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The DC Public Library sounds the alarm on the escalating threats to intellectual freedom with its theme for this year's Banned Books Week: “Freedom is Not Guaranteed.” This call to action comes as attempts to ban books, especially those with LGBTQIA+ themes and that tell the experience of communities of color, have increased significantly in the past year.
The theme of this year’s Banned Books Week is a phrase taken from a large-scale billboard by artist Xaviera Simmons displayed on the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library. It serves as a reminder of the need to safeguard the essential right to access and engage with a wide range of ideas, thoughts, and information without censorship. The Library represents more than 700,000 District taxpayers who, without statehood, do not fully enjoy the same autonomy in exercising their constitutional rights. This theme underscores the importance of remaining vigilant in protecting this cherished freedom. It emphasizes that the act of choosing what to read in a library is a fundamental expression of one's citizenship rights.
"Book challenges are surging across the country, threatening the very existence of free and independent public libraries,” said Richard Reyes-Gavilan, executive director of the DC Public Library. "We are committed to protecting the fundamental right of citizens to have access to ideas, especially those ideas expressed by historically marginalized voices."
The American Library Association (ALA) has recorded a sharp increase in censorship attempts. Challenges nearly doubled, jumping to 1,269 from the previous year. A record 2,571 unique titles were targeted, marking a 38% uptick from 2021. Organized groups are responsible for 90% of challenges aimed at censoring multiple titles simultaneously. The majority of these challenges centered on bookers with LGBTQIA+ themes and issues concerning people of African, Asian, Indigenous, Latino and various non-European heritages. 41% of the 1,269 challenges targeted public library materials.
In the District, the circulation of the most challenged or banned books varies. These numbers suggest that not all titles in contention in other places draw significant attention and that District residents are deciding what to read.
Circulation of the American Library Association's (ALA) Most Challenged Books list for 2023
- "Gender Queer: A Memoir" by Maia Kobabe: Number of Challenges 151; Number of checkouts from the DC Public Library: 349
- "All Boys Aren't Blue" by George M. Johnson: Number of Challenges 86; Number of checkouts from the DC Public Library: 205
- "The Bluest Eye" by Toni Morrison: Number of Challenges 73; Number of checkouts from the DC Public Library: 487
- "Flamer" by Mike Curato: Number of Challenges 62; Number of checkouts from the DC Public Library: 61
- "Looking for Alaska" by John Green: Number of Challenges 55; Number of checkouts from the DC Public Library: 154
- "The Perks of Being a Wallflower" by Stephen Chbosky: Number of Challenges 55; Number of checkouts from the DC Public Library: 118
- "Lawn Boy" by Jonathan Evison: Number of Challenges 54; Number of checkouts from the DC Public Library: 93
- "The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian" by Sherman Alexie: Number of Challenges 52; Number of checkouts from the DC Public Library: 152
- "Out of Darkness" by Ashley Hope Perez: Number of Challenges 50; Number of checkouts from the DC Public Library: 65
- "A Court of Mist and Fury" by Sarah J. Maas: Number of Challenges 48; Number of checkouts from the DC Public Library: 1366
- "Crank" by Ellen Hopkins: Number of Challenges 48; Number of checkouts from the DC Public Library: 19
- "Me and Earl and the Dying Girl" by Jesse Andrews: Number of Challenges 48; Number of checkouts from the DC Public Library: 43
- "This Book Is Gay" by Juno Dawson: Number of Challenges 48; Number of checkouts from the DC Public Library: 34
The "Top Ten Most Challenged Books" list is published during National Library Week in April as part of the ALA's State of America's Libraries Report. This report provides an overview of the current landscape of all types of libraries—public, school, and academic. This list is based on the reports received from libraries, schools, and the media on attempts to ban or challenge books in communities across the United States.
Starting October 1, the DC Public Library will offer a variety of special programs and activities that celebrate the public library’s role as a space of intellectual and creative freedom. To learn more visit https://www.dclibrary.org/banned-books-week.