The Latest Breaking News from PEN America

The lawsuit alleges a county in the Republican-led state is cracking down on access to books on race and LGBTQ identity.

Federal lawsuit condemns ‘ideologically driven campaign to push certain ideas out of schools’

Polling has underscored the unpopularity of GOP-led book bans.

Across the nation, a movement to ban more books from schools and libraries has ignited a fight against censorship. Now, organisations are encouraging others to take action. Ariana Baio reports

From colouring books to abolition newspapers and Reader’s Digest magazines, thousands of titles are banned in prisons and jails across the country, often with opaque reasons and with little oversight, Alex Woodward reports

A nationwide surge in restrictions against library materials under the auspices of a “parental rights” campaign runs parallel to legislation targeting LGBT+ people and honest discussions of race and racism, sowing chaos for educators and chilling speech in schools across the US. Richard Hall and Alex Woodward report

Fearing criminal penalties, public schools throughout Missouri removed hundreds of books from their libraries after state lawmakers last year made it illegal to provide students with “sexually explicit” material — a new law that carried punishment of up to a year in prison.

Plus: Buzzfeed News is shutting down, alcohol delivery not linked to higher rates of booze consumption, and more...

“Book bans impede the freedom to read, limiting students’ access to a diversity of views and stories,” says PEN America