Freedom to Learn Foundation
The United States is facing a surge in book bans not seen in decades. According to The Guardian and The New York Times, over 4,000 titles were challenged or removed in the last year alone. These bans disproportionately target books that explore race, LGBTQ+ identities, and historical injustice. Often driven by ideologically motivated advocacy groups, censorship is accelerating through vague or poorly worded state laws that give wide discretion to remove books from schools and libraries.
Florida, Texas, Missouri, and Iowa are among the states where legislation has allowed or even mandated removals of titles deemed “inappropriate”—without clear standards or due process. In some cases, books were banned simply for containing depictions of racism or gender identity. Graphic novels, classics, and modern young adult literature have all been targeted.
This censorship not only threatens education, it also dehumanizes students whose lives and identities are erased from the curriculum.
Libraries are more than book depositories—they are vital civic institutions that offer free access to information, internet, employment resources, and safe community spaces. And yet, they are under coordinated attack.
As reported by The New York Times and NPR in March 2025, the federal Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS)—the primary source of library funding nationwide—is now subject to political interference by a newly appointed board aligned with partisan ideologies. Proposed budget cuts threaten public library systems across the country, particularly those in rural and under-resourced communities.
Dozens of libraries have seen local funding slashed after refusing to remove books. Some have faced bomb threats, harassment, and even physical attacks against staff. What’s at stake isn’t just funding—it’s the future of open and democratic society.
We stand with public libraries and those who defend them every day.
FTLF monitors and analyzes legislation in all 50 states. In 2024 and 2025, more than 130 bills have been introduced that threaten the availability of books in schools, criminalize library staff, or require state oversight of curriculum and reading materials.
Key Trends:
According to the First Amendment Encyclopedia at Middle Tennessee State University, these laws are legally dubious and conflict with decades of Supreme Court precedent that protects student access to ideas.
We fight these laws in legislatures, courtrooms, and communities.
