Tools for Thinking About Censorship

Libraries & Librarians

News Updates

Books can cost Connecticut libraries $15. So why do eBooks cost three times as much?

Plus, Connecticut librarians push a bill that would expand eBook and audiobook access.

Cool Library Updates

Libraries are leading the crusade for new music discovery.

How this poet is bringing literature to prisons.

Worth Reading

These days, when you work in a library in America, there is no lack of emergencies.

Book Adaptations in the News

Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor called out the recent remake of The Color Purple for its erasure of Black lesbian romance.

30% of Netflix’s top shows in 2024 are based on existing IPs.

Casting update for Klara and the Sun.

Censorship News

Tools for thinking about censorship.

What updates should library collection policies include?

The Oscar-nominated short documentary, The ABCs of Book Banning, is free to watch on YouTube.

A new survey captures the national divide on teaching about racial and LGTQ issues.

The American Civil Liberties Union of Texas, Equality Texas, Transgender Education Network Texas, and other organizations have filed a complaint with the US DoE’s Office of Civil Rights against Keller ISD for its policies that ban all books depicting or referencing transgender or nonbinary people.

Are Houston ISD (TX) students checking out fewer books without librarians? It’s hard to say, because many schools are now using an “honor system” to allow students access to books. Well, isn’t that convenient?

And now, the Spring Branch ISD (TX) has confirmed the imminent elimination of all school librarian positions.

Katy ISD’s (TX) new book selection requirements are seen as “a slap in the face” to librarians. The new policy says that library staff have to read a new title in its entirety before purchasing it for the collection and can no longer rely on publication reviews. What an astonishingly inefficient policy. And not surprisingly, district officials say that “nothing is set in stone.”

In Conroe ISD (TX), the board voted 5:1 to “sell, donate, recycle, or dispose” of over 2,000 books that were removed as a result of their “informal review” process.

The book ban wars expand in Llano County, Texas.

Ron DeSantis wants to rebrand the book banning mess he created.

The Hernando County (FL) School Board is deciding on the fate of three books. A review committee has recommended keeping two of the books (All American Boys, Fade) and removing the third (All the Things We Do in the Dark).

“Alachua County Public Schools [FL] released a statement on Friday in response to a ‘misleading’ social media post about the decision to keep a book in school libraries.” Surprising no one, the misleading social media post came from Libs of TikTok.

After all four staff members at the Newfane Public Library (NY) resigned earlier this month, four of the seven trustees have resigned as well.

NYC library chiefs discuss how they expand access to banned books.

At the end of last year, the Great Barrington (MA) Police Department was contacted about a middle school teacher having Gender Queer in their classroom. The district just revealed that the complaint was filed by a night custodian with the district who had previously filed another (unrelated) false report against the school.

Moms for Liberty takes aim at Howard County (MD) school library books.

Nine books have been permanently removed from Carroll County schools (MD).

The Buncombe County (NC) school board banned Tricks by Ellen Hopkins.

(Paywalled): Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools have ended access to the eBook app Epic due to the state’s controversial “Parents’ Bill of Rights.”

Greenville County Library (SC) is considering a policy that would move any children’s books by or about trans people into a different section.

(Paywalled): Lexington-Richland 5 School District (SC) has returned the challenged King Tut comic to library shelves.

You done messed up, A-a-labama. Freedom to Read advocates blasted the Autauga-Prattville Public Library for their recent policy decisions that essentially prevent library workers from ordering any materials for minors with LGBTQ content. PEN America called the decision a “mockery” of free expression. There’s a petition going to rescind the appointments of four library board members. And Read Freely Alabama posted about the issue on their Twitter. Plus, what federal courts have said about local library book bans and how that might affect the Autauga-Prattville Library.

A Crawford County (AR) mom is a plaintiff in a lawsuit against the county for the county’s decision to relocate LGBTQ+ books out of the library’s “children” section. But she says that she just wants the books returned and would like to avoid a trial if possible.

(Paywalled) Roane County (TN) School District employees are being harassed in public by people who are trying to get books removed.

Goshen (IN) residents are divided over the removal of Gender Queer from the public library, although it appears that the book has since been returned.

“Members of the public organized a demonstration, supporting the right to uncensored reading materials, in response to beliefs that Eastland Baptist Church was attempting to privatize the library.” This is at the Metropolis Public Library (IL).

This article may be paywalled, but the Kenosha County Board (WI) voted sensibly against a proposal to create “adult-only” sections in the public libraries.

Osseo School Board (MN) voted to retain Fun Home.

Employees at the James River Valley Library System (ND) have not found any books that merit complete removal due to “explicit sexual material.”

Who gets to decide which books are appropriate for Oklahoma school libraries?

“Edmond Public Schools is asking the Oklahoma Supreme Court to intervene in an attempt by state officials to ban two books from school library shelves.” The Oklahoma State Department of Education “threatened a potential downgrade to Edmond’s accreditation status” if they didn’t remove the books (The Kite Runner and The Glass Castle). And as a reminder, Chaya Raichik (the person behind Libs of TikTok) was recently appointed to the DoE’s Library Media Review Committee, which made the determination that these books were considered “pornographic.”

“Utah House and Senate representatives have reached a compromise on the measure that fine-tunes guidelines for removal of books from public school libraries…The provision added by the Senate that gave rise to Tuesday’s compromise would have given local school boards authority to override the trigger removing books from libraries statewide, at least in their jurisdictions. Now, under the reworked version, only the State Board of Education would have that power, though local school district decisions to remove books would stand.” Great compromise. Make it easier to remove books than to prevent their removal. Anyway, the book banning bill is close to passing, and an anti-book ban bill has been proposed in response.

“A coalition of Utah organizations on Tuesday sent a letter asking Utah Gov. Spencer Cox to veto the controversial HB29, which targets books and other material with sexually explicit passages for removal from school libraries.”

Laurel Public Schools (MT) are reviewing five challenged books that primarily deal with LGBTQ themes.

(Paywalled): The Idaho Senate narrowly killed a harmful library materials bill.

Recently released police bodycam footage shows Idaho Sheriff Robert Norris hunting for “obscene” books at the Hayden Library, which isn’t frightening at all.

New Mexico’s anti-book ban bill is dead.

Las Cruces Public Schools (NM) are now hearing a challenge against A Court of Silver Flames.

San Ramon Valley Unified School District Board (CA) will hear an appeal about their decision to retain The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian.

Oregon’s anti-book-ban bill has passed the Senate.

(Paywalled) “The Kennewick School Board has called a special meeting for 9 a.m. Tuesday morning to consider opposing two bills before the Washington State Legislature related to books and curricula on historically marginalized and underrepresented groups.” And apparently, the Central Valley School District Board is of a similar mind.