What is Book Banning

Book banning is the practice of prohibiting or restricting the reading of certain books by the general public.

Books can be banned by their removal from publicly accessible locations (e.g, libraries), by their destruction (including the burning of printed books), or by making their authorship or distribution a punishable act.

To ban a book is almost always a controversial act in a democracy since its citizens consider media freedom to be both a common good and a necessary component of any democratic society.

“LGBTQ+ literature, Book Bans, and the Power of a New Public Narrative”

By Jennifer Buehler, Associate Professor, Education Studies, Saint Louis University

Book Banning in the U.S.

Public and school libraries are legally allowed to restrict which books are made available to children since it is generally agreed that not every book is appropriate for children.

This commonly accepted form of censorship became a political flashpoint starting in 2021 as national groups of social conservatives and conservative politicians began making a concerted effort to remove a multitude of children’s and young-adult books from library shelves, primarily those written from the perspectives of people of  color and LGBTQ+ people.

Since 2021, PEN America has documented nearly 23,000 book bans in the U.S. public schools, many targeting stories about race and racism, or books featuring characters of color. The Ballad of an Unsung Hero

In 2022 lawmakers in some states began passing or attempting to pass sweeping laws to ban children’s books in public and school libraries that did not accord with their views on racial and sexual minorities. No judgment on the constitutionality of these laws has yet been made.

Source: Brittanica

Organized Censorship

The American Library Association released data in April 2025 documenting attempts to censor books and materials in public, school, and academic libraries during 2024.

The majority of book censorship attempts are now originating from organized movements. Pressure groups and government entities that include elected officials, board members, and administrators initiated 72% of demands to censor books in school and public libraries.

The organizations below have detailed, timely information about book bans and censorship.  They also provide ways you can “take action.”  

• • • American Library Association
    • United Against Book Bans
    • PEN America