Americans Love… Censorship?
Are Americans really embracing book banning? A new poll seems to say so. But there are some important caveats.
‘Curious’ Censorship in Tallahassee High School
A Florida high school selected an award-winning novel for its school-wide summer reading list. But a few parents objected to some of the language in the book, and it was promptly pulled.
National Groups Oppose South Carolina ‘Some Girls’ Censorship
One parent called an award-winning young adult novel "smut"-- and her complaint was enough to have it removed from a summer reading list for honors students.
Florida Parents Want to Ban Books They Say ‘Promote’ Islam
Parents in Florida are upset that third graders will be reading books they say promote Islam.
“My Princess Boy”: Watch One Texas Mom Speak Out for LGBT Books
At a public hearing over whether or not to remove LGBT children's books from a public library, one mom's comments stole the show.
LGBT Library Censorship Effort Fails in Texas
Would-be censors in Texas lose in their effort to remove LGBT children's books from the public library. But the fight in Hood County may be far from over.
Graphic Novel Isn’t Banned– But Isn’t in the School Library
A graphic novel was challenged in a New Mexico high school. A review committee voted to keep it. So why isn't the book on the shelves? A local reporter dug into the story.
Texas Library Battle Over LGBT Books
Residents of one Texas town want two LGBT books removed from the children's section of a public library. That is unconstitutional. But a plan to move the books to the adult section is similarly problematic.
Good News: No ‘Disclaimer’ for a College Literature Course
After protests from NCAC and other groups, a California college won't be adding a 'trigger warning' to the description of an English course.
Celebrating the Right to Read in Asheville
The Buncombe school district has decided--once and for all--that one parent's objection to the novel The Kite Runner shouldn't prevent other students from reading it.
Does a College Literature Course Need a ‘Disclaimer’?
A California college rejected a student's request to remove four books from an English course. That's good. But the school is considering adding a 'disclaimer' to the course.
Keeping the Kite Runner in North Carolina
A North Carolina district should stick to its policy guidelines and keep The Kite Runner in an honors English class.
A Book Censor for North Carolina’s Board of Education?
Has the governor of North Carolina nominated a book censor to the state Board of Education?
Victory for Of Mice and Men in Idaho
Good news: The Coeur d'Alene school board voted to keep John Steinbeck's classic novel in the classroom.
Keeping Steinbeck in the Classroom in Coeur d’Alene
Is John Steinbeck's classic Of Mice and Men too controversial for a classroom of ninth graders? That's what some in an Idaho town are saying.
Asheville: Where Trusting Teachers Isn’t a Novel Idea
Don’t you hate it when one person ruins it for the rest of us? Teachers of Asheville, your school district has your back. So do we.
Parent Attempts to Censor The Kite Runner in Asheville
Can one parent effectively get a book banned from an entire classroom? That's exactly what's happening in one North Carolina town.
Challenge to Absolutely True Diary Shut Down in Brunswick, NC
A grandparent tries--yet again--to remove Sherman Alexie's award-winning novel from a school in North Carolina.
Waterloo Schools Violate District Policy To Pull Part-Time Indian
Sherman Alexie's award-winning young adult novel is challenged yet again-- but this time the school district violated its own policy by pulling the book without a formal review.
Long Live the Uncensored William Shakespeare
Views on censoring the bard 451 years later from a Shakespeare-lover and free speech fighter. Happiest of birthdays to my favorite Elizabethan fellow and bawdiest of bards, William Shakespeare. It’s no secret that this famed playwright has taken heat over the years for his spicy language. His plays boast of themes of sexuality, anti-Semitism, violence, and homosexuality; but do these [...]
Whose Books Are Banned?
The ALA's list of the top 10 challenged and banned books includes plenty of familiar names, and teaches some larger lessons about diversity in literature.
Palomar Stays on Shelves in Rio Rancho
After one parent complained that an acclaimed graphic novel was child pornography. After a letter from NCAC, the district's review committee voted to keep the book in the school library.
Connecticut District Removes Perks of Being A Wallflower From Curriculum
A review committee in Wallingford, Ct. decided to keep a popular young adult novel in the English curriculum. But the superintendent overruled that decision. Does his decision make legal or educational sense?
An Acclaimed Graphic Novel…Or Child Porn? Palomar Under Scrutiny In New Mexico
A parent complains that an acclaimed graphic novel on the shelves at a New Mexico high school library is really child pornography. How will the school respond?
Charlotte County History Textbook Challenge Fails
Local Tea Party activists fail in their efforts to remove world history textbooks they see as 'Islamic indoctrination.'
Seuss Won’t Shush: Celebrating the 111th Birthday of the Insuppressible Dr. Seuss
The censorship of... Dr. Seuss? Indeed, the beloved author's children's books have been banned, censored and challenged numerous times over the years.
Colorado Battle Over ‘Reviewing’ AP History Ends–But Others Just Starting
A Colorado school district has dropped a plan to 'review' an AP History framework that conservatives claim is "sharply left-leaning." But this fight over how to teach history isn't over by a long shot.
How Chicago Public Schools Dumped Persepolis
Newly released documents show that the 2013 decision by Chicago Public Schools to remove Marjane Satrapi's popular graphic novel from the district's schools was just as dubious and censorious as it first appeared.
Top 5 Forbidden Affairs of the Heart
In honor of Valentine's Day, NCAC has compiled a list of 5 scandalous couples that rattled more than just the bedpost. In fact, their romances sparked debate about the role of free expression, censorship, and First Amendment rights—some even thousands of years later. NCAC hopes that your Valentine's Day is as passionate and romantic—though maybe not as dramatic—as these forbidden affairs of [...]
Censors Never Sleep: On Judy Blume’s Compassionate Legacy
To advocate on behalf of those who cannot speak, sometimes it's necessary to understand what it feels like to be silenced. Judy Blume is a living testament to this very truth, and, for that, we salute her today, on her birthday.
“Community Standards” in Highland Park: An Invitation to Censorship Controversies
Should "community standards" play a part in what is taught in the classroom? This is the question we asked Highland Park, Tx. school officials in a February 6 letter about new proposals to deal with controversies over certain reading materials.
Defying Intolerance, Children’s Book About Dress-Wearing Boy Kept in Classroom
Last December, a guidance counselor in rural Pennsylvania read a children’s book about a dress-wearing boy to a kindergarten class without advance notice to the parents, upsetting some residents in the district.
Top 10 Banned Books that Changed the Face of Black History
Black History Month is as good a time as any to remember that some of the most frequently banned, censored or challenged books were written by African-American authors.
Effort to Ban Toni Morrison Classic Fails in Arizona
Gilbert, Arizona was a censorship flashpoint last year, when the school board tried to remove pages from a biology textbook. This year they beat back an effort to remove the classic novel Beloved from an AP reading list.
First Amendment, Civil Liberties Groups Condemn Proposed Policy Changes in Virginia
Hanover School District’s Fix Could Actually Make Things Worse NEW YORK, January 13, 2015 — The National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC) is cautioning school officials in Hanover County, VA that policy changes intended to reduce complaints about instructional materials could actually do the opposite. At a school board meeting tonight, three changes to board policies are being mulled over in response to controversies surrounding the use [...]
NCAC Writes to Hanover, VA: School District’s Fix Could Actually Make Things Worse
School officials resisted a challenge to a documentary film. But their new policies on instructional materials, while intended to reduce complaints, could actually do the opposite--giving would-be censors more power over what is taught in class.
First Amendment Groups Say No to Proposed Book Rating Policy in Appoquinimink
National Coalition Against Censorship Contact: Peter Hart 212.807.6222 // c: 732.266.4932 // [email protected] FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: First Amendment Groups Say No to Proposed Book Rating Policy in Appoquinimink NEW YORK, January 12, 2015 — The National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC) is urging Delaware's Appoquinimink School District against adopting potentially restrictive book assignment and checkout policy. The district’s new system proposes to [...]
NCAC to Appoquinimink: Don’t Adopt Restrictive Book Policies!
Update: Victory for KRRP! The Appoquinimink School District has chosen not to implement new rules that would have allowed parents to sign forms barring their children from reading anything deemed too “mature.”
Supplementation, Not Suppression: Officials in Gilbert, AZ Won’t Redact Pages from a Biology Textbook
In October, a few school board members in Gilbert, AZ attracted national attention when they voted 3-2 to yank two pages from an honors Biology textbook. Thankfully, redaction is off the table after the most recent board meeting.
Warring Parents in Highland Park Disagree over Educational Policy; NCAC Intervenes
NCAC is joined by the American Booksellers Foundation For Free Expression, the Association of American Publishers, the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund, the National Council of Teachers of English, PEN American Center, and the Society of Children’s Book Writers & Illustrators in a follow-up letter sent to the Highland Park Independent School District in TX. In the letter, we urge [...]