Books Aren't Being Banned?
/The American Library Association sent an email saying a witness at a congressional hearing claimed “books aren’t being banned.” It seemed such a bizarre claim that I checked it out. Lindsey Smith, a leader in the Orwellianly named “Moms for Liberty” group did say “I would like to address the lie that parental groups and Moms for Liberty are ‘book banning.’ If removing a sexual explicit book from school libraries is what you see as book banning, then you need to reevaluate your language.”
That spinning sound you hear is poor George once again revolving in his grave.
That’s an interesting argument. I’ve heard it argued that removing a book from a library isn’t “banning” because anyone can still “buy the book from Amazon.” That’s bogus. You’ve removed access to a book from someone—someone who may not have the financial wherewithal to buy the book—who might want to read it and put it behind a pay wall. The government may not have banned the book. In that location, you HAVE. And if a person uses an organized political movement to intimidate and demand removal of books that professionals have deemed worth reading and many might wish to read to help understand themselves, you are banning the book. Or at least trying. Fortunately, many others are fighting to keep First Amendment rights, with one person not dictating to others what should and should not be available in a library.
How is removing award-winning books from libraries based on content you object to—but many others do not—not banning, in that time and place?
But why expect logic, I guess.
Speaking of objections, it might be asked what this has to do with ReadersFirst and library digital content. The answer of course is everything. Digital content platforms are a book banner’s dream. Imagine being able to remove thousands of book without even having to burn them?
So, while RF assumes people interested in library digital content are already signed up, we again share the ALA’s plea to fight the banners:
Don't let the book ban deniers win. Tell Congress to support librarians and educators by opposing book bans and share with your community to bring new people into our pro-freedom to read movement:
Tell Congress: I Stand for the Freedom to Read
Book ban denialism is dangerous, and it's dead wrong. In our preliminary data on 2023 book challenges, we found some troubling results:
Book bans have increased by 20% from the same point last year
Book challenges are on the rise in public libraries, and accounted for 49% of those documented by ALA's Office for Intellectual Freedom (OIF), compared to 16% at the same point last year.
"Serial book banners" are also on the rise, with 11 states reporting challenges of 100 or more books - up from 6 last year.
So, in the face of continually rising challenges, how do we resist?
We fight back by growing our movement and showing that the vast majority of Americans stand for the freedom to read diverse and challenging books. Help grow our movement by clicking below, writing to Congress, and sharing with your community:
Resist Book Bans Now - Write to Congress, then Share!