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Banned Books Week

Learn the history of Banned Books, find out which books were banned/challenged this year, and read a Banned Book

What are Banned Books?

Book banning is nothing new. In fact, it has been around for centuries. What is considered the first book ban in the United States took place in 1637 in what is now known as Quincy, Massachusetts. Thomas Morton published his New English Canaan which was subsequently banned by the Puritan government as it was considered a harsh and heretical critique of Puritan customs and power structures.

 

Check out this timeline of bannings and burnings in history by Freedom to Read.

On March 20, 2022, Gov. Ron DeSantis signed HB 1467 which requires districts to catalog every book on their shelves and put a formal review process in place for complaints.  Specifically, schoolbooks must be reviewed by an employee holding a media specialist certificate to ensure they're free of pornography or certain race-based teachings.

To put into perspective the size of reviewing the titles, 54 librarians across all schools and the districts have taken on the task of reviewing more than 1.6 million titles.

 

Florida classroom shelves empty after bill goes into effect

Which books are allowed?

Penguin House publishing company sues a Florida school district over restricting books

 

Since June 2024 (see video below about Regulation 43-170), 

  • Leading the nation: South Carolina currently leads the United States in the number of state-mandated school book bans.
  • One parent's influence: Many challenges leading to bans have originated from a single parent, raising concerns about the extent of individual influence over educational materials.
  • Banned books: A total of 22 books have been banned or restricted statewide in South Carolina, including titles by authors such as Ellen Hopkins, Sarah J. Maas, Colleen Hoover, and George M. Johnson.
  • Focus on diverse voices: Notably, many of the challenged and banned books feature LGBTQ+ characters, characters of color, or explore themes related to gender, sexuality, and racism, according to PEN America.
  • Examples of banned books: Some of the banned titles include "All Boys Aren't Blue" by George M. Johnson, "Flamer" by Mike Curato, "The Perks of Being a Wallflower" by Stephen Chbosky, and books from the "A Court of Thorns and Roses" series by Sarah J. Maas. 

Read this ACLU article titled "With 10 additional books removed, South Carolina leads nation in statewide school book bans"

June 25, 2024