\n
![](\"https:\/\/s2982.pcdn.co\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/site-book-censorship-image.jpg.optimal.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
\n<\/p>\n
Kelly is a former librarian and a long-time blogger at STACKED. She’s the editor\/author of (DON’T) CALL ME CRAZY: 33 VOICES START THE CONVERSATION ABOUT MENTAL HEALTH and the editor\/author of HERE WE ARE: FEMINISM FOR THE REAL WORLD. Her next book, BODY TALK, will publish in Fall 2020. Follow her on Instagram @heykellyjensen<\/a>.<\/p>\n View All posts by Kelly Jensen<\/a><\/p>\n \t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n As we close out the first quarter of what is turning into the longest year in a nonstop series of long years, let\u2019s take a few moments to look back at the biggest book censorship stories so far. Some of these stories will have links to read further, while others will be short summaries of what\u2019s been going on. In an era where the news on book censorship is only continuing to escalate in number and in speed, pausing to catch up on the biggest stories helps give perspective on what\u2019s come before, where we are now, and what to anticipate in the coming months. <\/p>\n From Individual School Bans to State<\/strong> Legislation<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n Though not a new phenomenon\u2013and indeed, one written about here for years\u2013this year\u2019s collection of book censorship news makes something startlingly clear. What began as targeted attacks on individual books in individual schools, school districts, and public libraries has pushed upward to state-level legislation targeting these institutions<\/a> and their staff. Just the number of librarian criminalization bills in 2025<\/a> alone shows how many state legislatures have folded to rhetoric spewed by high-level officials, as well as those on the ground. <\/p>\n None of this stops at the state level, though. The states are testing grounds for what the goals are at the federal level, as you\u2019ll see shortly. <\/p>\n Utah and South Carolina Amp Up State-Sanctioned Book Bans<\/strong><\/p>\n Literary Activism Newsletter<\/p>\n \nNews you can use plus tips and tools for the fight against censorship and other bookish activism!\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Thank you for signing up! Keep an eye on your inbox.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Utah has banned three books from every public school in the state<\/a> since the start of the year. This brings the number of books the state demands must be removed from these public institutions to 17. The bulk of these state-wide bans are a result of bans in two districts alone, and the average age of the books being banned is 14. Most are penned by women. Utah\u2019s law also states that no student may be in possession of any of these books on school property, whether or not it is their personal copy. <\/p>\n South Carolina has also been busy banning books across the state. Where Utah requires that books have been banned in 3 school districts to be banned statewide, South Carolina allows anyone who wishes to submit book complaints directly to the State Department of Education. This means that folks like Elizabeth Szalai, who didn\u2019t get her way when books were challenged and retained in Beaufort County, can get the state to step in and make a decision (the \u201clocal control\u201d argument book banners have been making for years has always been a lie). Four books have been banned in every school library in South Carolina<\/a> this year, with 10 more on deck<\/a> for the same fate as early as April 1. <\/p>\n The Department of Defense Education Activity Book Bans<\/strong><\/p>\n As reported in mid-February<\/a>: \u201cadministrators at Department of Defense Education Activity Schools received a memo directing them to pull certain lessons and materials from their curriculum pending review. Materials include books that are out of alignment with the new administration\u2019s \u201cDefending Women from Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government\u201d and \u201cEnding Radical Indoctrination in K-12 Schooling\u201d executive orders. This order comes after the Department of Defense signaled they would be following the Pentagon\u2019s January 31 directive to end all celebrations related to identity and race.\u201d Among the books<\/a> falling within the scope of this book ban order are Hillbilly Elegy, Well-Read Black Girl, The Kite Runner<\/em>, and so many more. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n In the wake of this order, students protested<\/a>. This one isn\u2019t going down quietly. <\/p>\n LGBTQ+ Books On The Line in Supreme Court Case<\/strong><\/p>\n Next month, the Supreme Court will take up a case related to books in public schools. The case, Mahmoud v. Taylor,<\/a> is about a situation in Montgomery County, Maryland, schools, where students were given access to a number of LGBTQ+ picture books. The question at hand is whether or not schools have the right to provide such materials without <\/em>giving parents an opportunity Given the slate of judges making the decision here, I\u2019m not optimistic about the outcome. That said, if the law works as it should and the plaintiffs in this case win the argument, this would not ban books but would require parental opt-outs for all materials used in school. Still book censorship<\/a>, of course, and more, a supreme nightmare for educators in our besieged public schools. <\/p>\n We haven\u2019t had a case about books like this before the Supreme Court since Island Trees v. Pico<\/a>. <\/p>\n The Dismantling of the Department of Education and the Institute for Museum and Library Services<\/strong><\/p>\n The end of the Department of Education (DOE) was clear since the beginning of this administration\u2019s campaign. The moment it was taken over, new leaders began to spread lies, misinformation, and propaganda about a book ban \u201choax\u201d<\/a> and brought in people like Tiffany Justice, Moms For Liberty cofounder, to provide \u201cexpert quotes\u201d about the role of the department<\/a>. <\/p>\n The only federal agency providing support to publicly-funded libraries and museums, the Institute for Museum and Library Studies (IMLS) has been turned into a propaganda machine<\/a>. Projects that don\u2019t support the new acting director\u2019s goals of spreading lies about American exceptionalism and history will likely no longer be funded and it is very likely funding that supports vital services in the states will come with plenty of strings attached.<\/p>\n We knew the dismantling of the DOE was coming, but the timing of its destruction was nothing short of intentional. It happened simultaneous to the ruin of the IMLS. The DOE being a massive part of the government by default overshadows what\u2019s happened at IMLS, creating an opportunity for people who care deeply about both to be overwhelmed with information about one and miss what happened at the other. The court and legal system can only do so much right now, and the administration is doing everything it can to overwhelm lawyers and judges to get away with this kind of constitutional overreach.<\/p>\n This is intentional desecration of knowledge and cultural good in America, done at the hands of an unelected billionaire. It will be the end of crucial information services providing access to all Americans, including databases of actual scientific research and systems that allow users to borrow books from any library across the nation. Access to technology will be slashed, making it even harder for seniors to apply for things like Social Security\u2013a necessity now that Social Security in person meetings and offices have been brutalized by the same executive regime. <\/p>\n Mis- and dis- information were on the ballot. They were campaign promises<\/a>. <\/p>\n The American education, library, and museum systems that have helped educate and connect us as people for generations are going to be fundamentally changed starting now, and not for good. For anyone paying attention at all over the last five years, it\u2019s not surprising. But surprising or not, it is devastating, and we\u2019re going to feel the repercussions of this not only in terms of achievement, but also right in our wallets.<\/p>\n Schools, libraries, and museums won\u2019t go away. They\u2019re just going to become pay-to-play, allowing the oligarchs who are currently pillaging public goods to turn around and repackage these same goods at a premium price. <\/p>\n Psst: you\u2019ll soon be able to stream the documentary Banned Together<\/em><\/a>. <\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n\n\n\nto openly be bigots<\/s> to opt their kids out of learning that LGBTQ+ people exist. <\/p>\nBook Censorship News: March 28, 2025<\/h2>\n
\n