Library and Book Ban News 6-13-2025

Florida as blueprint for countrywide censorship; interview with librarians under fire; news from numerous states

This image was on an ‘Every Library’ post, but there was no credit statement.

Hello Friends,

I’m a bit late in posting. It’s been a day! I’m pretty stressed out about the goings on in Southern California this week, particularly in Los Angeles. However, I’m sure you are as pinned to the news as I am, so I want to stick to issues with libraries and banned books here. (Well, with this exception—if you want to see an image of Trump blended with the image of Kim Jong-Un and some enlightening graphs on the economic fallout that the ‘Big, Beautifil Bill’ will cause, check out Nobel economist

Paul Krugman

’s Friday post Reverse Robin Hood and Trumpian Totalitarianism.)

As Florida Goes, So Goes the Country?

In a new analysis, PEN America and the Florida Freedom to Read Project warn that the “parental rights” agenda has delivered control not into the hands of all parents but to a tiny segment of citizens—some not even parents—whose overriding goal is censorship. The policies in Florida have led to banning thousands of books, canceling field trips and theatrical productions, censoring student clubs, and revising and removing disfavored textbooks. It’s a dangerous blueprint now being emulated across the country and at the national level.

Click on the link to read the full report:

The Blueprint State from PEN America

Lessons from Parents Left Behind by “Parental Rights” Policies in Florida

Since the start of 2025, free expression and freedom to read organizations have raised alarm over the new federal administration’s adoption of policies, practices, and rhetoric to suppress speech and restrict access to information. The administration has dismissed books bans as a “hoax,” chilled discussions of “race, color, sex, or national origin” by prohibiting so-called “discriminatory equity ideology” in K-12 schools, eliminated federal funding for promoting what it has termed “gender ideology,” and sought to advance ideological control of education under the guise of advancing “parental rights.”

Each of these federal actions has had a test run in Florida.

Here is a brief summary of the findings of the report:

Florida Is Writing the Book Banning Playbook, Report Finds from Publishers Weekly

A new report cowritten by PEN America and the Florida Freedom to Read Project looks at how Florida has restricted access to books and information in libraries and classrooms under the guise of "parental rights"—and how the state has served as a testing ground for the imposition of such restrictions on a federal level.

"The Blueprint State: Lessons from Parents Left Behind by 'Parental Rights' Policies in Florida" concludes that "parental rights" policies 1) subvert the majority of parents' preferences; 2) lead school districts to self-censor; 3) favor censorship advocates whether or not they are parents; 4) prioritize caution over students' education; and 5) codify the state's ideological preferences.

Interview with South Carolina School Librarian Leaders and Kelly Jensen

“School Librarians Are the First and Perhaps Only Line of Defense in a School for Students’ First Amendment Rights” from Book Riot

Several groups in South Carolina have been at the forefront of fighting book bans. One of them is the South Carolina Association of School Librarians. I’m honored to bring an interview with two members of the organization’s leadership, president Jamie Gregory and current president-elect Tenley Middleton. This conversation is a poignant reminder of the necessity of listening to those on the ground and the devastating realities of being a school librarian right now in America and in a state where library workers have some of the largest targets on their backs for simply doing their jobs of meeting the needs of all students. [Click link for the interview]

Be a Cactus is free, but if you’d like to support me, buy my latest novel, Keep Sweet, about escape from a patriarchal cult. I’ll be grateful, and you’ll have a great read! My official launch date is June 21 (hello summer!). Available from the Publisher (Inlandia), Amazon, Bookshop.org, and Barnes and Noble. I handmade many beautiful bookmarks. If you order the book from the Publisher (Inlandia), you will receive one as a thank you!

California

Huntington Beach Voters Come Through!

Voters Approve Measures to Block Censorship, Halt Library Privatization in Huntington Beach from California City News

Huntington Beach voters delivered a major setback to the City Council on Tuesday by approving two measures that curb the council’s influence over the city’s libraries.

Measure A eliminates the city’s parent/guardian children's book review board, which had been tasked with screening and removing children's books deemed sexually inappropriate. Critics argued the board was a tool for censorship. They pointed to the removal of benign books about reproduction and the popular potty training book, “Once Upon a Potty.”

With Measure A’s passage, oversight of children's materials now returns to the Director of Community and Library Services.

Voters also passed Measure B on Tuesday, which prevents the privatization of city libraries without public approval. …

Residents hope Tuesday’s vote will finally put the contentious debate over libraries in the rearview.

Connecticut

Director: Book, Library Protections In CT Give ‘What Every Community Deserves’ from CT News Junkie

The passage of Connecticut’s “Freedom to Read” bill would protect access to information in the state. The legislation comes at what one library expert has identified as a crucial point in that access nationally.

Senate Bill 1271’s language, nestled into the hundreds of pages of the biennial budget resolution that passed last week, requires school and public libraries to set policies for collection growth, programs and displays, and material review and reconsideration and protects some librarians.

“This bill protects a library’s ability to carry books like the Bible as much as it protects books about gender identity, because it’s not about who’s right, but rather the right to be heard, the right to think, and the right to choose,” said Ellen Paul, Connecticut Library Consortium executive director. “This bill gives us what every community deserves: clarity, fairness, and trust.” …

The bill’s language also protects school librarians from liability in court, given they implement the required policies in good faith.

Minnesota

PEN America Applauds Vital Victory for Community Members and Educators in Lawsuits Over Book Bans in Minnesota, Calls it a Model for Engagement Against Censorship from Pen America

Settlement Will See Books Returned to Shelves and A New Policy for Reviewing Challenged Titles

(ST. FRANCIS, MN)—In a vital victory for the freedom to read, two lawsuits were settled this week regarding book bans in St. Francis (Minnesota) Area Schools. PEN America applauds the settlements along with students, parents, teachers, and authors who advocated against book bans in the district for the last six months. The school district has agreed to return all removed books to library shelves, adopt a policy for library purchases and book challenges aligned with state law, and guarantee participation by parents, students, and qualified media specialists. …

PEN America first called out the district’s school library policy in January 2025, and joined community advocates pressing to reverse it. The policy, adopted in late 2024, formally used a now-defunct website, BookLooks.org, to evaluate whether books could remain on library shelves or new ones purchased. As a result of that policy, at least 46 books were banned in the district in the past school year, including Night by Elie Wiesel, The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini, The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison, Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult, Tricks by Ellen Hopkins, and Out of Darkness by Ashley Hope Pérez. …

Under the terms of the settlement of the lawsuits, the St. Francis Board agreed to:

• Adopt a new policy that is aligned with state law, and guarantees the input of parents, students, and qualified media specialists in evaluating challenged books

• Allow the review committee for challenged books to remove a book only with a supermajority vote.

• Require an investigation and report by the school board to a public meeting if it wants to overrule the review committee and remove a challenged book

• Return all books removed under the previous policy to media centers and classroom libraries immediately

• Keep the new book review policy in place for at least three years.

Oregon

THIS BAN BANS BOOKS BANS, GOVERNOR IS EXPECTED TO SIGN IT from the Corvallis Advocate

A bill to protect access to school library books that discuss different religions, sexualities, disabilities and a number of other topics, and to ensure they are not banned on the basis of those themes, is headed to Gov. Tina Kotek’s desk, where she’s expected to sign it.

Senate Bill 1098 passed the Oregon House of Representatives Monday on a 34-21 vote. It would prohibit school libraries from removing books on the basis of their being about, or by, a member of a protected class as defined in Oregon’s anti-discrimination in education law. Those protected classes include: race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, marital status, age and disability.

Under the bill, parents, guardians or school staff would still be able to file complaints about textbooks or library material.

Oregon would join at least eight other states — including Colorado, California, Illinois, New Jersey, Vermont, Minnesota, Maryland and Washington — who have adopted similar legislation either protecting library workers from lawsuits or prohibiting libraries from restricting access to books with diverse viewpoints, according to the American Library Association. …

“You can remove a book if the content is too graphic,” Javadi told lawmakers. “You can remove it if it’s not age appropriate, but you can’t remove it just because the author is gay or Muslim or Black or because the story centers someone that makes you uncomfortable.”

Alabama

Last week,

Jan Harayda

recommended that I check out what is going on at the Spanish Fort Public Library in Alabama. The one news article I found appears to be from a right-leaning publication (the landing page has more than one suggestion to buy tickets to attend a gala with Tucker Carlson).

Spanish Fort Library Board approves policies safeguarding minors from inappropriate materials from 1819 News

Some of the changes being made there:

The Spanish Fort Public Library (SFPL) Board, comprised of city council members, unanimously approved an amended policy Monday to ensure juveniles are protected from sexually explicit materials in the library.

• The young adult section of the library was previously for ages 14-18. That is being changed to ages 18-25.

• The new policies require any "sexually explicit" material to be removed from the children's department. Those that constitute "sexually explicit" include describing a sex act, sexual abuse, sexual assault and consent, nudity, sexual content in images, graphics or illustrations.

• Books about anorexia, bulimia, gender identity, LGBTQ, rape, self-harm and sex will be relocated to shelves for those 18 and up.

• Materials about human sexuality will require parental approval. Other topics requiring parental guidance must be separated from the selection but may remain in the children's department.

Elizabeth Dunn, of Mobile, said that as the mother of a gay child, she believes in the importance of LGBTQ literature and that the new policies target that community. She cited case law and said targeting LGBTQ books can be "costly."

"This is a reminder that there are more consequences than just public perception; there are financial consequences as well," she said.

Moms for Liberty Baldwin County founder Rebecca Watson has visited the library on numerous occasions and addressed concerns with the board and library director. After the meeting on Monday, she told 1819 News that she's thankful the board is taking a "thoughtful, balanced" approach to its policies.

Tennessee

I included this news last week, but PEN has a nice summary.

Pressure over Book Bans in Rutherford County, Tennessee, Puts Titles Back on Shelves from Pen America

In a win for freedom to read advocates, board members of the Rutherford County Library System voted unanimously last week to rescinda March decision to remove books dealing with transgender topics from public libraries.

Rutherford County still faces growing tensions over book banning – in April, PEN America filed a lawsuit against the Rutherford County Board of Education in response to the removal of more than 145 books from local schools.

Legal pressure of this kind is what reportedly led the library board’s chairman, Cody York, to push for the reversal of his own prior call for the books’ removals, which came after legal counsel advised the board of the likelihood of losing potential First Amendment lawsuits as well as the costs and consequences of these actions.

Freedom to read advocates testified at the Library Board’s meeting that the decision to remove books about the transgender experience erased lives. York, who previously had the board’s backing to remove material that “promotes, encourages, advocates for or normalizes transgenderism or ‘gender confusion’ in minors,’” said he would lead the board in drafting new “policies to protect children.”

While the library system has ceased its discriminatory censorship policy, the Rutherford County school district continues to ban books. PEN America has joined students and parents in the county as Plaintiffs against the Rutherford Board of Education, represented by the ACLU of Tennessee.

Florida

We have been over the fight between the Florida State Board of Education and Hillsborough County Public Schools a number of times. I thought this post from the Substack

Popular Information

has a nice overview that will remind readers of the issues and bring you up to date.

Florida's literary inquisition

While Florida Republicans have defended removing books from public school libraries in the name of "parents' rights," no Hillsborough County parent had objected to the books at issue. Rather, the State Board had summarily declared that the 55 books were "pornography," even though none of the books met the legal definition of pornographic material. …

Ayres had ordered the removal of all 55 books — and hundreds of others — after receiving threatening letters from Florida Secretary of Education Manny Diaz Jr. (R) and Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier (R). But the State Board was angered that, with the exception of six books, Ayres indicated the materials would be reviewed by the schools’ librarians, known in Florida as media specialists, to determine which books were age-appropriate and which should be removed permanently.

Kelly Garcia, who was appointed to the State Board by Governor Ron DeSantis (R) in 2023, suggested that librarians in Hillsborough County were illiterate and told Ayres they lacked a "single shred of decency." She described the librarians as "child abusers" and asked if Ayres had considered firing all of them.

Ryan Petty, appointed by DeSantis in 2020, told Ayres it was time to demonstrate "courage." According to Petty, Ayres should tell librarians and others in his school district, "I don't care what the rules say." Then, Ayres should order the permanent removal of the "garbage" from the library and tell district librarians that anyone who does not comply will be "terminated immediately."

The Supreme Court

This term, the court heard Mahmoud v. Taylor, in which religious parents in a Maryland school district seek an opt-out for their children from LGBTQ-themed books. There should be a decision soon. As I’ve mentioned before, I wish this wasn’t the case that landed before the court. It’s a messy one.

For Librarians and Library Workers

Want To Help Teens Protect The Freedom to Read? Libraries, Apply for Books Unbanned Programming Funding Now from Book Riot

Brooklyn Public Library's Books Unbanned is offering funding for libraries to develop teen programming around the freedom to read.

Brooklyn Public Library (BPL) launched its Books Unbanned program in 2022 in response to an unprecedented rise in book bans nationwide. The program offers teens unrestricted access to their entire digital collection, supports the right for teens to read what they want, and builds a network of advocates nationwide that champion the freedom to read.

Now, Books Unbanned wants to help you build your own local teen freedom to read advocates with funding to support the effort.

Libraries nationwide are invited to apply for one-time funds to launch programming for teens and young adults related to the freedom to read. A total of $50,000 in funding will be given out, ranging from $1,000 to $10,000. Any US library is eligible to apply and receive funding, but special consideration will be given to small and rural libraries, where funding and support for such efforts are often more difficult to attain. Libraries in communities experiencing significant challenges with access to books in libraries will also receive special consideration.

Heather Cox Richardson

After a lot of brainstorming and a lot of help—and an incredibly well timed message from a former student who has become a videographer—we have come up with Journey to American Democracy: a series of short videos about American history that we will release on my YouTube channel, Facebook, and Instagram. They will be either short explainers about something in the news or what we are releasing tonight: a set of videos that can be viewed individually or can be watched together to simulate a survey course about an important event or issue in American history.

Journey to American Democracy explores how democracy has always required blood and sweat and inspiration to overcome the efforts of those who would deny equality to their neighbors. It examines how, for more than two centuries, ordinary people have worked to make the principles the founders articulated in the Declaration of Independence the law of the land.

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL2dS6uX1RkUyIQKUhI72xmstYGNpN_k1B

Thanks!

Okay, God willing and the creek don’t rise—stay safe in tomorrow’s protests—I will see you back on Sunday for a discussion of summer reads and books on cults. Take care!