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The Latest Breaking News from American Library Association

Banned! The 20 books they didn’t want you to read

From Instagram poetry to Greek classics, the works of fiction that have caused uproar through history – and into the present

The Guardian - UK

American Library Association report says book challenges soared in 2023

Overall, the number of individual titles challenged in both school and public libraries spiked by 65% — the highest level ever recorded by the ALA.

WEKU

Dave Eggers wins Newbery, Vashti Harrison wins Caldecott in 2024 kids' lit prizes

The top honors in this year's children's book awards from the American Library Association lauded Dave Egger's The Eyes and the Impossible and Vashti Harrison's picture book Big.

WEKU

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Giannoulias to testify at Durbin’s Senate hearing on growing number of book bans

Illinois Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias, who drafted the state’s first-in-the-nation ban against book bans, will testify at a Capitol Hill hearing Tuesday on book bans.

Chicago Sun-Times

Conservative book ban push fuels library exodus from national association that stands up for books

More libraries are cutting ties with the American Library Association as the professional group stands up for books some say children shouldn't have access to because of their content

The Independent UK

Librarian gathering in Chicago includes training to battle book bans in communities and schools

The American Library Association's annual meeting conference is underway in Chicago, where librarians are expected to discuss topics including countering book challenges, fighting legislative censorship and ensuring information access and the freedom to read

The Independent UK

Record high reported in Book ban efforts, says ALA

According to data released by the American Library Association on March 23, 2023, requests for books to be removed from US shelves and the wave of attempted book banning touched a record-high in 2022, with the majority of titles "targeted for censorship" related to LGBTQ issues and minorities.

The Times of India

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A Pa. library posted a children's drag queen book on Facebook. Then the calls and threats came

PITTSBURGH — The Moon Township librarians rushed around the normally quiet library one December day locking the doors hours before closing. The phones relentlessly rang off the hook as callers on the other end threatened violence and called the librarians groomers and pedophiles. Eventually, the phones were disconnected.

Tribune News Service

Facing pressure to ban books, suburban libraries ‘becoming a battlefield for the First Amendment’

“Most people still think of libraries as a place with books, you can hang out, it’s quiet,” Lincolnwood’s library director says. “That’s not what libraries are anymore.”

Chicago Sun-Times

Why US libraries are on the frontlines of the homelessness crisis

Homeless people are relying on public libraries as a safe haven to stay warm and avoid harassment from law enforcement, advocates say

The Guardian - US

Author Susan Kuklin: These teens wanted to let other kids know 'they are not alone'

When Beyond Magenta hit shelves in 2014, little had been written or said publicly about transgender and nonbinary teens. The book received positive reviews. By 2015, it was being challenged.

WEKU

Missouri gets 10,000 public comments on new library rule labeled ‘political censorship’

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Amid mounting opposition, Missouri Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft’s office has received more than 10,000 public comments on its proposed rule that would threaten public libraries’ state funding for making “age-inappropriate materials” available to minors.

Tribune News Service

Silent censorship of books is an attack on knowledge and open discourse

A book is on a library shelf one day, then it’s gone. Any librarian or educator who stands up against those efforts runs the risk of being threatened.

Chicago Sun-Times

Library group asks FBI to investigate threats

DALLAS — Increased threats of violence directed at public libraries and their workers across the country must be investigated, leaders of the American Library Association wrote in a letter to the FBI this week.

Tribune News Service

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Chicago Tribune

As attempts to ban books across the county increase, Chicago establishes ‘Book Sanctuaries’: ‘Encouraging and alarming’

CHICAGO — A glass shelf displaying some of the most notable challenged books in the country adorns the entryway of the Chicago Public Library’s Lincoln Belmont branch. The books are surrounded by yellow tape and red signs that inevitably steer the attention of those who walk inside to the titles…

The Guardian - US

How to beat a book ban: students, parents and librarians fight back

As rightwing campaigns for censorship sweep the US, opponents are finding ways to keep books on the shelves

Salon

Alarm over skyrocketing book bans

27 police reports filed accusing librarians of providing inappropriate or "pornographic" material to children

Tribune News Service

An NC school board cleared the room of teens to read a book’s sex scene aloud

The chair of the Cabarrus County, North Carolina, Board of Education ordered its teenage student interns to leave a public meeting this week before a board member read an oral-sex scene aloud from an award-winning teen novel.

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The Independent UK

Book ban efforts surging in 2022, library association says

The wave of attempted book banning and restrictions continues to intensify, the American Library Association reported Friday

Los Angeles Times

With libraries under threat, Literarian Award goes to Watts-raised super-librarian Tracie D. Hall

LOS ANGELES -- Tracie D. Hall has spent most of her professional life working in service to others: as a curator, a librarian, an advocate for digital literacy and equitable access — and currently as the executive director of the American Library Association.

Tribune News Service

Librarians and lawmakers push for greater access to e-books

Librarians and their legislative allies are pushing publishers of electronic books to lower their prices and relax licensing terms, an effort that could make it easier for millions of library users to borrow the increasingly popular digital versions of books.

Chicago Sun-Times

Book bullies attempt to hide our diversity

Libraries, bookstores deal with patrons trying to keep titles on Black and LGBTQ people out of sight.

St. Louis Post-Dispatch

Missouri school board bans another library book for sexual content

ST. LOUIS — Months after causing a national uproar with its first book ban, the Wentzville School Board voted Thursday to yank another acclaimed book from school libraries.

St. Louis Post-Dispatch

Missouri school board to vote on banning another book for sexual content

ST. LOUIS — Months after causing a national uproar with its first book ban, the Wentzville School Board is expected to vote Thursday on a recommendation to yank another acclaimed book from school libraries.

The Independent UK

Tennessee Republican says he would ‘burn’ books censored by bill

Within the last year, hundreds of titles were banned or investigated in 86 school districts in 26 states, impacting more than 2 million students

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