NCAC Demands Artspace Restore Artwork Featuring Native American Swastika Symbols
Artist Steven Leyba was ordered to remove his paintings despite the fact he was using the symbol to reclaim its original significance in Native American culture.
NCAC Warns CA School District Against Dropping Proposed Curriculum; Victory! Board Finally Votes to Implement Curriculum
By choosing to remove the book, a precedent is set for the success of future book challenges that place objectionable content over pedagogical merit.
NCAC Urges Wisconsin Superintendent to Retain Award-Winning Novel in Curriculum; UPDATE: Victory! Board Finally Votes to Retain Book
The groups emphasize that the mere presence of explicit language and violence in a book provides no justification for its removal.
NCAC Releases Statement in Support of Lincoln Center’s Decision to Host ‘To the End of the Land’ Despite Calls to Cancel the Play
Were institutions like Lincoln Center to yield to calls for cancellation coming from the BDS movement or elsewhere, any ensuing conversation would be much impoverished and further polarized.
NCAC, AAUP Urge NC Governor to Veto ‘Restore Campus Free Speech’ Bill; UPDATE: Bill Made Law
NCAC and AAUP argue that the bill will create more problems than it solves, burdening universities with provisions that existing free speech protections already account for.
Even Limited, Trump Administration’s Travel Ban Will Impact Creative Freedom
The organizations express grave concern that the Executive Order will have a broad and far-reaching impact on artists’ freedom of movement and, as a result, will seriously inhibit creative freedom, collaboration, and the free flow of ideas.
NCAC’s Executive Director Honored for Free Speech Advocacy by the Freedom to Read Foundation
The award will be presented at the 2017 American Library Association Annual Conference during its Opening General Session on Friday, June 24, in Chicago.
National Coalition Against Censorship Chooses New Leader
The National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC) has hired Christopher M. Finan as its next executive director. Joan Bertin, the current executive director, is stepping down after leading the organization for 20 years.
NCAC Releases Statement Criticizing Walker Art Center’s Decision to Destroy Controversial Sculpture; UPDATE: Sculpture to be Ceremonially Buried
NCAC has issued a statement signed by several national and international organizations, opposing the Walker's decision to dismantle and destroy the controversial sculpture.
NCAC Criticizes Elementary School’s Ban on Personal Copies of 13 Reasons Why
The groups underline that the First Amendment protects a student’s right to receive and possess literature, as long as the books in question do not cause disruption to the educational process.
NCAC Criticizes NC High School’s Decision to Cancel Student Yearbook Featuring Donald Trump Quote
A public school, the letter argues, has a responsibility to prepare young adults “to exercise the responsibilities of citizenship by promoting democratic values such as free expression, tolerance, and diversity—including diversity of opinion.”
NCAC Demands Boston Theater Company Reinstate Artistic Director Suspended for Play Involving Nudity
NCAC argues that keeping children from viewing artistic representations of nudes does not ‘protect’ them; rather, it imposes the religion-based view that the nude human body is shameful.
NCAC Demands Ohio High School Restore Eleanor & Park to English Curriculum
The groups’ letter underlines that the hasty removal of the book, after a single complaint, sets a harmful precedent that could leave an entire curriculum in tatters.
NCAC & Dramatists Legal Defense Fund Demand Minnesota City Officials Apologize for Cancelling Play With Word ‘Mulatto’ in Title
The letter demands a public apology from the City of Burnsville and urges the City to develop a formal policy governing artistic programming at the Ames Center to ensure it is in compliance with First Amendment requirements.
NCAC Joins HarperCollins for #WhyIRead Campaign, Celebrating Company’s 200th Anniversary
As an organization committed to defending authors’ free expression and the right to read, NCAC was selected by HarperCollins employees to receive a donation as part of its #WhyIRead campaign, which pledges to donate $200,000 to charities supporting causes that are important to HarperCollins.
NCAC + Lambda Legal Request Tennessee School Apologize for Removing pro-LGBT Student Artwork
The National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC) and Lambda Legal are calling on a Tennessee high school to apologize for removing a displayed student artwork featuring the word “GAYDOM” and a rainbow motif. The groups demand the drawing be immediately restored, arguing that the school’s justification for the removal-- that some students were offended by the artwork-- violates the student artist’s First Amendment rights.
NCAC Demands Idaho Middle School Retain Popular Manga Novel in Library; UPDATE: Committee Votes to Keep Book
The notion that the mere presence of inappropriate language and allegedly suggestive images is justification for a book’s removal sets a harmful precedent that, for example, a classic work of literature that contains adult language, or an art history textbook that includes a nude, should also be kept away from teens.
NCAC Criticizes Minnesota School’s Decision to Cancel Play Featuring Ku Klux Klan Characters
The groups maintain that although the school should and must aim to create a positive learning environment free from racism and hostility, the decision to cancel the play fails to further this objective
PRESS RELEASE: Free Speech Groups Protest AZ School District’s Unjustifiable Removal of The Kite Runner from English Curriculum
The National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC) and 7 other organizations committed to defending the freedom to read are urging a Arizona school district to reinstate Khaled Hosseini’s The Kite Runner Khaled Hosseini’s The Kite Runner in its English curriculum after the book was removed without explanation or prior review. The groups argue the district’s decision is unwarranted and does an educational disservice to its students by depriving them of access to a novel that explores salient and timely themes.
Free Speech Groups Criticize Politically Motivated Removal of ‘Jacob’s New Dress’ From North Carolina Lesson Plan
The National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC) and 6 other organizations committed to defending the right to read are urging a North Carolina school district to reinstate a children’s book in a 1st grade anti-bullying lesson plan after it was removed following pressure from local Republican lawmakers concerned about its gender-nonconforming themes. The groups express concern that political and ideological motivations were behind the district’s decision to remove the book.
Free Speech Groups Urge New Hampshire Governor to Veto Bill Requiring Educators to Notify Parents Prior to Use of Sex Ed. Materials
The National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC) and other organizations committed to defending the freedom to read are urging New Hampshire Governor Chris Sununu to veto a bill requiring schools to notify parents prior to the teaching of materials with information about human sexuality. The groups argue the bill will stigmatize the teaching of educationally valuable materials and undermine the quality of education in New Hampshire.
Free Speech, Press Groups Call President’s Attacks on the Media a Threat to Democracy
The National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC) and the American Society of News Editors (ASNE), along with more than 75 other organizations committed to the First Amendment right of freedom of speech and the press, condemn efforts by the Trump administration to demonize the media and undermine its ability to inform the public about official actions and policies. In a joint statement released today, the groups stress that the administration’s attacks on the press pose a threat to American democracy.
Free Speech Groups Defend Black History Month Exhibit Removed on Grounds of Offense
The National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC) and the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Northern California are urging a California High School District to immediately redisplay an exhibition of paintings celebrating Black History Month. The exhibition was abruptly terminated after it was deemed to be politically charged. The groups are also asking the school district to put policies in place that prevent future viewpoint discrimination against artworks.
Free Speech, Artist Groups Condemn Decision to Remove Controversial Painting from Student Art Exhibition in U.S. Capitol
The National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC) and close to a dozen other organizations committed to defending free speech and the arts are condemning the decision of the Architect of the Capitol to remove a student painting displayed on Capitol Hill after it sparked controversy for its alleged anti-police message.
Free Speech Groups Object to Bill Requiring Educators Notify Parents Prior to Use of Sex Ed. Materials
The National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC) and other organizations committed to defending the freedom to read are urging New Hampshire legislators to reject a proposed bill that would require schools to notify parents prior to the teaching of materials with information about human sexuality.
Free Speech Groups Support Publisher of Milo Yiannopoulos’ Book
The National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC) and other organizations dedicated to defending free expression are voicing concern over recent calls to boycott the publisher Simon & Schuster because one of its imprints – Threshold Editions – is publishing a book by the controversial conservative provocateur Milo Yiannopoulos.
Free Speech Groups Urge Virginia School District Revise Policy That Caused Censorship of Literary Classics
The National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC) is urging a Virginia school district revise its policy for responding to challenged books after it initially censored and then decided to reinstate two literary classics-- To Kill A Mockingbird and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn— from classrooms and libraries because a parent complained about the presence of racial slurs.
NCAC Launches CENSORPEDIA, a Crowdsourced Wiki of Censorship Incidents
On the occasion of Human Rights day, the National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC) is announcing the launch of CENSORPEDIA, a crowdsourced Wiki, cataloging over 1,200 individual censorship incidents throughout history.
Free Speech Groups Defend Literary Classics After Censorship in Virginia Schools
The National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC) is defending the place of two masterpieces of American literature-- To Kill a Mockingbird and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn-- in Virginia schools after the books were removed from classrooms because they contain racial slurs.
Free Speech Groups Defend The Perks of Being a Wallflower Against Label of ‘Obscenity’
The National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC) is again defending Stephen Chobsky’s young adult novel, The Perks of Being a Wallflower, after Iowa parents labeled it “obscene” and pushed for its removal from local classrooms.
Free Speech Groups Criticize WA Daycare Program Limiting Use of ‘Frightening’ Books
The National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC) is calling on a Washington State daycare subsidy program to revise a requirement that considers books with “frightening images” inappropriate for children.
Free Speech Groups Defend Textbook Against Accusations of “Islamic Indoctrination”
The National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC) is urging a Tennessee school to reject calls from a local parent to remove a textbook from a 7th grade curriculum because of its sections on Islam she claims are “indoctrinating.”
Free Speech Groups Oppose New Effort to Label Books ‘Sexually Explicit’ in Virginia Schools
The National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC) is calling on the Virginia Board of Education to reject a regulation requiring schools to notify parents whenever books and textbooks containing “sexually explicit materials” are taught.
Free Speech Groups, Authors, Journalists Address Student Radio’s Effort to Censor Author
The National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC) has responded to a Columbia University independent student-run radio station’s censorship of an invited author because her reading did not match the university’s “values.”
Free Speech Orgs to Virginia School District: Drop Prior Restraint Policy for Student Journalism
The National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC) is urging a Virginia high school district to repeal its prior restraint policy for student newspapers.
NCAC to Florida School: Drop Student Requirement for Parent Permission to Protest
The National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC) has expressed concern over a Florida school district’s decision to require student athletes to first attain parental permission if they wish to protest during the national anthem.
Free Speech Groups Denounce Boycott of Oregon Bookstore Over ‘Offensive’ Display
The National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC) is leading a coalition of 6 free speech organizations in denouncing an Oregon theater group’s boycott of a nearby bookstore over a book display deemed racially offensive.
Reject Calls to Remove Book Series from Florida School Library, Free Speech Groups Urge
The National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC) and a group of free speech advocates are coming to the defense of popular, but frequently censored, books, urging school officials to leave them in the school library.
First Amendment Groups Urge University of Wisconsin-Stout To Keep Historic Paintings On Display UPDATE: Chancellor Modifies Course, Paintings to be Relocated
The National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC) and the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE) are urging the University of Wisconsin-Stout to reverse a proposal to place historic paintings depicting First Nations peoples into storage because some claim that they reinforce negative stereotypes of Native Americans.
First Amendment and Education Groups Unite to Oppose Effort to Rate and Censor Books
The National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC) is leading a coalition of groups which on August 1st sent a letter to a Virginia school board addressing claims that award-winning contemporary novels contain “pornographic” material.