In the 2023-24 school year, 10,000 instances of book bans were reported in public schools. The American Library Association noted 5,813 titles challenged in libraries and schools nationwide. Book bans notably affect young readers, particularly those exploring LGBTQ identities. In response, public libraries in Southern California began providing online library cards for youths aged 13 and up, allowing access to e-books and audiobooks without parental permission. The states facing the most significant challenges to book titles include Texas, Tennessee, and Florida, with challenges primarily centered on sexually explicit material and LGBTQIA+ content.
"So many books for young people are being taken off the shelf," said Fritzi Bodenheimer, spokesperson for the Brooklyn Public Library in New York. "If you're a young person, you know, you're 14 or 15 years old and you're just discovering yourself and maybe you think that you might be a member of the LGBTQ community and all those books are taken off the shelf. What message does that send to you? That you're a bad person? That you're dangerous?"
Public schools and libraries in Texas, Tennessee and Florida faced the most challenges to book titles in 2024. In the American Library Assn.'s Top 10 Most Challenged Books report from that year, all titles mentioned were challenged for sexually explicit material; some were also cited for featuring LGBTQIA+ content, depictions of drug use and sexual assault, and profanity.
To combat book censorship, some Southern California public libraries, including Los Angeles, Long Beach and San Diego, are joining libraries nationwide to provide access to online library cards. Children as young as 13 can get a free e-card to access the libraries' catalog of e-books and audiobooks, without parental permission and without any challenges they may face to get a book in their local library.
Long Beach is the latest public library to join this effort, a project known as Books Unbanned that was started by the Brooklyn Public Library as "a response to support the freedom to read," their website states.
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