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So far NCAC has created 646 blog entries.

NCAC recommends a substantial change to proposed library media policy at Volusia County Schools in Florida

By |2023-03-27T16:59:50-04:00March 27th, 2023|Issues, News|

The National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC) has written to Volusia County Schools in DeLand, Florida, to suggest an important change to proposed amendments for the district's Library Media Selection policy. In a letter to the district, NCAC expresses our concern regarding an addition to the district policy, which states that a "principal may direct the removal of material he/she [...]

NCAC urges Martin County School District to improve book challenge policy after removal of 100 books

By |2023-03-24T13:49:47-04:00March 24th, 2023|News|

The National Coalition Against Censorship has encouraged the school board of Martin County School District to amend their book challenge policy following the removal of nearly 100 books from school libraries. NCAC shared our Material Review and Policy Guidelines and Examples, a resource to help school officials address the problem of book challenges. Read NCAC's [...]

NCAC protests viewpoint discrimination in Greenville County Public Libraries proposed policy

By |2023-03-24T13:21:53-04:00March 24th, 2023|News|

The National Coalition Against Censorship has sent a letter to the Greenville County Library System in Greenville, South Carolina, expressing our concerns with a proposed change to their library collection policy which would limit access to children's and young adult books which affirms "that a person's gender is other than that person's biological sex." That [...]

Book Challenges Nearly Doubled From 2021

By |2023-03-24T13:55:12-04:00March 24th, 2023|Banned Books Week, In The News, News|

CHICAGO — The American Library Association (ALA), founder of Unite Against Book Bans, released new data documenting* 1,269 demands to censor library books and resources in 2022, the highest number of attempted book bans since ALA began compiling data about censorship in libraries more than 20 years ago. The unparalleled number of reported book challenges in 2022 nearly doubles [...]

NCAC Joins PEN America and other free speech groups to oppose proposed TikTok ban

By |2023-03-24T10:13:31-04:00March 23rd, 2023|Letters, News, Press Releases|

The NCAC has joined PEN America and more than a dozen other civil liberties, digital rights, and anti-censorship organizations in a joint letter to oppose proposed federal legislation and a wholesale ban on the social media platform TikTok. The joint letter acknowledges the platform's national security and user privacy concerns. It also encourages lawmakers to explore viable solutions to prevent jeopardizing [...]

Free speech groups condemn suppression of LGBTQ expression in Florida

By |2023-03-24T10:15:03-04:00March 22nd, 2023|In The News, News, Press Releases, Statement|

NEW YORK - As organizations dedicated to the freedom of thought, inquiry, and speech, we are deeply alarmed by Florida public officials’ attempts to suppress LGBTQ expression. Legislative and administrative acts of intimidation aimed at deterring access to LGBTQ culture are a serious attack on First Amendment principles. Florida’s hostility to LGBTQ communities stands out amid an onslaught of [...]

NCAC Executive Director Christopher Finan to Retire

By |2023-03-16T12:19:00-04:00March 15th, 2023|Blog, News, Press Releases|

NEW YORK - The National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC) announced today that Executive Director Christopher M. Finan will retire this summer after 40 years of defending free expression and First Amendment rights. Before joining NCAC in 2017, Finan was president of the American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression (ABFFE) and executive director of Media Coalition, a trade association that [...]

NCAC Welcomes Applications for Student Advocates for Speech

By |2023-03-28T14:43:51-04:00March 9th, 2023|Blog, News, Press Releases|

New York – The National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC) is now accepting applications for Student Advocates for Speech (SAS), a project for high school students, for the 2023 - 2024 school year. NCAC assists SAS student leaders in creating school clubs where they can learn about the importance of free speech and advocate for their rights and the rights of [...]

NCAC objects to Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools removing library books without following policy | UPDATED

By |2023-03-28T18:12:54-04:00March 8th, 2023|Letters, News|

Updated 3/29/2023 – In response to NCAC's letter, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools claims that both books were "reviewed by their schools' Committees before being permanently removed from those schools' shelves." On 3/8/23 - The National Coalition Against Censorship has written to Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools in Charlotte, North Carolina, to object to the district's removal of the books Let’s Talk About It and Sex [...]

NCAC protests cancellation of play at Northwest Allen County Schools

By |2023-03-03T17:46:17-05:00March 3rd, 2023|Blog, Letters, News|

The National Coalition Against Censorship has written a letter to the School Board of Northwest Allen County Schools in Indiana to protest the cancellation of the high school's production of Marian: The True Tale of Robin Hood. According to news reports, the play was canceled after parental complaints due to concerns of harassment or heckling if the play continued. [...]

ACLU, NCAC oppose removal of abortion-related art from exhibition at Idaho college art gallery

By |2023-03-03T15:12:55-05:00March 3rd, 2023|Blog, Letters, News, Press Releases|

Lewis-Clark State College announced that it will pull several artworks addressing abortion care from an upcoming exhibition for fear of violating the state’s No Public Funds for Abortion Act LEWISTON, Idaho – In a letter sent to Lewis-Clark State College President Dr. Cynthia Pemberton, the American Civil Liberties Union, the American Civil Liberties Union of Idaho, and the National Coalition Against [...]

A CENSORSHIP TSUNAMI

By |2023-03-10T16:51:24-05:00March 2nd, 2023|Censorship News Articles, News, Press Releases, Statement|

The National Coalition Against Censorship is deeply concerned by the decision to cancel the publication of a self-help book by cartoonist Scott Adams because of offensive remarks he made on YouTube. It comes during a time of an increased policing of ideas. We are in the midst of a national censorship crisis in public schools and libraries. Pressure on [...]

NCAC Statement in Support of Texas House Bill 1945

By |2023-03-10T16:49:57-05:00March 1st, 2023|News, Press Releases, Statement|

The National Coalition Against Censorship has issued the following statement of support for Texas HB 1945 The National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC) is an alliance of more than 50 national non-profit literary, artistic, religious, educational, professional, labor, and civil liberties groups that are united in their commitment to freedom of expression. NCAC is writing in support of Texas House [...]

NCAC encourages St. Johns School District to adopt better policies for addressing book challenges

By |2023-03-10T16:52:20-05:00March 1st, 2023|In The News, Letters, News, Press Releases|

The National Coalition Against Censorship has written a letter to St. Johns County School District in St. Augustine, Florida. Under their current policy, books are being removed during the review process, a practice we have long opposed. We encourage the District to adopt better policies for addressing book challenges in their schools. Read our full letter below, or click [...]

AAUP, AFT, NCAC Issue Statement Denouncing Florida HB 999

By |2023-03-10T16:53:15-05:00February 27th, 2023|Blog, News, Press Releases, Statement|

The AAUP,  the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) and the National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC) issued the following statement condemning the introduction of Florida HB 999.  With the introduction of HB 999, the Florida legislature—at Governor DeSantis’s urging—has doubled down on its attacks on academic freedom with a bill that would effectively silence faculty and students across the ideological [...]

NCAC monitors fate of The Cooper Union’s Vkhutemas exhibition

By |2023-02-27T10:50:00-05:00February 27th, 2023|Blog, Letters, News|

Photo Caption: Flickr user Vincent Desjardins via Creative Commons license The National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC) continues to monitor the fate of the Cooper Union’s exhibition titled Vkhutemas: Laboratory of the Avant-Garde, 1920-1930. The project has been delayed multiple times since 2022 in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and allegations that the exhibition—featuring student research and projects about an [...]

NCAC supports SPLC’s New Voices New York Bill

By |2023-03-10T16:54:19-05:00February 24th, 2023|News, Press Releases, Statement|

NCAC has released a statement in support of the Student Journalist Free Speech Act and applauding New York student activists' efforts to support student free press rights.  The act provides that, "a student journalist shall have the right to exercise free speech and of the press in school-sponsored media," and adds necessary protections for educators who advise and support [...]

NCAC, CAA contact Macalester College to assist in response to TARAVAT controversy

By |2023-03-10T16:55:35-05:00February 24th, 2023|Blog, Letters, News, Press Releases|

Image caption: Taravat Talepasand, Demons, Dictators, Blasphemy, and Man, 2016. The National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC) and the College Art Association (CAA) have contacted Macalester College in Saint Paul, Minnesota, to express concerns about how its campus gallery handled the controversy surrounding an exhibition entitled TARAVAT.  The college's efforts to address local concerns have profoundly impacted the artistic freedom [...]

Broward County Public Schools Improperly Removes Sex Ed Book During Review Process

By |2023-03-10T16:55:57-05:00February 24th, 2023|Blog, Letters, News, Press Releases|

The National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC)  has shared a letter with the School Board of Broward County Public Schools in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, concerning a potential violation of district policy and the improper temporary removal of Erika Moen's and Matthew Nolan's book Let’s Talk About It: The Teen’s Guide to Sex, Relationships, and Being a Human from library shelves.   After [...]

NCAC, FIRE release joint letter on censorship of State College of Florida art exhibition

By |2023-03-10T17:33:32-05:00February 23rd, 2023|Blog, In The News, Letters, News, Press Releases|

Photo Credit: Clifford McDonald, Good Trouble, 2023 The National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC) and the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE) are alarmed by reports of the apparently politically motivated censorship of an art exhibition entitled "Embracing Kindness" at the State College of Florida, Manatee-Sarasota’s Bradenton campus. Please see our letter attached, which outlines our concerns below: Click [...]

NCAC Identifies Books Secretly Banned By Michigan School District

By |2023-02-23T21:06:51-05:00February 23rd, 2023|Blog, News, Press Releases|

NEW YORK - On February 17, the National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC) delivered a letter to the Forest Hills Public School Board in Grand Rapids, Michigan, identifying 10 books that were secretly removed by Superintendent Dan Behm in violation of the school district’s reconsideration policy. In a previous letter, NCAC had alerted the board to the existence of a [...]

NCAC objects to Kutztown, PA School District’s cancellation of reading program

By |2023-02-23T21:07:40-05:00February 21st, 2023|Blog, In The News, News, Press Releases|

The National Coalition Against Censorship objects to Kutztown Area School District's Superintendent’s unilateral decision to cancel the One-Book Project following complaints about the climate change themes of the selected book. We urge the district to reinstate the project and adjudicate any challenges pursuant to the district's policy. Read NCAC's full letter to the Kutztown Area School District here: Click here [...]

Florida prisons ban “The Militant”

By |2023-02-17T11:57:09-05:00February 17th, 2023|News|

The National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC) has contacted the Florida Department of Corrections to express its concern regarding reports that The Militant was removed from several prisons due to the ideas expressed in the newspaper.   The confiscation of First Amendment-protected material affects inmates' constitutional rights. Prisoners have the right to read and must be allowed unfettered access to various informational [...]

NCAC asks Madison County, VA School Board to keep books in libraries

By |2023-02-23T21:08:26-05:00February 15th, 2023|Blog, News, Press Releases|

The National Coalition Against Censorship has written to Madison County School Board in Madison, Virginia, to express our concern with recent district policy changes requiring books that include "explicit sexual content" to be removed even if they have substantial educational value for students. It's our understanding that this policy has already led to the removal of over 20 books [...]

NCAC Demands Investigation of Secret Order to Ban Books   

By |2023-02-23T21:09:05-05:00February 8th, 2023|Blog, News, Press Releases|

NEW YORK, February 8, 2023 - The National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC) today demanded that officials in a western Michigan school district investigate whether their superintendent secretly ordered the removal of books, violating a policy that requires a formal review before a book is banned.  They also pointed officials to an audio recording in which a man who has [...]

NCAC and CAA denounce Arkansas Tech University’s handling of Controversial Exhibition

By |2023-02-23T21:15:18-05:00February 7th, 2023|Blog, News, Press Releases|

The National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC) and the College Art Association (CAA) expressed their deep concern with Arkansas Tech University’s handling of its on-campus exhibition, Artifacts, by artist Dominique Simmons. According to the artist's statement, Artifacts sought to acknowledge “the past, good and bad,” as it relates to the American South and included fraught imagery. However, the university’s museum [...]

New library collection policy at McKinney (Texas) Independent School District cause for concern

By |2023-02-23T21:09:51-05:00February 1st, 2023|Blog, In The News, News, Press Releases|

The National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC) has written to McKinney Independent School District in McKinney, Texas, concerning a recent change to district policy.  The District has amended Board Policy EFB Local to exclude books from school libraries that contain material that appeals to "the prurient interest of a minor in sex, nudity, or excretion" or describes sexual activity in [...]

NCAC and SPLC to co-host an online event on fighting for press freedom in U.S. high schools

By |2023-02-23T21:10:41-05:00January 30th, 2023|Blog, Events, News, Press Releases|

NEW YORK - Student journalists play an essential role in their schools by covering complex and, at times, controversial issues that aim to broaden interest in contemporary issues among their peers and community members. The National Coalition Against Censorship's (NCAC) Student Advocates for Speech (SAS) project and the Student Press Law Center (SPLC) will host Fighting for Press Freedom: [...]

NCAC condemns unconstitutional censorship legislation in North Dakota

By |2023-02-23T21:04:50-05:00January 30th, 2023|Blog, News, Press Releases|

NEW YORK, January 30, 2023 -  The National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC), an alliance of 59 national literary, artistic, religious, educational, professional, labor, and civil liberties groups, is alarmed by the introduction of two bills in the North Dakota legislature that would make it a crime for booksellers to display a wide range of books and ban libraries from [...]

NCAC releases new resource for authors of banned or challenged books

By |2023-01-27T15:18:20-05:00January 27th, 2023|Blog, News, Press Releases|

NEW YORK – The National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC) today released a new resource that provides practical advice for authors whose books are being challenged and banned in K – 12 schools and libraries. Prepared in collaboration with writers who have faced censorship, it is available on the NCAC website. Book challenges can be exasperating, demoralizing, and deeply painful for [...]

NCAC Joins FIRE on joint letter to oppose Florida College Presidents’ “Statement” on “Critical Race Theory” and “related concepts”

By |2023-01-25T19:24:41-05:00January 25th, 2023|Blog, In The News, News, Press Releases|

National Coalition Against Censorship joins the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE) in a joint letter in response to the Florida College System Council of Presidents'  pledge to enforce the “Stop WOKE Act” and remove all" woke" positions and ideologies from university and college curriculum. Read our full letter.  Click here for a full screen view. [...]

Florida Officials Wrong to Reject AP African American Studies Course | UPDATED

By |2023-02-23T21:11:47-05:00January 20th, 2023|Blog, News, Press Releases|

Updated 01/24/2023—  On Friday, January 20, the Florida Department of Education released a list of reasons for rejecting the Advanced Placement course. This document makes it clear that what the state officials really object to is not a lack of educational value but some of the ideas discussed in the course. For example, they reject the discussion of Black [...]

Wilson County School Board in Lebanon, Tennessee, removes “Jack of Hearts (and Other Parts)” and “Tricks”

By |2023-02-23T21:12:42-05:00January 10th, 2023|Blog, News, Press Releases|

The National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC) contacted Wilson County Schools Board in Lebanon, Tennessee, in regards to the School Board's decision to remove Tricks by Ellen Hopkins and Lev A.C. Rosen's Jack of Hearts (and Other Parts) despite the book review committee's recommendations to retain the books. NCAC expressed concern that the board may have removed the titles due to disagreement with the [...]

NCAC reflects on past advocacy letters

By |2023-02-23T21:13:31-05:00January 5th, 2023|Blog, News|

The National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC) wrote more than 46 letters responding to book challenges and bans in 17 states in 2022. Below are summaries of letters from October 14 – November 28, 2022, that were not individually highlighted on our website but were instrumental in advocating for students' First Amendment rights and fighting censorship in U.S. schools. NCAC worked to bring [...]

Remembering Joyce Meskis: Free Speech Defender

By |2022-12-29T19:53:19-05:00December 28th, 2022|Blog, In The News, News, Press Releases|

NEW YORK - The National Coalition Against Censorship is saddened by the death of Joyce Meskis, a Colorado bookseller for over 40 years who won many important fights against censorship at the state and national level. Meskis died in Denver on December 22. She was 80. Meskis was a divorced mother of two young daughters when she bought a [...]

NCAC responds to 100+ titles removed from Frisco Independent School District libraries

By |2022-12-19T10:10:42-05:00December 15th, 2022|Blog, News, Press Releases|

Today the NCAC provided a letter of concern to the Frisco Independent School District Board of Trustees regarding removing more than 100 titles deemed “patently offensive” from its libraries. We are concerned because while the district policy only requires the removal of material that includes “patently offensive” illustrations of sexual acts, the guidelines used by the district’s review committee [...]

Following advocacy efforts by NCAC and DDA, Meta pledges to improve transparency around “shadowbanning”

By |2023-02-23T21:16:17-05:00December 9th, 2022|Blog, In The News, News, Press Releases|

New York - The National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC), which represents 59 education, publishing, religious and arts organizations, and Don’t Delete Art (DDA), a collaborative project between NCAC and several other organizations and artists, welcome Meta’s recent announcement of Instagram policy updates that promise to improve transparency around downranking for the platform’s professional account users. The announcement follows several [...]

NCAC joins CPJ joint letter to express concerns regarding Julian Assange criminal and extradition proceedings

By |2022-12-08T14:02:30-05:00December 8th, 2022|Blog, News, Press Releases|

The National Coalition Against Censorship joins the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) and other free speech champions in a joint letter to express concern regarding the Justice Department’s ongoing criminal and extradition proceedings relating to Julian Assange, the founder of WikiLeaks, under the Espionage Act and Computer Fraud and Abuse Act. Click here for a full-screen view of the [...]

Humble Bundle pay-what-you-want deal to benefit NCAC

By |2022-12-05T16:47:15-05:00December 5th, 2022|Blog, In The News, News, Press Releases|

SAN FRANCISCO  —Indie tech-book publisher No Starch Press is partnering with Humble Bundle to offer customers a pay-what-you-want ebook deal that raises money for charity. This highly anticipated three-week promotion builds upon the Bay Area companies’ past collaborations, which have raised over $2.7 million for various nonprofit organizations to date. "Hacking, by No Starch Press" runs until Dec. 19 [...]

Broward County Public Schools remove “A Day in the Life of Marlon Bundo”

By |2022-11-28T16:22:11-05:00November 21st, 2022|Blog, News, Press Releases|

The National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC) has written a letter to Broward County Public Schools District regarding the recent removal of A Day in the Life of Marlon Bundo.  The book was removed because of the Broward County Public Schools District Review Committee’s belief that it is inappropriate due to its negativity towards the US government. The NCAC demands the return [...]

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