Banned Books Week Press Kit

Banned Books Week is an annual event celebrating the freedom to read. Typically held during the last week of September, it spotlights current and historical attempts to censor books in libraries and schools. It brings together the entire book community — librarians, booksellers, publishers, journalists, teachers, and readers of all types — in shared support of the freedom to seek and to express ideas, even those some consider unorthodox or unpopular.

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Save the date: Banned Books Week 2023

The ¹Ü¼ÒÆŲÊͼ's Office for Intellectual Freedom (OIF) tracks attempts to ban or restrict access to books across the United States and to inform the public about censorship efforts in our libraries and schools.

In 2022, OIF documented , the highest number of attempted book bans since ¹Ü¼ÒÆŲÊͼ began compiling data about censorship in libraries more than 20 years ago. The unparalleled number of reported book challenges in 2022 nearly doubles the 729 book challenges reported in 2021. Censors targeted a record 2,571 unique titles in 2022, a 38% increase from the 1,858 unique titles targeted for censorship in 2021. Of those titles, the vast majority were written by or about members of the LGBTQIA+ community or by and about Black people, Indigenous people, and people of color.

A challenge is an attempt to remove or restrict materials, based upon the objections of a person or group. A banning is the removal of those materials.

Banned Books Week (October 1-7, 2023) is an annual event celebrating the freedom to read. Typically held during the last week of September, it spotlights current and historical attempts to censor books in libraries and schools. It brings together the entire book community — librarians, booksellers, publishers, journalists, teachers, and readers of all types — in shared support of the freedom to seek and to express ideas, even those some consider unorthodox or unpopular.

Media Contacts:

Media interested in scheduling interviews with ¹Ü¼ÒÆŲÊͼ spokespersons may contact the ¹Ü¼ÒÆŲÊͼ Communications & Marketing Office, cmomedia@ala.org.

Press Releases

Apr 24: National Library Week kicks off with the highly anticipated annual list of Top 10 Most Challenged Books and State of America's Libraries Report

Mar 22: ALA reports record number of demands to censor library books and materials in 2022

Sep 19: Access to a Wide Variety of Reading Materials Is Critical for Student Development & Well-being

Sep 16: ALA Releases Preliminary Data on 2022 Book Bans

Resources

- an umbrella website to share resources and promote Banned Books Week events for all the sponsors

Banned and Challenged Books Press Kit

Yearly Lists of Challenged and Banned Books

Book Challenges and/or Banned 2020 - 2021 (PDF)

Book Challenges and/or Banned 2019 - 2020 (PDF)

are available.