School Libraries Archives
Report: “Comics Librarians Are Up for the Fight”
From Publishers Weekly: Sales of graphic novels—especially manga—have boomed during the pandemic, as have their readership in libraries. Despite lockdowns and supply chain issues, comics remains one of the most popular categories in library lending over the past decade. But now comics have become the focal point of increasingly strident battles over what material should […]
A Statement From NCAC, ALA, Virginia Library Assoc and Other Organizations: “Virginia Legal Action Threatens the Freedom to Read”
UPDATE: ALA has also released a statement. Full Text of Statement From the National Coalition Against Censorship, ALA, Virginia Library Association and Others: In May 18, 2022, in a legal action that threatens the free speech rights of all Virginians, a Virginia congressional candidate, represented by a Virginia delegate, sought and obtained an order finding […]
EveryLibrary: “Utah AG Publishes Clear Guidance Protecting School Libraries”
From the EveryLibrary Website: In Utah, the Attorney General’s Office, as required by the new law, “H.B. 374 Sensitive Materials in Schools” issued an official memorandum as guidance to local education agencies (LEAs) to help school boards and superintendents understand the laws surrounding school libraries. The memo is written in a Q&A format with extensive […]
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Report: “Most Tennesseans Oppose Book Banning, Despite Recent Laws, New Poll Finds”
From The Tennessean: Most Tennesseans are opposed to banning books, despite lawmakers’ recent efforts to restrict what is available in school libraries, a new poll finds. The poll, conducted in April, surveyed 1,125 registered voters in Tennessee on whether they support bans based on content about race, gender or sexuality. More than 58% of voters polled were […]
Washington Post Report: “The Next Book Ban: States Aim to Limit Titles Students Can Search For”
From The Washington Post: Republican lawmakers across the country are proposing legislation that would target online library databases and library management technology — tools built by a half-dozen large companies that catalogue millions of books, journals and articles that students peruse for assignments. [Clip] So far, database companies — such as ProQuest, Gale, EBSCO Information […]
Steven J. Bell on “What Can Academic Librarians Do About Material Challenges?”
From a Charleston Hub Blog Post by Steven J. Bell, Associate University Librarian, Temple University Libraries: While academic libraries have thus far avoided the material challenges experienced by public and school libraries, our parent institutions are feeling the wrath of those who want to place similar controls on what faculty may and may not teach […]
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Texas: “Residents Sue Llano County Officials, Library Director, Board Members to End Book Bans”
From the San Antonio Express-News: A group of local residents are suing Llano County in federal court, alleging that the removal of certain library books for “pornographic content” is really a censorship effort in violation of the first and fourteenth amendments. [Clip] The lawsuit alleges that officials have been “systematically removing award-winning books from library […]
New Report From PEN America: “Banned in the USA”; 1,586 School Book Bans and Restrictions in 86 School Districts Across 26 States
From PEN America: The literary and free expression organization PEN America today released a new Index of School Book Bans and accompanying report, Banned in the USA, that documents the alarming spike in censorship of books in school districts across the country over the past nine months, with individual books and even whole categories of […]
House Committee on Oversight and Reform: Chairman Raskin to Hold Hearing on Politically Motivated Efforts to Ban Books and Censor Free Speech in Schools and Public Libraries
UPDATE April 8, 2022 ALA Submits Comments Opposing Book Banning for House Oversight Committee Hearing (via ALA) UPDATE April 8, 2022 Media Coverage: Congress Investigates Book Banning in Schools (via PW) UPDATE April 7, 2022 Hearing SUMMARY: At Subcommittee Hearing, Witnesses Detail the Devastating Impact of Book Bans on Students and Teachers (via House Oversight […]
ALA Releases Top 10 List of Banned Books of 2021, Book Challenges Top 700 – the Most Since 2000
From the American Library Association: The American Library Association (ALA) kicks off National Library Week with the release of its State of America’s Libraries Report, highlighting the challenges U.S. libraries faced in the second year of the pandemic – as well as the ways they innovated to meet the needs of their communities. Library staff […]
