Censorship by the numbers
Censorship Is So 1984 -- Read for Your Rights! With the escalation in attempts to ban books in libraries, schools, and bookstores around the country, George Orwell’s cautionary tale 1984 serves a prescient warning about the dangers of censorship. This year’s Banned Books Week theme reminds us that the right to read belongs to all of us, that censorship has no place in contemporary society, and that we must defend our rights. Banned Books Week will take place October 5 – 11, 2025.
The American Library Association documented another year in an unabating deluge of efforts to censor library materials in 2024, continuing an extremist campaign to suppress access to books that began in 2021. Last year, 2,452 unique titles were challenged, the third highest number ever documented by ALA and significantly exceeding the annual average of 273 unique titles over the period from 2001-2020.
WHO CHALLENGES BOOKS?
36% Board/administration
26% Pressure groups
16% Parents
10% Elected officials/government
7% Other/unknown
4% Patrons
1% Librarians/teachers/staff
WHERE DO CHALLENGES TAKE PLACE?
55% Public libraries
38% School libraries
5% Schools
2% Higher education/other
BOOKS AND BEYOND
ALA’s Office for Intellectual Freedom tracked 821 censorship attempts in 2024. Here’s the breakdown:
76% Books, graphic novels
6% Hate crimes (Vandalism, theft of materials representing marginalized groups)
3% Programs
3% Access (Library closures, funding, bomb threats)
2% Films
4% Other
CENSORSHIP TRENDS
The majority of library censorship can be tied to organized campaigns. Pressure groups and the administrators, board members, and elected officials they influenced targeted 4,190 total titles in 2024. From 2001-2020, this constituency attempted to remove an average of 46 titles per year.
PERCENTAGE OF TOTAL TITLES TARGETED BY PRESSURE GROUPS AND DECISION MAKERS, 2001-2024
2005: 6%
2010: 8%
2015: 14%
2020: 25%
2024: 72%
WHO CHALLENGES BOOKS?
36% Board/administration
26% Pressure Groups
16% Parents
10% Elected officials/government
7% Other/unknown
4% Patrons
1% Librarians/teachers/staff
Nearly 72% of censorship attempts in 2024 were initiated by pressure groups and decision makers who have been swayed by them.
WHERE DO CHALLENGES TAKE PLACE?
Multi-title challenges at schools remained alarmingly expansive in 2024. The trend of attempting to censor materials and services available to entire communities through their public library continued.
55% Public libraries
38% School libraries
5% Schools
2% Higher education/other
BOOKS AND BEYOND
ALA’s Office for Intellectual Freedom tracked 821 censorship attempts in 2024. Here’s the breakdown:
76% Books, graphic novels
6% Hate crimes (vandalism, theft of materials representing marginalized groups)
6% Displays
3% Programs
3% Access (Library closures, funding, bomb threats)
2% Films
4% Other
PERCENTAGE OF TOTAL TITLES TARGETED BY PRESSURE GROUPS AND DECISION MAKERS, 2001-2024
Pressure groups and the decision makers they influenced targeted 4,190 total titles in 2024. From 2001-2020, this constituency attempted to remove an average of 46 titles per year.
2005: 6%
2010: 8%
2015: 14%
2020: 25%
2024: 72%