Banned in the USA: The Growing Movement to Censor Books in Schools
“More” is the operative word for this report on school book bans, which offers the first comprehensive look at bans throughout the 2021–22 school year. More
Letter to the Burbank Unified School District
PEN America urges the Burbank Unified School District to rescind its policy which prohibits any instructional materials with the "N-word'' from being used as mandatory reading. More
Concern Raised Over Censorship Threat Against Netflix, Disney from Saudi Arabia, Gulf Neighbors
“These calls are unfortunately no surprise coming from regimes all too accustomed to censoring the stories and ideas their own citizens can access. But their attempt to inflict that… More
Banned Books Week 2022
As we celebrate Banned Books Week 2022, PEN America uplifts the books and writers who insist on telling stories and examining history with truth, honesty, and complexity. More
For First Time, Oklahoma Education Officials Punish Two School Districts for Violating Gag Order on Teaching Race and Gender
“This case demonstrates the dangerous chilling effect gag orders can have,” said Jeremy C. Young, senior manager for free expression and education at PEN America and author of the… More
Educational Gag Order Proposals Spike by 250% in 2022, PEN America Reports
“Our report documents in alarming detail the threats to how young people learn and are taught in American schools,” said Suzanne Nossel, Chief Executive Officer of PEN America. “Lawmakers… More
Order to Remove Dozens of Challenged Books in Texas, Including the Bible, Is an Appalling Violation of Students’ Rights
In response to the news, Jonathan Friedman, director of free expression and education programs at PEN America, said: "The sweeping attempt to remove these titles from classrooms and libraries… More
Ban on Sexual Health Textbooks Continues Torrent of Censorship in Florida
"This ban on sexual health textbooks in Miami-Dade is yet another alarming victory in a political crusade to place politically motivated constraints on what students can learn. It comes… More
Treasures from the PEN America Archives Celebrates 100th Year in NY Historical Society Exhibit Opening July 22
Highlights include a letter from poet T.S. Eliot in 1948, expressing his “distress and terror” over a dinner being organized in his honor; cocktail party invitations sent between 1951… More
5 Myths about Educational Gag Orders
The legislators behind these gag orders are not interested in a productive back-and-forth with educators; what they want is simply to dictate the terms of teachers’ surrender. More
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PEN America On 
SCOTUS has agreed to hear #GonzalezVGoogle and #TwitterVTaamneh. Both cases concern whether tech companies could be held legally liable for what users post on their platforms, as well as for content that users see because of the platform’s algorithm. https://www.huffpost.com/entry/supreme-court-agrees-hear-cases-social-media-immunity-section-230_n_633b15efe4b02816452c84f6
Stacks! I got to speak in a library in WI today about book bans, and took a quick perusal of the shelves. So many titles from ban lists! Kind of shocking to think of all the libraries pulling these books all over the country. How do they fill the gaps? #FreeTheBooks #FReadom
While some states are trying to prohibit universities from teaching about the history of racism, @EddieRCole writes, "these attacks are not new and, like today, limitations placed on academic freedom have a history long rooted in racism." https://www.washingtonpost.com/made-by-history/2022/10/03/limiting-academics-freedom-tell-truth-about-racism-is-not-new/