PEN AMERICA NEEDS YOUR HELP.

#FREETHEBOOKS

In classrooms and libraries across the country, the freedom to read is under assault by restrictions and bans on books. PEN America has documented nearly 6,000 instances of individual books being banned since the fall of 2021 in our book ban research series Banned in the USA. In the 2022-2023 school year alone, 1,557 unique titles were affected. Join us to #FreeTheBooks by taking action below and making your voice heard. You can also support our book ban work by donating today.

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We're Suing Escambia County

A federal judge in Florida has allowed our first-of-its-kind federal lawsuit against book bans in Escambia County, Florida to proceed. Our lawsuit, filed with Penguin Random House, banned authors, and parents and students in the district, claims these bans violate the First Amendment and engage in unlawful viewpoint discrimination. To give you a sense of how bad things have gotten in Escambia, we published a list of more than 1,600 of their banned books, including the dictionary. (Actually, five of them.)

SEE THE LIST

LEARN MORE ABOUT THE LAWSUIT

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Stand With Students: Oppose Texas HB 900

This week, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals heard BookPeople v. Wong, a lawsuit against book ban law HB 900. We applaud the bookstores and bookseller associations leading the lawsuit against this unconstitutional law, and we remain in solidarity with Texas students leading the fight for their freedom to read from their classrooms to their Capitol.

All students deserve access to inclusive, representative, and culturally relevant libraries. We urge the Fifth Circuit to affirm the district court’s decision in BookPeople v. Wong, and ask all Texans to stand with the students protecting their freedom to read.

SEND A LETTER

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Fight for the Freedom to Read in Florida

Florida now has the highest number of book bans in the US. Join with bestselling authors to fight these censorious efforts. 

JOIN US

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Tell State Officials to Protect the Freedom to Read

For Banned Books Week 2023, PEN America and We Believe gathered a consortium of publishers and nonprofit organizations to rally behind the freedom to read with this open letterSend your own letter using our form.

SEND LETTERS TO LAWMAKERS

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Urge Congress to Protect the Freedom to Learn

With a 33% increase in book bans over the last two school years, we need our national leaders to join us in the fight the freedom to learn. Urge Congress to support H.Res. 733/S. Res. 372 and stand up against censorship in America’s public schools.

SEND LETTERS TO CONGRESS

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Tell Florida: 'Don't Say Gay' Doesn't Apply to School Libraries

We joined free expression allies in alerting Florida schools to legal filings by the state’s Attorney General that the “Don’t Say Gay” law doesn’t apply to school libraries.  Add your voice by sending an email to the Florida Department of Education commissioner, Manny Diaz, Jr., urging him to tell schools the law doesn’t apply to school libraries.

ADD YOUR VOICE

Donations from activists like you provide the essential resources we need to defend the freedom to write worldwide. Please consider making a donation in support of this vital work. Thank you.

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WE'RE SUING

PEN America, Penguin Random House, and a diverse group of authors have joined with parents and students from Escambia County, Florida, to file a federal lawsuit challenging removals and restrictions of books from school libraries that violate their rights to free speech and equal protection under the law.

LEARN MORE ABOUT THE LAWSUIT

TELL ESCAMBIA COUNTY TO PUT BOOKS BACK ON SHELVES

SPEAK UP

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FOR STUDENTS AND PARENTS

Are you a student whose school or library has proposed or already removed or restricted access to books?

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FOR AUTHORS

Are you an author whose book has been restricted, banned, or threatened for removal?

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FOR LIBRARIANS

Are you a librarian facing threats, harassment, or pressure to remove books from your shelves?

STAY INFORMED

Banned in the USA: The Mounting Pressure to Censor

Banned in the USA: The Mounting Pressure to Censor

School book bans continue to spread through coordinated campaigns by a vocal minority of groups, individual actors, and state legislation.
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Banned in the USA: State Laws Supercharge Book Suppression in Schools

Banned in the USA: State Laws Supercharge Book Suppression in Schools

PEN America recorded more book bans during the fall 2022 semester than in each of the prior two semesters. This school year also saw the effects of new state laws that censor ideas and materials in public schools, an extension of the book banning movement initiated in 2021 by local citizens and advocacy groups.
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Banned in the USA: The Growing Movement to Censor Books in Schools

Banned in the USA: The Growing Movement to Censor Books in Schools

PEN America’s latest report on book bans, Banned in the USA: The Growing Movement to Censor Books in Schools, explores the forces behind localized efforts to target books.
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America’s Censored Classrooms

America’s Censored Classrooms

PEN America’s latest report on educational gag orders, America’s Censored Classrooms, analyzes the landscape of educational censorship as of August 2022 and predicts the future of these punitive assaults on education.
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Literature Locked Up: How Prison Book Restriction Policies Constitute the Nation’s Largest Book Ban

Literature Locked Up: How Prison Book Restriction Policies Constitute the Nation’s Largest Book Ban

This report details the types of book bans prisoners face, the arbitrariness with which they are implemented, and the lack of transparency and oversight that leads to bans.
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The Index

The Index

Books are disappearing from library shelves and being decreed off-limits by school boards, legislators, and private citizens. PEN America tracks book bans in libraries and classrooms across America in our Index of School Book Bans.
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Stay In Touch

PEN America is hard at work fighting the the educational gag orders, book bans, and “transparency” bills that threaten free expression and academic freedom in the classroom. Sign up to receive email updates about PEN America’s vital work on these issues, including reports, legislative roundups, media coverage, and advocacy alerts.