I sometimes forget what I’ve covered. In some ways, I haven’t written anything new in the world of book censorship because the tactics, goals, and outcomes have not changed much at all over the course of this significant era of censorship. The guide to 56 tasks you can take to end book censorship? It’s literally the same guide as every other “how to fight book bans” guide since 2021, but it’s repackaged as a more granular checklist to make attending to those tasks easier. You’re still ultimately showing up to board meetings, voting, and sharing verified information about the latest news in book censorship.

This week, rather than drafting something fresh, let’s take the time to look back at some of the Literary Activism columns you may have missed from the previous several Mays and Junes Catch up on what you may have missed, and remember that there is nothing new in the book—it’s just different names and faces trying to get their 15 minutes of manufactured outrage fame. We are seeing the results of these actions play out and if you’ve been watching or engaged, nothing is surprising. That doesn’t mean it isn’t infuriating, disgusting, or not in need to pushback. It just means that the groundwork’s been being laid so it is simply not new in the least.

You Need To Talk About The Sex Parts in Banned Books (May 2022)

“We need to be talking about the sex parts and the gender parts of the books being challenged. Those with the platforms to do good work against book bannings need to be versed not just in the easy-to-reach-for classics but the harder books. The books that hold up a mirror and a window to readers in today’s society. The books that, for young readers, offer insight into who they are and what the world around them really looks like. You can ban discussions of LGBTQ people in the classroom but that doesn’t stop LGBTQ individuals from being inside those same rooms. It simply puts yet another barrier into their lives.

American culture is a prude culture. We’re afraid to talk about the messy and complex stuff. We refuse to engage with accurate terminology for human anatomy and human chemistry. It is much easier to accept violence on a mass scale as just the cost of being a person in the US than it is to accept that a child might be queer and deserves to read about people like them. That indeed, they may see a picture of sex between two individuals with the same body parts depicted in a book meant to be for sexual education — yet somehow, it’s perceived as okay to lie to children about “the stork” bringing “a baby,” rather than explain that a baby is created when an egg and a sperm meet.

Until more people are willing to talk about the sex stuff, we’re not going to be moving this conversation forward. We’ll continue to cling to puritanical ideals and fail to put an end to book bans and intellectual freedom.”

Why Are Schools in Maine Keeping GENDER QUEER on Shelves, Despite Challenges? A Case Study in What Makes a Difference (May 2023)

“Even before the attack campaign, Maine residents were interested in Gender Queer. This is in part thanks to the book’s explosion in challenges and bans across the country, as well as in part due to local school districts debating whether or not it was appropriate to include in their collections. In August last year, there were lengthy waitlists for the title in public libraries state-wide. A search of MaineCat in May 2023 shows still-lengthy wait times in some communities, with most copies of the award-winning graphic memoir being checked out.

Eight school districts in the state have received challenges to Gender Queer since August 2022. Of those eight challenges, though, seven have been unsuccessful. Those seven school districts elected to keep the title on shelves and accessible to students, despite crisis acting from within and outside the community; they did so despite the spate of advertisements pushing the book as part of a right-wing agenda; and they did it despite the fact the book has been banned over and over elsewhere throughout the states.”

When Do We Move From Advocacy to Preparation? (May 2023)

“There’s been a meme floating around the internet in recent weeks that demands we sit with what the messaging truly means and why so many feel compelled to share it.

The meme has a number of visual backgrounds, but the text is the same: “live your life so that if it were a book, it would be banned in Florida.” Even the most open minded library workers, educators, and anti-book censorship activists have been sharing it without giving it critical thought. Yes, live your life as you need to. But what about the people who live in Florida now whose lives are being legislated down to whether or not they’re allowed to use the bathroom based on the genitalia they have? Who cannot access the life-saving medication (yes, hormones are life-saving medications)? Who can be abducted BY THE STATE if they’re receiving gender-affirming healthcare? Who will not learn about Black history in high school or college, who will not learn about discrimination, equality, or inclusion at any level of public education?

What about the teens in Texas not allowed to access books about safe sex while also having a law on the books banning abortion? What about the queer kid in Arkansas who legally cannot have their pronouns used by those who see them every single day at school?”

(This meme is STILL enduring and STILL problematic as hell. I also don’t know where we are on the advocacy to preparation spectrum).

Central York High Schoolers Protest Book Bans (Again). Here’s What They Have To Say. (May 2023)

“In early September 2021, before most of the country knew what Moms for Liberty or No Left Turn were — both of which were operating — Central York High School in Pennsylvania was leading the way in book bans. But they weren’t just being leaders in restricting the First Amendment Rights of students. Students themselves were becoming leaders in the charge against book bans, beginning a protest against the removal of books from the school. The protest ended when, finally, the district made concessions.

The students who coordinated the protest were all part of the school’s Panther Anti-Racist Union (PARU), a group founded in 2021 to engage in anti-racist actions in the school and community. PARU’s foundation is on diversity, equity, and inclusion. Book bans were not the only focus of PARU, though now in 2023, PARU is stepping up again, protesting another wave of book bans in their district. Given the books being banned specifically target those with race, gender, and sexuality themes, it is no surprise they’re engaged. They’ve been protesting for over two weeks as of this writing, and they plan to not only continue through the rest of the school year but will continue into the new one if the books being banned at Central York are not overturned.”

SHINY HAPPY PEOPLE Is a Must-Watch to Understand Today’s Book Ban Movement (June 2023)

“These right-wing Christian extremists have taken to every possible corner of the internet and across social media to continue to spread their messages and beliefs. This is precisely what we’re seeing in school and library board meetings, and it’s also what we’re seeing when the affiliates of this organization and its homeschool curriculum share their beliefs as a tool for fueling outrage. Take for example the “Christian Mom” who decided that her kids could no longer watch Ms. Rachel, a YouTube star whose show for toddlers teaches music, colors, shapes, and more. Why did she have a problem with such a straightforward show?

She and her family do not believe in dinosaurs and they do not believe in pronouns (Ms. Rachel has a regularly appearing and deeply beloved guest on the show, Jules, who uses they/them pronouns).

This is the curriculum. They do not believe in dinosaurs. They do not believe in science. And they continue to advance these beliefs as truth every time they show up at board meetings and in board rooms, demanding everything from the removal of books about seahorses and Ruby Bridges to the defunding of public institutions like schools in favor of voucher programs which would continue to line the pockets of IBPL.

Homeschool programs like these promote isolation, promote dependence on white male authority figures, and create such a culture of fear that indoctrinates do not speak up for fear of retaliation and excommunication.”

A Censorship Language Primer (June 2023)

“It has been years since talking about the meanings behind words used to discuss book bans and censorship. Although we might all think we’re using the words the same way, in many cases, the nuance and gravity of language can be lost when the wrong word is used. It might sound nitpicky, but it’s not. Clarity around language and meaning around book bans is important. To communicate the true extent of what is happening and on how many different levels, a shared understanding of words and their meanings is crucial.

This week, for example, an author talked on Twitter about how his book was being “soft censored” because a school board decided to pull the book from shelves before it could raise a concern from community members. Though it conveys the same thing, this is not actually what soft censorship is. This is textbook censorship, no softness about it.

Here’s a short introduction to the nuances of language around book bans, censorship, and more.”

(This is a piece that could most certainly be updated to include even more terminology now).

Chilling Editorial Cartoons About Book Banning (May 2024)

“Book banning and the “culture wars” have seen their time in the editorial cartoon sun. Let’s look at a handful of these images from the past several years. All credit is given to the creators so you can discover some of their other work as well. Of note and of what should be little surprise given the lack of editorial cartoonists working and the field of comics more broadly, the artists here are overwhelmingly male because I’ve stuck to more mainstream media.”

Here’s Where Library Workers are Prohibited From Their Own Professional Organization (May 2024)

“What begins at the local level moves to the regional level, then onto the state level when it comes to book bans. School book bans shift to public library book bans (despite claims made otherwise by those book banners), and then those bans find their way into the city or county level. In too many cases over the last four years, those city or county-level issues bubble to the state level, leading to legislation that does precisely the opposite of what the local-level regression seeks — local control is ceded to the state or country. This perspective is crucial for context as to why, in 2024, several states proposed legislation that would ban affiliation with the largest professional organization for library workers, the American Library Association (ALA).

Data shows that librarians are ranked among the most trustworthy professions by parents. Unfortunately, this trust is being tested and questioned.”

What Do Book Challenge Forms Look Like? (May 2024)

“Every school and public library has different policies and procedures surrounding book challenges, and the processes behind the way a book moves from challenge to banned or returned differs, too. This is why some institutions are much more likely to remove books than others — their policies are easy to maneuver or undermine if they have a policy at all.

One reason that a single woman in Elkhorn, Wisconsin, was able to get 444 books immediately pulled from the school district’s middle and high school was a poorly written policy. The policy changed one year prior, and it stated that a submitted book challenge form would lead to the immediate removal of a book while it was being evaluated by the school district administration. That right there gave carte blanche for submitting forms to get the books banned and overwhelm the district.”

The First American Union Understood The Necessity of Public Libraries and Education (June 2025)

“Public libraries and schools are democratic institutions. Imperfect as they are — each still suffers under the same social, cultural, historical, and economic systems that the United States does more broadly, including racism, sexism, classism, ableism, and so forth — these are spaces where the average person is able to access information, facts, and entertainment on the most egalitarian level possible. This is why they are prime targets by fascists and why they have come under fire over the last several years specifically. If these institutions can be defunded, there is plenty of opportunity to repackage what they do and sell them back to the average person. That’s precisely what we’re seeing with voucher programs happening in several states. Legislatures are pulling public funds from public education and transferring that into vouchers used to access private education (which often engages the systemic issues in public institutions as part of their sell — i.e., religious or far-right ideologies are baked into those curricula). The same goals exist in attempts to defund public libraries. Those can be privatized and sold back to those with the most capital.

The average person knows how much value exists in tax-funded institutions like schools and libraries. The average person knows that having information and subject experts is essential for navigating a world full of misinformation, disinformation, and propaganda. The average person knows access to books, to curated and vetted websites, and to a wealth of professionally-created reference work is key to being able to think for themselves. It is key to their liberation and key to their capacity to continue tearing down the -ism systems that libraries and schools exist to take apart.”

How Alabama Library Supporters Took Action and You Can, Too (June 2024)

“Prattville might be one public library in one state that many believe is hopeless because it’s a “red state.” But here we are four years into the book banning surge, and it remains important to emphasize that where censorship happens does not matter. It is happening everywhere, even in the so-called “good” “blue states.” Every person, every child, deserves access to materials in their public institutions like libraries and schools.

The reason this has been more prevalent in some states than others isn’t because people deserve it or voted for it. It’s because those people have been systematically disenfranchised or gerrymandered in such a way that their right to democracy doesn’t exist in the same way it does in other states. And, frankly, it’s pretty hateful to believe the child of the harshest, most extreme right-wing folks doesn’t deserve access to a library or school because of the rhetoric that has brainwashed their parents. This fight is on behalf of everyone, not just those deemed more morally superior for having the luck or choice of living in one locality rather than another.”

Why Did a High Schooler Hand Her Superintendent A Book at Graduation? One Student’s Year of Fighting Book Bans. (June 2024)

“Annabelle Jenkins, 18, did not intend for video of her graduation to go viral. She was not interested in making a scene nor in getting the kind of attention she is receiving for it. But she is using this moment to emphasize the reality teenagers like her—and thousands across the nation—are living.

At her graduation from the West Ada School District (ID), instead of shaking the hand of district superintendent Dr. Derek Bub, Annabelle handed him a copy of The Handmaid’s Tale Graphic Novel, one title among many that were banned from the district during the 2023-2024 year. The video of this moment has garnered millions of views on TikTok, but that was never the point.

In fall 2023, Annabelle was sitting in a classroom with windows that faced the school cafeteria. From there, she witnessed an altercation between a teacher and her school librarian. Annabelle described it as unlike any interaction she’d seen between school faculty members. It was loud, it was hostile, there was a lot of gesticulation, and it grabbed her attention.

The argument was over books. Specifically, this argument was over The Handmaid’s Tale (Graphic Novel), which Annabelle discovered after her class period ended and she went to the library to ask. The library and the librarian were among her favorite things at school.”

Book Censorship News: June 20, 2025

Psst: it’s time to start tracking attacks on Pride-related programs, book displays, and library collections. If you’ve experienced censorship or targeted attacks related to Pride leading up to June or anytime throughout June, please document that here. It’s anonymous and will be used to catalog the ongoing attempts at Pride-related censorship (see 2023 and 2024 roundups).

• Yancey County (NC) pulled their libraries out of a consortium with other libraries over a Pride display. Now, residents plan to sue.
• Orange and Osceola, Florida, county schools preemptively banned books from their school libraries in response to what’s happening in Hillsborough County schools . . . which is exactly what the book banners want.
• Why the ACLU is fighting to keep books on shelves in Rutherford County, Tennessee, school libraries.
• Fairhope Public Library (AL) is moving five books from where they belong in the library to the adult section. This relocation decision is still censorship.
• Choosing to engage in book censorship still won’t get Fairhope Public Library (above!) from getting their money from the state. The state wants more books banned. (See here for more)
• “Florida public school districts pulled dozens of library books state officials described as “pornographic” from shelves amid increased pressure on superintendents.” Remember that book banning in Florida’s public schools was up to the district itself until state officials decided to target Hillsborough Schools. Now, many other schools in the state are preemptively banning books from shelves–some of which already went through the review process and were deemed worth keeping.
• Speaking of, three YA books were given restrictions (still censorship) in St. Johns schools (FL).
• The Grants Pass, Oregon, school board has paused discussions of the new library policy that would ban any books they deem “inappropriate.” You know what that’s code for, and they were called out for it.
• Muscatine, Iowa’s public library was the latest recipient of a bomb threat.
• This story isn’t about a library but it is about the Wisconsin Historical Society. The facility is not flying a Pride flag this year because they “don’t want to be political.” This pushback article is really what we need to see more and more of from folks on the ground watching and documenting the erasure of Pride from the public.
• Here’s a good look at how what happens in individual school districts when it comes to book bans then makes its way to state-level legislation. This example comes from Arkansas.
• The North Dakota GOP voted to censure state governor Kelly Armstrong since he didn’t allow them to ban books in the state.
• This is a paywalled good story: Ann Arbor, Michigan, schools are adding tons of new diverse titles to their shelves, thanks to some grant money.
• This letter to the editor is from a resident user of Garland County Library (AR). They’re mad that the library allows anyone to borrow any book. No, really. They stole their child’s card to see if it was “true.”
• New Haven Public Library (CT) is the third recipient in a week of a library-centered bomb threat. To think we went many months without a single one.
• Escambia County Schools (FL) voted this week to remove any books deemed “pornographic.” The superintendent can now remove any book without needing to review it. Recall Escambia has banned over a thousand books already and have been involved in not one, but TWO, lawsuits over their banning.
• 18 more books have been removed from Escambia County Schools this week.
• “A sweeping policy change could wrest decisions on removing books from library shelves away from librarians and give the authority to the district’s politically appointed board of trustees.” This is St. Charles County Public Library in Missouri. I know I want politically-appointed trustees picking books and not trained and educated librarians /eye roll. The vote on this decision was delayed this week, but it’s not gone entirely.
• Jefferson County school librarians (CO) are trying to repeal a policy in the district that gives “district personnel” equal authority in selecting books for the libraries as their trained and educated librarians.
• The latest from Christian County Library District (MO), which right-wing extremists have taken over. They’ve burned through not one, but two, interim executive directors in a couple of months.
• The latest from Samuels Public Library (VA), the much-beleaguered library which has been targeted and devastated by a handful of far-right religious folks.
• Some good news from Samuels, though: two library supporters have won their republican primary races.
• NOW it looks like folks are fighting against the provision in the Ohio budget that would require removing all LGBTQ+ books in public libraries from the view of minors. This was thrown under the bus in favor of the budget for libraries earlier in this battle, but hey, even that didn’t really matter since the budget looks like it’ll screw libraries over anyway. But here’s the reality: LGBTQ+ folks already know they were sacrificed.
• In China–and let’s be frank, this isn’t out of the dreams of right-wing bigots in America–the police are arresting female writers of “boys love” novels.
• The Oconee County Public Library (SC) canceled Pride displays in 2023, and they also canceled supporters of LGBTQ+ people, patrons, children, and so forth, by firing some of the librarians who voiced inclusivity. Now, one of those librarians is suing.
• Rhode Island is one step closer to passing an anti-book ban bill.
• The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression is trying to get the Utah State Board of Education to allow students to have their own personal copies of books banned statewide at school. Yes, they’re not even allowed personal copies of the books.
• Speaking of Utah, an audit found educators were removing books from shelves without being forced to out of fear of the law. This is the quiet censorship that doesn’t get talked about or tracked.
• In some good news, Oregon’s governor signed their anti-book ban bill.
• A little more good news? New York’s anti-book ban bill is heading to the governor’s desk.