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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Entertainment
Ella Creamer

‘Eating away at democracy’: book bans in US public schools rise by a third in a year

PEN America United States Democracy Libraries Florida
The authors whose books were targeted were ‘most frequently female, people of colour and LGBTQ+ individuals’ … a display of banned books in a Barnes & Noble bookshop in Pittsford, New York State.
The authors whose books were targeted were ‘most frequently female, people of colour and LGBTQ+ individuals’ … a display of banned books in a Barnes & Noble bookshop in Pittsford, New York State. Photograph: Ted Shaffrey/AP

Book bans in US public schools have increased by 33% over the last school year, according to a study by Pen America, a non-profit that supports freedom of expression in literature.

The organisation recorded 3,362 instances of book bans in public school classrooms and libraries between July 2022 and June 2023, affecting 1,557 different titles.

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