Social Movements & the Law

The American Library Association (ALA) today released the highly anticipated Top 10 Most Challenged Books List.

U.S. officials say the U.S. Naval Academy has removed nearly 400 books from its library after being told by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s office to review and get rid of books that promote diversity, equity and inclusion.

A federal judge says Iowa for now cannot continue to enforce part of its book ban law. The decision Tuesday gives major publishers that sued the state their latest temporary reprieve.

4,196 likes, 34 comments - lakotalaw on March 13, 2025: "🚨 They’re banning history. Read it anyway. Books that share truths about Indigenous land and Native history are disappearing from U.S. schools and libraries as part of a nationwide ban on books. One banned book example: “An Indigenous Peoples’ History of the United States.” Ask yourself why. 💡 It’s not just about banning a few classics or a single book—it’s about erasing the real histories and controlling the narrative. 🚫 We created the Decolonized Reading List for 2025—a curated selection of 25 nonfiction books that challenge colonial myths and highlight movements of resistance, including Indigenous sovereignty, Black liberation, LGBTQ2S+ rights, abolition, and the fight for reparations. Read them. Share them. Pass them down. 📚 Explore the full Decolonized Reading from the link in our bio. 📢 Amplify your impact. Petition for truthful education in U.S. schools. 🔗 Teach Real History Link in Bio 👉🏾 For the most current information on book bans, follow @americanlibraryassociation #BannedBooks #DecolonizeYourBookshelf #IndigenousHistory #TeachRealHistory".

Georgia is considering a bill aimed at preventing children from accessing explicit library material. Opponents say it would chill free speech

The EveryLibrary Institute is collecting and analyzing polling and surveys about book bans, anti-access legislation, and the perception of libraries/librarians to help advocates quickly find and interpret results.

Patty Hector lost job after being targeted by campaign urging restriction of books with race and LGBTQ+ themes

The American Library Association responds to the Department of Education's dismissal of complaints about censorship and discrimination: the "effort to terminate protections... advances the demonstrably false claim that book bans are not real."

A Sarah Jessica Parker-produced documentary on the brave librarians fighting a wave of rightwing book bans has sparked conversation at Sundance

Libraries are now reporting more aggressive, targeted, and organized First Amendment audits than in years past.

Challenges to nonbook materials -- such as displays, social media posts, reading lists, and programs -- are on the rise. What should libraries do in the face of these attacks?

A federal judge has struck down key parts of an Arkansas law that would have allowed criminal charges against librarians and booksellers for providing so-called “harmful” materials to minors.

South Carolina considering a law that withholds public library funds if "inappropriate" materials are available and more censorship news.

Every library — academic, public, and school (public, private, charter, independent, and international) — should have a comprehensive written policy that guides the selection, deselection or weeding, and reconsideration of library resources. The most valuable selection policy is current; it is reviewed and revised on a regular basis; and it is familiar to all members of a library’s staff. The policy should be approved by the library’s governing board or other policy-making body and disseminated widely for understanding by all stakeholders.

Democrat Rhode Island lawmakers on Wednesday promoted a suite of bills motivated by the Freedom to Read movement — an assertion of libraries’ right to hold controversial books, amid an ongoing culture clash over the written word.

Both the Indiana and Iowa State Legislatures have introduced legislation regarding criminally charging libraries and librarians over “inappropriate” material. These bills are closely related to widespread book challenges occurring at schools and public libraries across the nation, with people trying to remove books that address certain topics relating to gender, sexuality, and race from library collections. In many cases there is already a clear process for reconsidering materials in a collection, so how do legal defenses play a role in this and what do the bills change?

List of books by Native authors that have been challenged or banned

Expert Contributes to First Update in American Library Association Standards Since 1992

Two new reports provide a mixed but compelling outlook on the wave of book removals and challenges as the annual Banned Books Week begins for schools, stores and libraries nationwide.

The final count for the 2023-2024 school year will be released later this fall along with a public Index of School Book Bans.

The American Library Association's Office for Intellectual Freedom (OIF) has released new data documenting book challenges throughout the United States, finding that challenges were nearly double that of 2021, reaching the highest number of attempted book bans since ALA began compiling data about censorship in libraries more than 20 years ago.

On September 10, 2024, AAP and allies filed a second amicus brief in support of Texas public library patron plaintiffs in Little v. Llano County following the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals’ order of a full court rehearing of its June 6, 2024 decision. That earlier decision largely—but not entirely—upheld a preliminary injunction against the unconstitutional […]

UW Magazine | University of Washington

After Amanda Jones got death threats for speaking out against censorship, she sued her attackers and wrote a memoir

Across the country, book bans and attempted bans have soared to the highest levels in decades. Public and school-based libraries have been inundated with complaints from community members and conservative activists.

Mychal Threets’ sudden rise to fame as a pusher of ‘library joy’ isn’t over despite his exit from his job to focus on himself