Teachers at New Rochelle High School in New Rochelle, NY, removed pages from Girl, Interrupted, reportedly due to complaints about sexual content and profanity. The school board issued a statement opposing the censorship and announced that full text copies will replace the censored copies.
December 3, 2008 Superintendent Richard B. Carter Principal Darcy Weisner Walla Walla Public Schools 364 South Park Street Walla Walla, WA99362 Dear Principal Darcy Weisner and Superintendent Richard B. Carter: We are deeply concerned about the recent suspension of Meagan White from Walla WallaHigh School because of a bumper sticker on her vehicle. Walla Walla School Board’s official “Freedom [...]
Jane Breskin Zalben is a well-known author and illustrator who has published more than forty-five books for young readers. She is the author of the well-known Pearl books as well as the critically acclaimed novel Unfinished Dreams. In this interview, she speaks with The Kids' Right to Read Project about the effects of censorship on her work.
The Kids’ Right to Read Project is a collaboration of the American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression (ABFFE) and the National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC). The Kids' Right to Read Project offers support, education, and advocacy to people facing book challenges or bans and engages local activists in promoting the freedom to read. In the past couple of years, KRRP [...]
For the most up-to-date Kids' Right to Read Project Report, click here. Individual Book Challenges (Alphabetical by Title) The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie (Hachette) Banned in Prineville, Oregon, December 2008 School officials in Crook County, OR, removed The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie from ninth grade English classes at [...]
The Book of Bunny Suicides by Andy Riley was challenged by one parent who wants the book removed from the library at Central Linn High School in Brownsville, OR. The Kids' Right to Read Project sent a letter to the school board in support of keeping the book in the library.
Kaffir Boy by Mark Mathabane was challenged for use in ninth grade English classes at Lincoln High School in Thief River Falls, MN. Some parents objected to sexual violence and graphic language in the book. NCAC and ABFFE wrote a letter to the school board, urging that the book be retained in the curriculum.
Bless Me, Ultima by Rudolfo Anaya was banned from high school classes in Newman-Crows Landing (CA) Unified School District. NCAC and ABFFE sent a letter to the Modesto Bee:
NCAC and ABFFE sent this letter to the Editors of the Austin American-Statesman in response to the removal of TTYL from middle school libraries. Re: “Round Rock chief removes contested book from middle schools” (November 19) To the Editors: We strongly oppose the decision of Round Rock ISD Superintendent Dr. Jesús Chávez to remove TTYL by Lauren Myracle from district [...]
Two parents challenged the picture book, And Tango Makes Three, by Justin Richardson and Peter Parnell, for use in elementary school libraries in Ankeny, Iowa. The parents objected to the story of two male penguins who parent a chick because they say the book is not "age-appropriate". NCAC and ABFFE wrote a letter to the Ankeny School Board opposing the challenges.
TTYL‚ by Lauren Myracle was removed from middle school libraries throughout Round Rock (TX) ISD. One student's parents challenged TTYL‚ because they objected to sexual content and profanity in the book. Two review committees evaluated the book and recommended that it be kept on library shelves. However, before the school board could review the matter, Superintendent Jesús Chávez had the book removed from middle school libraries throughout the district. The Kids' Right to Read Project sent a letter to the school board opposing the book's removal.
As part of a larger effort to educate students and educators about censorship and how it affects our lives, we have developed interactive workshops for high school and college students and faculty. Below are workshop agendas available for your use. Feel free to add to them, or adjust to your particular needs. Resisting Censorship on Campus A workshop for university [...]
Some parents have objected to sexual content, profanity, and violence in The Bluest Eye and Beloved by Toni Morrison, The Color Purple by Alice Walker, The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger, and The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini in Burke County, NC, schools. The Kite Runner was reviewed (and subsequently approved for use in classrooms) in February 2008. The Kids' Right to Read Project sent a letter to the school board regarding the challenges.
Re: Sherwood School Board upholds use of novel Grendel (November 12) To the Editors: The Sherwood School Board should be applauded for its decision to keep the novel, Grendel by John Gardner, in Sherwood High School’s 10th grade accelerated English curriculum. Some parents object to sexual content and violence in the book, but their children were offered an alternative assignment. [...]
The following is a letter to the major of Berkeley, CA, voicing concern over City Arts Commission’s blanket ban on art containing guns.
What do you think of the state of free speech and democracy in the United States? 1st Place: "C: None of the Above" A narrative film by the 2004 Youth Sounds Factory Summer Program in Oakland California. After a series of intense discussions on the various forms of censorship that affect their lives, nine youth created a blocked-out world that [...]
Does Free Speech Matter? 1st Place: Riley Harmon, "Carbon Nation" (click here to visit Riley's website) 2nd Place: Robert Hornung, "Today" 3rd Place: Cameron Loftus, "Freedom in a Word, in a Line, in a Poem for America" Video Coming Soon! Film Contest Home | 2007 Winners | 2006 Winners | 2004 Winners
War and (Free) Speech: Can They Co-Exist? First Place Conversations of Meinungsfreiheit Lily Erlinger, Miami, FL Second Place Fall in Line Andy Musser, Golden, CO Third Place Salesmanship Abigail Horton and Ned Resnikoff, Middletown, CT Film Contest Home | 2007 Winners | 2005 Winners | 2004 Winners
How Does Censorship Affect Me? First Place Mute By Helen Gebregiorgis Second Place Gay/Straight Alliance By Jamie Li Third Place The Dangers of Promiscuity By Sean Brekke-Miesner and Nam Pham Film Contest Home | 2006 Winners | 2005 Winners | 2004 Winners
Once Upon a Time (Not So Long Ago) By Shajiah Jaffri, for the Youth Free Expression Network October 3, 2008 Once upon a time (not so long ago) a book was written. It was an excellent book, listed in the Top Ten of the New York Times Best Seller’s List. It was a realistic book that narrated the teenage [...]
The 2012 YFEP Film Contest Judges! Jake Gogats and Caitlin Wolper won 1st Place in the National Coalition Against Censorship's 2011 Youth Free Expression Film Contest. Sherman Alexie is a celebrated poet and author whose works frequently draw on his experiences growing up on an Indian reservation in Washington State. His first young adult novel, The Absolutely True Diary of A [...]
The public has a right to know non-classified, scientific information generated by government researchers. This article discusses suppression of medical information generated by Army researchers in a recent article about the Army’s policy for conducting pre-publication review of medical data. Read the article here. Read NCAC's statement on this policy here.
In Wyeth v. Levine, the Supreme Court will determine whether tort litigation against drug manufacturers is and should be preempted. A holding for Wyeth could mean that parties injured by FDA-approved pharmaceuticals no longer could sue drug makers for failure to warn about risks associated with their products. Potential plaintiffs no longer would have access to litigation to compel the [...]
On March 4, 2009, the US Supreme Court ruled that Diana Levine could sue the parmaceutical company Wyeth for risks Wyeth knew but did not disclose. Because the label had been approved by the FDA, Wyeth claimed her suit should be barred. The Supreme Court disagreed.
Here is the full text of Dan Rather's remarks at NCAC's Annual Celebration of Free Speech and Its Defendents: Thank you to the National Coalition Against Censorship for this honor; I am humbled. I do not think myself worthy of this recognition, but I will try to become worthy of it. This is a cause that speaks to the core [...]
On October 21, 2008, NCAC held its Annual Celebration of Free Speech and Its Defenders at the Rubin Museum of Art in New York City. The event honored: Dr. Ruth Gruber, Anthony Lewis, Caroline Hirsch, Dan Rather and Barney Rosset.
President Steven B. Sample Office of the President University of Southern California University Park Campus Los Angeles, California 90089 by Mail and Fax (213-821-1342) Dear President Sample: On behalf of the National Coalition Against Censorship, an alliance of over 50 national non-profit organizations united in defense of free expression, I would like to express our deep concern over the [...]
The patriotism of dissent: artists respond to the political present (2003).
Lost Expression, a short film by Shelbi Kepler. 2nd place winner in the National Coalition Against Censorship's 2008 YFEN "My Vote for Free Speech" film contest.
Censorship news roundup, Fall 2008.
Political conventions are about political speech. Or at least about political speeches: night after night of them. That speech is protected — by layers of security at the conventions, including police, the Secret Service, the FBI, and even the U.S. Northern Command. But the forces arrayed to protect those inside the highly fortified convention centers routinely restrict the free speech of those outside.
The Virtual Coalition Against Censorship, a Project of the Arts Program at the NCAC, is hosting its next discussion on censorship in Second Life on child avatars.
NCAC Participating Organization the American Library Association has put together an article that addresses charges of book censorship by Sarah Palin as well as the incorrect alleged banned book list. Read the article here.
During the last week of September every year, hundreds of libraries and bookstores around the country draw attention to the problem of censorship by mounting displays of challenged books and hosting a variety of events.
Schools and libraries are the setting for many community censorship controversies. Teachers and librarians who seek to expose children to a wide range of ideas, to be sensitive to our cultural and religious diversity, and to encourage curiosity and critical thinking are most likely to be targets. Two books, Heather Has Two Mommies by Leslea Newman and Daddy's Roommate [...]
In communities all around the country, radical rightists are working to cleanse our institutions of ideas and discussion that do not conform to their own religious, social and political views. Attacking ideas and people for "promoting" homosexuality is a destructive but powerful strategy. It creates a climate of fear and intimidation, it taps into deeply-held prejudices, and almost inevitably precludes [...]
Tom Forsythe's Food Chain Barbie series taps into the twin currents of jaundice and hilarity that characterize his sometimes simple and sometimes maddeningly complex view of the world. In this series, the idealized commodity—Barbie—becomes our food, our nourishment. We blend, mix and confuse the ideal fantasy with the essence of our existence. Barbie may be only one of a great [...]
Attacks on artistic expression are proliferating at a frightening rate, and any connection with lesbian or gay matters brings campaigns for suppression. This censorship is affecting the visual and performing arts, museums and movies, television and art exhibits and it is occurring in small towns and big cities everywhere in the country. Last year in Cincinnati, Ohio, the owner, manager, [...]
