How To Be An Informed Voter for Libraries and Books: Book Censorship News, October 16, 2026

As we more on from last week’s Banned Books Week, here’s your reminder that a week of “celebrating” banned books isn’t enough. It’s essential to now take that passion for intellectual freedom, the rights of readers, the rights of authors, and the need to protect institutions of democracy further by taking direct action. Libraries are on the ballot this November. Libraries have always been on the ballot, but with the continued rise of book censorship and attacks on these institutions of democracy, it is more crucial than ever to show up at the polls–and it’s also vital to tell everyone else who has an election to do the same. This year’s midterms are crucial, and it’s become clear just how crucial by the escalation of attacks on books by the authoritarian regime–see the calls for accelerated and proactive bans from the Texas Lieutenant Governor and those by the DeSantis-appointed Commissioner of Education in Florida. Beyond the top-of-the-ballot offices, two main ballot matters relate to public libraries and schools this fall. First, there will be elections in several states and municipalities for school and library board members. Who sits on these boards matters tremendously. Folks...