Resource Overview

Ready to fight for your right to think, create and explore? Start here. NCAC’s resources help activists, educators, students, artists and all citizens promote free expression and challenge censorship. Learn about your First Amendment rights, what censorship can look like, techniques for preventing it, how to handle incidents of silencing and specific ways to defend free expression in your communities and nationally.

Quick Guide
First Amendment FAQs
What is Censorship?
The First Amendment in Schools
Artist Rights
Tools for Activists
Censorpedia
Censorship News Archive

Resources for
Activists
Artists
Authors
Curators and Art Administrators
Higher Education
Librarians
Students
Teachers, Parents and School Officials

Search the full list of our current resources below.
Click here for a listing of major free speech issues.

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NCAC Resources

Name	Issue	Audience
Youth Censorship Database	Schools, Censorship, Books	General
Dramatic Changes: A Toolkit for Producing Stage Works on College Campuses in Turbulent Times	Schools, Theatre & Performance, Higher Education	General, artists, students, higher education
First Amendment Frequently Asked Questions	Censorship, Schools, Political Dissent	General
Book Challenge Crisis Hotline	Schools, Censorship, Books	Teachers, parents & school officials, librarians, activists, general
Responding to Book Challenges: A Handbook for Educators	Books, Schools	Teachers, school officials, librarians
The George Floyd Protests: A Free Expression Timeline	Internet, Political Dissent	General
Free Expression During the Coronavirus Pandemic Timeline	Internet, Political Dissent, Science	General
Virtual First Amendment Lesson Plan	Schools, Political Dissent, Books, Censorship	Teachers
Smart Tactics: Curating Difficult Content	Visual Art	Artists, Curators & Art Administrators
Defend LGBTQ Stories	Books, Schools, Sexuality	Students, teachers, parents & school officials, librarians
NCAC's Book Censorship Toolkit	Books, Schools	Students, teachers, parents & school officials, librarians
The Show Must Go On: A Toolkit for Organizing Against Theater Censorship in Public Schools	Schools, Theatre & Performance	Students, Teachers, Parents & School Officials, Drama
A Manual For Art Freedom	Visual Art	Artists, Curators & Art Administrators
Museum Best Practices for Managing Controversy	Visual Art	Curators & Art Administrators, Artists, Higher Ed
Art and Culture Censorship Timeline	Visual Art, Video Games	Artists, Curators & Art Administrators, Activists, Drama
LGBTQ Right to Read Resource Guide	Books, Sexuality	Students, teachers, parents & school officials, librarians
LGBTQ Book Bans and Challenges	Sexuality, Schools	Students, teachers, parents & school officials
Student Journalism	Schools, Broadcasting	Students, teachers, parents & school officials
Internet Filters	Internet, Schools	General
The First Amendment in Schools: Resource Guide: Parents' Rights	Schools	Teachers, parents & school officials
BE HEARD! Protecting Your Protest Rights	Political Dissent, Schools	Students, activists
Student Protests During National Anthem and Pledge: A Resource and Timeline	Political Dissent, Schools	Students, teachers, parents & school officials, activists
Political Speech in Schools	Political Dissent, Schools	Students, teachers, parents & school officials, activists
Islam in the Classroom: Teaching About Religion is Not Religious Indoctrination	Religion, Schools	Students, teachers, parents & school officials
Islam: Indoctrination or Education? A Timeline	Religion, Schools	Students, teachers, parents & school officials
The First Amendment in Schools: Resource Guide	Schools	Students, teachers, parents & school officials
The First Amendment in Schools: Resource Guide: Student Expression: Web Pages, Dress Codes, and More	Schools	Students, teachers, parents & school officials
The First Amendment in Schools: Resource Guide: Harassment and Hate Speech	Schools, Harassment	Students, teachers, parents & school officials
Promoting First Amendment Values at School	Schools	Teachers, parents & school officials
Criticizing your School	Schools, Political Dissent	Students
Sex and Censorship	Sexuality	General
Sex Education	Sexuality	Students, teachers, parents & school officials
Sexting: Know Your Rights	Sexuality	Students
Student Artistic Expression	Visual Art, Schools	Students, teachers, parents & school officials, artists
NCAC Analysis: The First Amendment and School Policies on Harassment and Bullying	Harassment, Violence	General
NCAC Analysis: Hate Speech in Schools	Hate Speech, Schools	General
The First Amendment in Schools: Censorship	Schools	Teachers, parents & school officials
The First Amendment in Schools: How Big a Problem is Censorship	Schools	Teachers, parents & school officials
The First Amendment in Schools: Censorship Policies	Schools, Sexuality	Teachers, parents & school officials
The First Amendment in Schools: Roles and Responsibilities	Schools, Books	Teachers, parents & school officials
The First Amendment in Schools: The First Amendment and Public Schools	Schools	Teachers, parents & school officials
The First Amendment in Schools: Resource Guide: Sex and Sexuality	Schools, Sexuality	Teachers, parents & school officials
The First Amendment in Schools: Access to Information on the Internet	Schools, Internet	Teachers, parents & school officials
The First Amendment in Schools: Resource Guide: Religious Expression in the Public Schools	Schools, Religion	Teachers, parents & school officials
The First Amendment in Schools: Student Publications	Schools, Broadcasting	Teachers, parents & school officials
The African-American Experience in Literature	Books	General
Kurt Vonnegut: Remembering a Hero of Free Speech	Books, Sexuality	General
Remote Control: Indecency Legislation Raises Fines and Fears	Broadcasting, Schools	General
Statement of Principles for Established Combat-Coverage Guidelines	Broadcasting	General
A Brief History of Film Censorship	Film & Video, Violence	General
Full Text of the So-Called "Academic Bill of Rights"	Higher Education	Higher Ed
1990 Wolf Trap Conference on Academic Freedom & Artistic Expression Statement	Higher Education, Visual Art	Artists, higher ed
Why the Departments of Education and Justice Must Retract Their Controversial 'Blueprint' and Protect Campus Speech	Higher Education	Higher Ed
Academic Freedom Concerns Raised by Yale's Singapore Campus	Higher Education	Higher Ed
NCAC Report: What's All This About Trigger Warnings?	Higher Education	Higher Ed
NCAC to Dept of Ed: Vague Definition of Harassment Under Title IX Threatens Student Free Speech	Higher Education, Harassment	Higher Ed
"Academic Bill Of Rights" - A Wolf in Sheep's Clothing	Higher Education	Higher Ed
Facebook "True Threat" Case: NCAC Joins Brief to Supreme Court	Internet	General
Internet Filters in Schools and Libraries	Internet, Schools	Librarians, students teachers, parents & school officials, higher ed
Cyberbullying: How Widespread Is It?	Internet, Schools	Students, teachers, parents & school officials, higher ed
Internet Filters	Internet, Schools	General
The Cyber-Library: Legal and Policy Issues Facing Public Libraries in the High-Tech era	Internet, Nudity & Pornography	Librarians
A Selective Timeline of the Internet and Censorship	Internet	General
A Timeline of Legislation Aiming to Protect Youth Online	Internet	General
Identifying What is Harmful or Inappropriate for Minors	Internet, Schools	Teachers, parents & school administrators
Watch What you Tweet: Schools, Censorship, and Social Media	Schools, Internet	Students, teachers, parents & school administrators
Network Neutrality and the Fight to Save the Internet: Background	Internet	Activists
Depictions of Animal Cruelty: NCAC's Amicus Curiae Brief in U.S. v. Stevens		Artists, curators & art administrators, activists, drama
What Can I do to protect free speech now: Tools for activists	Censorship, Violence	Activists, students, higher ed, artists
What is Censorship?	Censorship	General
Partly Annotated Bibliography: Books and Articles on Censorship	Censorship	General
Free Expression After September 11th: An Online Index	Censorship	General
Joint Letter: Any Federal Financial Industry Rescue Package Must Be Transparent	Government Transparency	Activists
Censoring Culture: Contemporary Threats to Free Expression	Censorship, Schools	General
Timelines of Censorship	Censorship	General
Free Speech Groups: U.S. Fails to Protect the Right to Access Culture	Censorship	General
Music Censorship in America	Music	General
Black Voices Silenced	Music	General
NCAC Backgrounder: A Primer on Sex, Sexuality, and The Law	Nudity & Pornography	Artists, drama, activists, curators & art administrators
Free speech now	Political Dissent	Activists
The Struggle for Civil Rights and the First Amendment	Political Dissent	Activists, students, artists
Abolition of Slavery & Free Speech	Political Dissent	General
NCAC Testimony to US Commission on Civil Rights: Vague and Overbroad Definitions of Bully Threatens Students' Constitutional Rights	Schools	Students, activists, teachers, parents & school officials
Medical Ghostwriting	Science, Books	General
Disease Mongering	Science	General
Research Findings Suppressed by Government	Science, Religion	General
Science Suppressed or Distorted Inside the Executive Branch	Science, Broadcasting	General
Manipulation of University and Industry Research	Science	General
Politics Interfering with Science in High School Education	Science	General
Suppression of Military Technology Inside the Executive Branch	Science	General
Science Resources and Publications	Science	General
Overt Censorship of Science during the Bush Administration	Science, Religion	General
Congressional Hearings Expose Censorship of Science	Science, Schools	General
Feds Silence Scientists: An NCAC Report	Science, Harassment	General
Redacting the Science of Climate Change	Science, Schools	General
Stem Cell Research and the First Amendment	Science	General
Reports on the Effects of Conflict of Internet on Research	Science, Books	General
Research Findings Suppressed by Government - Health Science	Science	General
Scientists Accused of Manipulating Information to Promote Their Position	Science	General
FDA and EPA - Failure to Provide Public Access to Information	Science	General
Academic and Industry Research Distorted by Financial Interests	Science	General
Ideological Pressures Exercises by Public Officials on Academic Research	Science	General
Global Gag Rule: The Use of AIDS Funding to Control International Reproductive Health Policy	Science	General
Science and the Policies of the Obama Administration	Science	General
Research Findings Suppressed by Government - Environmental Science	Science	General
Manipulation of Perceptions about Scientific Fact	Science	General
Censoring Science: Battle over Creationism	Science, Schools	General
Government Secrecy Letters	Government Transparency	General
THE USA PATRIOT Act Six Months Later	Government Transparency, Harassment	General
Four Key Reforms for NSA Surveillance	Government Transparency, Books	General
Suppression of Gay/Straight Alliances on HS Campuses	Sexuality, Schools	Students, teachers, parents & school officials
Abstinence-Only Education	Sexuality, Schools	Students, teachers, parents & school officials
Abstinence Only Partner Organizations	Sexuality, Schools	Students, teachers, parents & school officials
Sex and Health Education	Sexuality, Schools	Students, teachers, parents & school officials
Abstinence Only: Joint Statement and Opposition	Sexuality, Schools	Teachers, parents & school officials, students
Timeline of Abstinence-Only Education in U.S. Classrooms	Sexuality, Schools	Students, teachers, parents & school officials
NCAC Amici Curiae Brief in American Amusement Machine v. Kendrick	Video Games	General
NCAC Amici Curiae Brief in Schwarzenegger v. Entertainment Merchants Association	Video Games	General
NCAC Testimony before the NYS Task Force on Youth Violence	Video Games	General
Comments on Massachusetts Senate Bill No. 168, Investigation of Video Games	Video Games	General
Only a Game: Why Censoring New Media Won't Stop Gun Violence	Video Games, Religion	General
A Timeline of Video Game Controversies	Video Games	General
Of Liberals and Conservatives: Using “Common Sense” to Censor Video Games	Video Games	General
Why Two Hundred Twenty-Eight Scholars Cautioned the APA	Video Games	General
NCAC Amici Curiae Brief Interactive Digital Software Assn v. St. Louis County	Violence	General
Graphic Novels: Suggestions for Librarians	Books, Visual Art	Librarians, students teachers, parents & school officials
Making Art After September 11th: the ART NOW archive	Visual Art	Artists, curators & art administrators
Decency, Arts, and the First Amendment: The Case of Rudy Giuliani	Visual Art, Nudity & Pornography	Artists, curators & art administrators
Symbols Into Soldiers: Art, Censorship and Religion	Visual Art, Religion	Artists, curators & art administrators

Free Expression Policy Project (FEPP) Archive

The Free Expression Policy Project (FEPP) began in 2000 as a project of NCAC to provide empirical research and policy development on tough censorship issues and seek free speech-friendly solutions to the concerns that drive censorship campaigns. View archived work here.