The number of individual books banned by schools is climbing to record levels, according to a new PEN America report Banned in the USA: Narrating the Crisis, which documents over 4,000 instances of book banning during the first half of the current school year--more than in the entire previous 2022-2023 school year.
Examining book bans from July to December 2023, the report details book bans in 52 public school districts in 23 states, encompassing both red and blue districts. PEN America has documented more than 10,000 bans over the last two and a half years (July 2021 to December 2023).
Although censors continue to use the concept of "obscenity" to justify widespread books bans, the report examines a wave of intense scrutiny regarding books that discuss women, sexual violence, and rape. It also finds that books discussing race and racism, LGBTQ+ and especially transgender identities continue to be targeted at consistently high rates.
"For anyone who cares about the bedrock of American values and the protection of free expression, this report should be a red alert," said Sabrina Baêta, Freedom to Read program manager at PEN America and a lead author of the report. "Book bans are targeting narratives about race and sexual identities and sexual content writ large, and they show no sign of stopping. The bans we're seeing are broad, harsh, and pernicious--and they're undermining the education of millions of students across the country."
Florida continues to have the highest number of bans (3,135 in 11 school districts), but the report documents that book bans are increasing in other states, including Wisconsin (481 bans in three school districts), Iowa (142 bans in three school districts), Texas (141 bans in four school districts), as well as Kentucky and Virginia, which experienced at least 100 bans each.
At the same time that bans are increasing, formalized resistance to censorship is growing. Kasey Meehan, Freedom to Read Program director at PEN America and a lead author of the report, observed: "Students are at the epicenter of the book banning movement, and they're fearlessly spearheading the fight against this insidious encroachment into what they can read and learn across the country. By suppressing these stories, censors seek to delegitimize experiences that resonate deeply with young people. Just as we've seen the power of America's youth in rallying around causes such as gun violence prevention, they're refusing to yield to the censorship of book bans threatening their peers and communities."