Final Project: Threats to Free Speech

Threats to Free Speech: 

Addressing the Book Bans and Censorship in U.S. Schools

What's Happening?

There is a massive surge in book bans across U.S. schools. According to PEN America, during the 2024-2025 school year, there were 6,870 recorded instances of book bans across 23 states and 87 public school districts. Since 2021, PEN America has counted nearly 23,000 bans across 45 states and 451 school districts. These bans have targeted thousands of titles. In 2024–25, roughly 3,752 distinct books were affected (by authors, illustrators, translators counted).

What Kind of Books are Being Banned? 

The removed books disproportionately include works about or by people of color and LGBTQ+ authors or characters. According to PEN America, 36% of banned titles featured characters or people of color, 25% included LGBTQ+ characters or themes. Many of the banned books address topics like race, racism, social justice, gender identity, sexual orientation, and life experiences (violence, grief, abuse, mental health). Despite official justifications often pointing to “explicit content,” only a minority of banned books had on-the-page descriptions of sexual activity.

Recent Legal and Institutional Flashpoints

In April 2025, the ACLU sued the Department of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA) on behalf of 12 students. The lawsuit says DoDEA wrongfully removed books and lessons about race, gender, history, sexuality, and identity, violating students’ First Amendment rights. Books removed included To Kill a Mockingbird, The Kite Runner, and chapters from AP Psychology, along with lessons about LGBTQ issues and sexual harassment. The ACLU argues the bans were based on new government orders targeting so-called “gender ideology” and “divisive topics”, done without proper review or input from parents or educators. In October 2025, a federal judge ordered DoDEA to return the banned books, marking a major win for students’ rights.

Why This is Alarming 

Education, especially at K–12 level, is foundational for civic formation. By removing or limiting access to books about race, gender, sexuality, identity, history, and social justice, students lose access to perspectives that help shape their understanding of their society and the world. The bans disproportionately affect works by or about historically marginalized groups. This includes people of color, LGBTQ+ individuals, and non-white authors, which risks erasing or minimizing their experiences, histories, and voices in the school curriculum. This can lead to self-censorship, where teachers or librarians avoid certain books or topics entirely to prevent backlash or liability, even if not legally banned. Removing or restricting access to literature and history undermines the idea of public education as a space for open communication, critical thought, and exposure to diverse viewpoints.

Recent Book Bans

A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess. Its repeated bans show that even older canonical works are being removed, not just recent publications.

Sold by Patricia McCormick. This YA novel deals with harsh topics (sexual slavery), and its banning suggests books about difficult social issues, especially involving marginalized populations, are particularly at risk.

Last Night at the Telegraph Club by Malinda Lo. The book centers on LGBTQ+ identity. Its targeting shows how representations of queer lives remain especially vulnerable in school censorship.

Works by Stephen King. The fact that a popular mainstream horror author tops the list of banned books highlights the span of bans.

Works by other popular contemporary authors (e.g. Sarah J. Maas, Jodi Picoult, Ellen Hopkins). This shows that the censorship is not limited to “classic” or “controversial” literature. Many mainstream and even “safe-seeming” contemporary works are censored too.

Why This Matters

Students lose access to important ideas when books about race, gender, sexuality, and history are removed. Teachers and librarians become afraid to teach freely, leading them to censor themselves even when books aren’t officially banned. Censorship becomes normal, not rare, when schools and states keep removing books. Education suffers because students aren’t exposed to diverse perspectives or challenging ideas, which are essential for critical thinking and a healthy democracy.

Works Cited

American Civil Liberties Union. ACLU Files Lawsuit Challenging DoDEA Book Bans. 2025, https://www.aclu.org/press-releases/dodea-book-bans.

American Civil Liberties Union. Federal Judge Orders DoDEA to Return Removed Books. 2025, https://www.aclu.org/press-releases/dodea-must-return-books-to-shelves-judge-rules.

“Students at Pentagon Schools Sue over Book Bans on Race and Gender.” AP News, 15 Apr. 2025, https://apnews.com/article/aclu-military-education-lawsuit-banned-books.

Human Rights Watch. US School Book Bans Undermine Democratic Values. 22 Nov. 2024, https://www.hrw.org/news/2024/11/22/school-book-bans-undermine-democratic-values-us-education.

The Washington Post. “Stephen King, Jodi Picoult among Most-Banned Authors in Schools.” 1 Oct. 2025, https://www.washingtonpost.com/books/2025/10/01/banned-books-schools.

PEN America. Banned Author List 2025. 2025, https://pen.org/banned-author-list-2025/.

PEN America. Latest Report on Book Bans in U.S. Public Schools. 2025, https://pen.org/press-release/latest-pen-america-report-finds-disturbing-normalization-of-book-bans.

The Guardian. “Stephen King Named Most Banned Author in America.” The Guardian, 2 Oct. 2025,                 https://www.theguardian.com/books/2025/oct/02/stephen-king-most-banned-author.