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The Catcher and the Rye is often still challenged.

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The Catcher and the Rye is often still challenged.

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To Kill A Mocking Bird is often still challenged.

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To Kill A Mocking Bird is often still challenged.

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Of Mice and Men if often still challenged.

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Of Mice and Men if often still challenged.

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When someone attempts to remove or restrict literature.

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The successful removal of literature from the shelves of a library, bookstore, or classroom because of its controversial content.

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Banned Books Week is celebrated at the end of September!

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Top 3 Reasons Books Are Challenged or Banned

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Top 3 Reasons Books Are Challenged or Banned

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The literature contained:

Sexually explicit content

Offensive language

Content "unsuited to any age group"

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"The books that the world calls immoral are the books that show the world its own shame." - Oscar Wilde

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Banned Books Week is an annual event that highlights the value of free and open access to information.

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The American Library Association has great resources.

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Join the Letter-Writing Campaign

Top 10 Most Challenged Books of 2020

Most Banned and Challenged Books: 2010-2019

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Free Downloads

Promote the freedom to read with web graphics, coloring sheets, videos, and more!

- For media inquiries, contact the ALA Communications & Marketing Office

- To report censorship, contact the ALA Office for Intellectual Freedom

- For Banned Books Week support, contact ALA Banned Books Week

- For research questions about specific banned books, head to our Banned Books Research Inquires webpage

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The National Coalition Against Censorship has great resources on censorship and banned books.

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For nearly as long as the written word has existed, it has been a target for censorship. Religion was the most frequently cited reason for the censorship of written works. In 14th century England, for example, reading the Wycliff Bible was forbidden by the clergy for fear that the translation had corrupted or misinterpreted the original text. In the 16th century, the Roman Catholic Church placed Machiavelli's The Prince on the Index of Prohibited Books in the "banned absolutely" category for its "heretical" content.

But book-banning isn't really an issue in the United States anymore, right? Wrong.

Literary works are still challenged, censored and banned for many different reasons. Books as varied as Judy Blume's Forever, Vladimir Nabokov's Lolita, and Maya Angelou's I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings have been challenged by parents and school boards who deem certain sexual passages inappropriate for young people. Works such as It's Perfectly Normal by Robie Harris and Heather Has Two Mommies by Leslea Newman, among others, frequently face demands for removal from library shelves for their focus on gay/lesbian issues. And the Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling and the Scary Stories series by Alvin Schwartz, among others, have been challenged by dozens of parents, administrators, and clergy for their scary, violent or occult themes.

Written works on evolution have also faced censorship, as have books that represent race in a way that is deemed objectionable by certain groups.

Types of Objections against Books

Profanity: Books are often challenged for the language they contain, even though profanity is often used in literature to convey social or historical context, local dialect or simply to better depict reactions to real-life situations. Books such as Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck and Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut have been challenged or banned due to objections to profanity.

Sex: Books as varied as Toni Morrison's Beloved and Maureen Johnson's The Bermudez Triangle, among many others, have been challenged by parents and school boards who deem certain sexual passages inappropriate for young people. Works such as It's Perfectly Normal by Robie Harris and Heather Has Two Mommies by Leslea Newman, among others, face demands for removal for their frank discussion and focus on gay/lesbian issues.

Violence: Objections to violent content are often based on the idea that these works trivialize violence or desensitize readers to its effects. Books challenged on these grounds include One Fat Summer by Robert Lypsyte and Native Son by Richard Wright.

Religion: Religious grounds have long been cited as reasons for censoring books. Reading translations of the Bible was once forbidden. Today, parents and ministers often object to works which discuss topics such as sex and evolution or witchcraft or occult themes.

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For nearly as long as the written word has existed, it has been a target for censorship. Religion was the most frequently cited reason for the censorship of written works. In 14th century England, for example, reading the Wycliff Bible was forbidden by the clergy for fear that the translation had corrupted or misinterpreted the original text.

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Individuals such as:

Parents

Administrators

Teachers

Board Members

Politicians

Institutions like:

School Libraries

Schools

Student Groups

Social/Religious Groups

Community Groups

Courts

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The First Amendment allows individuals to speak, publish, read and view what they wish...

Ratified on December 15, 1791

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Censorship is the suppression of ideas and information that certain persons - individuals, groups or government officials - find objectionable or dangerous.