Massachusetts School Retains Puberty Book After Challenge
A Massachusetts middle school has decided to retain Sex is a Funny Word, an award-winning book about puberty, after its removal from the library was demanded by a small number of parents.
Arizona Legislators Challenge It’s Perfectly Normal
Lawmakers challenging introduction of comprehensive sex ed are calling for ban on popular sexual health guide in schools and libraries.
Nude #WeTheNipple Art Action at Facebook Headquarters Calls Out Censorship
NCAC and artist Spencer Tunick created a nude art action in front of Facebook and Instagram's New York City headquarters as part of their #WeTheNipple campaign against art censorship on social media.
LGBTQ Stories Top Banned Books List
ALA's Most Challenged Books list for 2018 is dominated by LGBTQ stories and characters, reflecting a growing trend.
Defend LGBTQ Stories: A Resource
Despite hard-won progress towards LGBTQ equality, books centering LGBTQ characters and stories remain among the most frequently challenged and banned in schools and libraries. The freedom to read stories about people of diverse sexual and gender identities can validate and empower all youth, especially those who may identify as LGBTQ. When LGBTQ youth do not see themselves represented in [...]
Kansas Library Defending LGBTQ Stories from Challengers | UPDATE: VICTORY!
A library in Kansas is considering a second challenge to three widely-lauded LGBTQ books for youth.
Attempt to Ban “Obscene” Material in Maine Schools
Maine lawmaker's attempts to label educational material obscene threatens intellectual freedom.
Tumblr Adult Content Ban Will Chill Free Expression Online
On December 17th, Tumblr permanently banned adult content from its platform. Under the new community guidelines, any image that depicts sex acts, real-life human genitalia, or (with a few exceptions) female nipples will be hidden from public view. Despite the company’s claims, the new guidelines will not create a “better, more positive” Tumblr.
NCAC Opposes Attempts to Ban Drag Queen Story Hour in Houston
NCAC supports the Houston Public Library’s commitment to open and diverse programming.
Local Pastors Attempt to Ban Books from Banned Books Display at Maine Public Library
The National Coalition Against Censorship supports Rumford Public Library’s display and freedom to choose how best to serve their community.
NCAC Supports Louisiana Library Hosting Drag Queen Story Time | UPDATE: Success!
Controversy arose over the announcement that the library would host the family-focused program, which features reading, singing and crafts presided over by drag queens.
Free Expression and LGBT Rights Groups Oppose LGBTQ Display Ban in Southern Utah
NCAC is calling on public libraries of Washington County, Utah to reconsider a ban on LGBTQ displays. Joined by the National Council of Teachers of English and Lambda Legal, the letter warns that the ban poses a serious threat to equal rights and freedom of expression and sets a dangerous precedent by perpetuating a culture of prejudice and intolerance. “A [...]
Read with Pride: 10 Great LGBTQ YA Books for Summer
Kick off summer with NCAC's recommendations for books that amplify LGBTQ stories and voices, and that are frequently banned in schools!
Fun Home Under Fire in New Jersey
Fun Home is under attack again, this time in a New Jersey High School.
San Diego Parents Stage ‘Opt-Out’ Protests Against Sex Ed
A group called the Concerned Parents of San Diego held their children from school to protest the district's Sexual Health Education Program, SHEP. Among the material the group finds objectionable is the award-winning It's Perfectly Normal, by Robie Harris.
Departure of MassArt Professor Saul Levine Raises Academic Freedom Concerns
After anonymous complaints about brief images of sexual acts in an avant-garde film shown in class, the Massachusetts College of Art and Design launched a sexual harassment investigation. Saul Levine, the professor teaching the class and the target of the investigation, who is also a well-regarded avant-garde filmmaker, resigned in protest. This incident raises serious concerns beyond the individual case.
NCAC Applauds The Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Refusal to Remove Painting
More than 10,000 people have signed an online petition demanding the removal of a Balthus painting in response to “the current climate around sexual assault and allegations that become more public each day.” The Met has refused to remove the work.
Censorship Made Me More Defiant – An Interview with David Levithan
David Levithan, an award-winning author and editor of dozens of books, will be honored along with former NCAC Executive Director Joan Bertin, at the NCAC Celebration of Free Speech and Its Defenders on Nov. 6 in New York.
NCAC Praises CA School for Rejecting Calls to Restrict Classroom Reading
The board met on Monday night to review their literature policy in light of the controversy but voted unanimously to keep it unchanged.
California Parents Protest Reading of Children’s Book With Transgender Theme
The book, which tells Jazz’s story of struggle with having “a girl brain but a boy body,” was brought to school in June by a transitioning kindergartner at Rocklin Academy Gateway School.
Chicagoans Unite to Defend LGBT-themed Book Against Religious Group’s Campaign
NCAC is praising the grassroots efforts of Chicagoans who have set an example for the rest of the country.
NCAC Defends the Glass Castle over Concerns of ‘Disturbing’ Content; UPDATE: Review Committee Votes in Favor of Keeping the Book
A formal complaint was lodged by a local parent who was offended by the presence of profanity in the book, which includes passages that reference sexual assault.
Oklahoma Library System Embroiled in Issue Over Placement of LGBT Books
Oklahoma LGBT activists are calling into question a local library policy that limits the placement of LGBT-themed books to sections that hold books on sensitive topics such as drug use, incarceration and sexual abuse.
Library Pub. Suggests YA Novel with Bi Character Inappropriate for Young Readers; UPDATE: Response from VOYA
VOYA dismissed critics of its recommendation. But why are VOYA readers rightly concerned?
Georgia Lawmakers Attack Museum Exhibition Exploring AIDS Epidemic
David Wojnarowicz (born 1954, died 1992) Untitled (Buffalo), 1988-89. Vintage gelatin silver print, signed on verso, 28⅝x35¾; inches. Collection of Michael Sodomick, Courtesy of the Estate of David Wojnarowicz and P.P.O.W Gallery, New York In statements reminiscent of the culture wars of the 1990s, three Republican lawmakers in Cobb County, Georgia have attacked a museum exhibition that [...]
Michigan Parents See ‘Porn’ in The Bluest Eye
Parents in Michigan are very upset about a Toni Morrison novel being taught in an AP English class.
Are New Rules Still Targeting Gay-Straight Alliance?
It looks like a Tennessee high school will have a gay-straight alliance club after all. But do the district's new rules for all clubs go too far?
Hanover Students Stand Against “Beloved Bill” in Virginia
Students are speaking out against legislation that would require parental notification of the teaching of "sexually explicit content" in public schools.
Coalition to Virginia Governor: Veto the ‘Beloved’ Bill
A bill that would require Virginia public schools to notify parents about 'sexually explicit content' should be vetoed by the governor, a coalition of literary and free speech groups argue.
Florida Man Wants City to Declare Vagina Monologues ‘Inappropriate’
A local businessman wants a Florida city council to bar performances in a publicly-owned theater that he deems inappropriate.
Virginia “Sexually Explicit Content” Bill Undermines Public Education
A Virginia bill that would require public schools to notify parents of "sexually explicit content" poses a profound threat to public education and First Amendment principles.
Students Form Gay-Straight School Club. What’s the Problem?
At Franklin County High School in Tennessee, some students and parents are outraged by the very existence of the Gay-Straight Alliance.
In Omaha Sex Ed Fight, Board Must Choose Sound Science
A series of proposed changes to the sex ed curriculum in Omaha, Nebraska generated intense opposition late last year, with hundreds of angry parents packing a meeting to denounce plans to teach students about gender identity, emergency contraception, and abortion. Now it is up to the board to decide how and what students will learn.
Victory for ‘Just One Day’ in Minnesota
A reconsideration review committee that met on December 3 decided in a 7-4 vote to retain copies of Gayle Foreman’s award-winning young adult novel Just One Day in Rosemount-Apple Valley-Eagan Public School libraries.
‘Just One Day’ YA Novel: Too Racy For School Libraries?
Parents of a middle school student were upset to find their child read the novel 'One Fine Day.' So they want it removed from four school libraries in the district.
Ivory Tower Sex Panic?
Is there a new sex panic taking place in academia? Sexual expression is once again under attack as harmful to women, and possibly as a form of sexual harassment.
‘Purity’ Panic Over Omaha Sex Ed Curriculum
Parents in Omaha are fired up about proposed changes to the sexual education curriculum. Are they trying to keep their kids "pure," or are they calling for censorship?
Petition Demands Only “Age Appropriate” Books in NJ High School
A petition calls for the removal of two books for sexual content and language, and also all other material that is not age-appropriate.
“Shame is the Evil That Makes Everybody Sick”
Legendary artists Betty Tompkins and Marilyn Minter got together to talk about censorship, women in the arts and much more.
Charter School’s Book Censorship is a ‘Kind of Literary Fraud’
Responding to a complaint about a book assignment, a Tennessee charter school CEO explained that they had given students a heavily redacted version.