NEW YORK (AP) – Removing books from library shelves is no longer just a narrative of objections from the community and individual parents. American Library Association say.
In a new American library report released Monday, the ALA found that over 70% of the banned bans of a particular title or title came from organised groups and elected officials, with only 16% coming from parents.
Includes the most commonly criticized books Maia Kobabe’s “Gender Queer” and The late Toni Morrison “The Bluest Eye” can be found on such websites www.ratedbooks.org And through lists edited by moms for freedom and other conservative activists.
“We can trace many challenges to the list of books distributed by moms for freedom and other groups,” said Deborah Caldwell Stone, who directs the association’s office for the association’s intellectual freedom.
As part of its annual report, ALA released a list of 2024’s most “challenged books” lists. George M. Johnson’s “All Boys Are Not Blue,” “GenderQueer,” “Blue Eyes,” “The Bonuses of Being a Wallflower,” and John Green’s “John Green, Looking for Alaska.”
Most of the books listed have an LGBTQ+ theme and have been trending for years. Other objections include references to drug addiction, such as Ellen Hopkins’ “Crank,” and references to slavery and sexual abuse, including those from “sale” by Patricia McCormick.
The ALA defines an assignment as “a formal written complaint filed with a library or school that requires material to be deleted for content or appropriateness.” The association, which compiles censorship data through media accounts and reports from librarians, has long believed that the number of actual tasks is much higher than the number cited in annual studies.
Reports come at particularly dangerous times for libraries. The Trump administration is making dramatic cuts Museums and Library Services Research Instituteand has already cancelled the grant to the library.
I have a prohibition It has increased rapidly in recent years Also, several states, from Texas and Florida to Iowa and Utah, have passed laws restricting what school libraries can obtain. The ALA reported a sharp decline in the challenge in 2024, with 821 attempts compared to 1,247 the previous year, but the number remains much higher than before 2021.
And Caldwell Stone doesn’t think it’s a decline in censorship. She says libraries are likely to avoid stocking controversial books or books that may be prohibited by law.
“I spoke to a Texas librarian, who said she was looking at a political book and didn’t know if she could add it to her collection,” Caldwell Stone said. “Librarians don’t want to be prosecuted or otherwise face legal trouble. Many librarians operate under this type of threat.”
10 Most Challenged Books of 2024
1. “All boys aren’t blue,” George M. Johnson
2. “Gender Queer,” by Maia Kobabe
3. (Tie) “Blust Eye” by Toni Morrison
3. (Tie) “Personality of being a wall flower”, Stephen Chbosky
5. “Trick” by Ellen Hopkins
6. (Tie) John Greene, “Looking for Alaska”
6. (Tie) Jesse Andrews, “Me, the Earl and the Dying Girl”
8. (Tie) “Crank” by Ellen Hopkins
8. (Tie) “Sales” by Patricia McCormick
10. “Flamer” Mike Colourt
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