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My Young Mind Was Disturbed by a Book. It Changed My Life.

By Viet Thanh Nguyen

Mr. Nguyen is the author of the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel “The Sympathizer” and the children’s book “Chicken of the Sea,” written with his then 5-year-old son, Ellison.

When I was 12 or 13 years old, I was not prepared for the racism, the brutality or the sexual assault in Larry Heinemann’s 1977 novel, “Close Quarters.”

Mr. Heinemann, a combat veteran of the war in Vietnam, wrote about a nice, average American man who goes to war and becomes a remorseless killer. In the book’s climax, the protagonist and other nice, average American soldiers gang-rape a Vietnamese prostitute they call Claymore Face.

As a Vietnamese American teenager, it was horrifying for me to realize that this was how some Americans saw Vietnamese people — and therefore me. I returned the book to the library, hating both it and Mr. Heinemann.

Here’s what I didn’t do: I didn’t complain to the library or petition the librarians to take the book off the shelves. Nor did my parents. It didn’t cross my mind that we should ban “Close Quarters” or any of the many other books, movies and TV shows in which racist and sexist depictions of Vietnamese and other Asian people appear.

Instead, years later, I wrote my own novel about the same war, “The Sympathizer.”

While working on it, I reread “Close Quarters.” That’s when I realized I’d misconstrued Mr. Heinemann’s intentions. He wasn’t endorsing what he depicted. He wanted to show that war brutalized soldiers, as well as the civilians caught in their path. The novel was a damning indictment of American warfare and the racist attitudes held by some nice, average Americans that led to slaughter and rape. Mr. Heinemann revealed America’s heart of darkness. He didn’t offer readers the comfort of a way out by editorializing or sentimentalizing or humanizing Vietnamese people, because in the mind of the book’s narrator and his fellow soldiers, the Vietnamese were not human.

In the United States, the battle over books is heating up, with some politicians and parents demanding the removal of certain books from libraries and school curriculums. Just in the last week, we saw reports of a Tennessee school board that voted to ban Art Spiegelman’s Pulitzer Prize-winning graphic novel about the Holocaust, “Maus,” from classrooms, and a mayor in Mississippi who is withholding $110,000 in funding from his city’s library until it removes books depicting L.G.B.T.Q. people. Those seeking to ban books argue that these stories and ideas can be dangerous to young minds — like mine, I suppose, when I picked up Mr. Heinemann’s novel.

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During Banned Books Week, Readers Explore What It Means To Challenge Texts

Elizabeth Blair

The Catcher in the Rye. A Brave New World. Lolita. Lady Chatterley's Lover.

These are some classics that pop into many minds when considering books that have been banned from home and school libraries over time.

But there's been a "notable shift" in the subject matter of books now being challenged in the U.S. When the American Library Association released its list of the Top Ten Most Challenged Books of 2020 in April, the books that received the most challenges to libraries and schools dealt with "racism, Black American history and diversity in the United States," says Deborah Caldwell-Stone, director of the ALA's Office for Intellectual Freedom.

And Caldwell-Stone says in 2018 and 2019, the Banned Books list was made up "almost exclusively" of books dealing with LGBTQ concerns.

"I think that we're seeing a response in many ways to some of the conversations, the challenges that we faced as a society since the murder of George Floyd last year," she says.

The theme of this year's Banned Books Week is "Books Unite Us. Censorship Divides Us." Public events include a Dear Banned Author Letter-Writing Campaign and Stand For The Banned Read-out , an opportunity for people to submit videos of themselves reading books from the list.

Top Ten Most Challenged Books of 2020

George by Alex Gino Reasons: Challenged, banned, and restricted for LGBTQIA+ content, conflicting with a religious viewpoint, and not reflecting "the values of our community"

Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You by Ibram X. Kendi and Jason Reynolds Reasons: Banned and challenged because of author's public statements, and because of claims that the book contains "selective storytelling incidents" and does not encompass racism against all people

All American Boys by Jason Reynolds and Brendan Kiely Reasons: Banned and challenged for profanity, drug use, and alcoholism, and because it was thought to promote anti-police views, contain divisive topics, and be "too much of a sensitive matter right now"

Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson Reasons: Banned, challenged, and restricted because it was thought to contain a political viewpoint and it was claimed to be biased against male students, and for the novel's inclusion of rape and profanity

The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie Reasons: Banned and challenged for profanity, sexual references, and allegations of sexual misconduct by the author

Something Happened in Our Town: A Child's Story About Racial Injustice by Marianne Celano, Marietta Collins, and Ann Hazzard, illustrated by Jennifer Zivoin Reasons: Challenged for "divisive language" and because it was thought to promote anti-police views

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee Reasons: Banned and challenged for racial slurs and their negative effect on students, featuring a "white savior" character, and its perception of the Black experience

Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck Reasons: Banned and challenged for racial slurs and racist stereotypes, and their negative effect on students

The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison Reasons: Banned and challenged because it was considered sexually explicit and depicts child sexual abuse

The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas Reasons: Challenged for profanity, and it was thought to promote an anti-police message

Author Angie Thomas' The Hate U Give has made the banned books list before. Since making the list often boosts sales, Thomas tweeted her gratitude: "Happy #BannedBooksWeek! I remember the time a Texas school district banned The Hate U Give, and I sold tens of thousands of copies in a week in that same district. Keeping banning my books. I have a second home to buy."

Bestselling author Jason Reynolds, the "Banned Books Week 2021 Honorary Chair," has two books on the most recent list: Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You , co-written with Ibram X. Kendi and All American Boys with Brendan Kiely.

In a Facebook Live conversation on Tuesday, Reynolds disagreed with the mantra that making the list is a "badge of honor" or like belonging to "a special club" for authors. "I don't feel that way. I actually think it's a bigger slap in the face," said Reynolds, "It's painful to me because what I know is that when these books are banned, there are going to be thousands and thousands of young people who will not get these books."

Still, nothing says "read me" like the words "banned" or "censored."

In Pennsylvania, the Central York School Board recently tried to halt the use of a "Diversity Committee Resource List" that included books by Nikole Hannah-Jones and Malala Yousafzai. A robust student protest ensued and the decision was reversed. There have been similar outcries in Texas where the Leander Independent School District pulled six books including The Handmaid's Tale: The Graphic Novel by Margaret Atwood and Renee Nault.

In Tennessee, a local chapter of Moms For Liberty (MFL) deemed a number of books as inappropriate for second graders, including Martin Luther King, Jr and the March on Washington and the picture book Ruby Bridges Goes to School , about the six year old who became the first African American to integrate an all-white school in New Orleans.

In a letter to the Tennessee Department of Education, the Williamson MFL chair Robin Steenman writes: "The classroom books and teacher manuals reveal both explicit and implicit Anti-American, Anti-White, and Anti-Mexican teaching. Additionally, it implies to second grade children that people of color continue to be oppressed...and teaches that the racial injustice of the 1960s exists today."

But Steenman claims they are not seeking to ban books. She says MFL has heard complaints from parents in the community, including people of color, about the manner in which certain books are being taught to second graders. "How it's presented to the children really does alienate some," she says, and "divides children up" based on their skin color. "It's very focused on racial injustice," she says, " instead of talking about the strides that our country has made."

Caldwell-Stone says she finds the challenge to Ruby Bridges Goes to School "just incredible." Written by Bridges herself, Caldwell-Stone says the book is "age appropriate, developmentally appropriate" and received "excellent reviews" for introducing the topic to children.

During the Facebook Live conversation with Jason Reynolds, he was asked "What do you think people are afraid of?" when they ban books. Reynolds responded: "There are many, many adults who are terrified of being challenged...because what happens is we will then be forced to grapple with our own biases, to grapple with our own ignorance." Later in the conversation he added, "You've got to trust your kids a little more."

Meghan Collins Sullivan edited this story.

Web Resources

About Banned & Challenged Books

Does ala ban books.

No. The ALA's Office for Intellectual Freedom (OIF) receives reports from libraries, schools, and the media on attempts to ban books in communities across the country. We compile lists of challenged books in order to inform the public about censorship efforts that affect libraries and schools. The ALA condemns censorship and works to ensure free access to information. For more information on ALA's efforts to raise awareness of censorship and promote the freedom to read, please explore Banned Books Week .

What's the difference between a challenge and a banning?

A challenge is an attempt to remove or restrict materials, based upon the objections of a person or group. A banning is the removal of those materials. Challenges do not simply involve a person expressing a point of view; rather, they are an attempt to remove material from the curriculum or library, thereby restricting the access of others. Due to the commitment of librarians, teachers, parents, students and other concerned citizens, most challenges are unsuccessful and most materials are retained in the school curriculum or library collection.

Why are books challenged?

Books usually are challenged with the best intentions—to protect others, frequently children, from difficult ideas and information. See Notable First Amendment Cases .

Censorship can be subtle, almost imperceptible, as well as blatant and overt, but, nonetheless, harmful. As John Stuart Mill wrote in On Liberty:

If all mankind minus one, were of one opinion, and only one person were of the contrary opinion, mankind would be no more justified in silencing that one person, than he, if he had the power, would be justified in silencing mankind. Were an opinion a personal possession of no value except to the owner; if to be obstructed in the enjoyment of it were simply a private injury, it would make some difference whether the injury was inflicted only on a few persons or on many. But the peculiar evil of silencing the expression of an opinion is, that it is robbing the human race; posterity as well as the existing generation; those who dissent from the opinion, still more than those who hold it. If the opinion is right, they are deprived of the opportunity of exchanging error for truth: if wrong, they lose, what is almost as great a benefit, the clearer perception and livelier impression of truth, produced by its collision with error.

— On Liberty, John Stuart Mill

Often challenges are motivated by a desire to protect children from “inappropriate” sexual content or “offensive” language. The following were the top three reasons cited for challenging materials as reported to the Office of Intellectual Freedom:

• the material was considered to be "sexually explicit"
• the material contained "offensive language"
• the materials was "unsuited to any age group"

Although this is a commendable motivation, Free Access to Libraries for Minors , an interpretation of the Library Bill of Rights (ALA's basic policy concerning access to information) states that, “Librarians and governing bodies should maintain that parents—and only parents—have the right and the responsibility to restrict the access of their children—and only their children—to library resources.” Censorship by librarians of constitutionally protected speech, whether for protection or for any other reason, violates the First Amendment.

As Supreme Court Justice William J. Brennan, Jr., in Texas v. Johnson , said most eloquently:

If there is a bedrock principle underlying the First Amendment, it is that the government may not prohibit the expression of an idea simply because society finds the idea itself offensive or disagreeable.

If we are to continue to protect our First Amendment, we would do well to keep in mind these words of Noam Chomsky:

If we don't believe in freedom of expression for people we despise, we don't believe in it at all.

Or these words of Supreme Court Justice William O. Douglas (" The One Un-American Act ." Nieman Reports , vol. 7, no. 1, Jan. 1953, p. 20):

Restriction of free thought and free speech is the most dangerous of all subversions. It is the one un-American act that could most easily defeat us.

Who Challenges Books?

Throughout history, more and different kinds of people and groups of all persuasions than you might first suppose, who, for all sorts of reasons, have attempted—and continue to attempt—to suppress anything that conflicts with or anyone who disagrees with their own beliefs.

In his book Free Speech for Me—But Not for Thee: How the American Left and Right Relentlessly Censor Each Other , Nat Hentoff writes that “the lust to suppress can come from any direction.” He quotes Phil Kerby, a former editor of the Los Angeles Times, as saying, “Censorship is the strongest drive in human nature; sex is a weak second.”

According to the Challenges by Initiator, Institution, Type, and Year , parents challenge materials more often than any other group.

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Banned Books – Top 3 Pros and Cons

Pro/Con Arguments | Discussion Questions | Take Action | Sources | More Debates

The American Library Association (ALA) has tracked book challenges, which are attempts to remove or restrict materials, since 1990. In 2020, the ALA recorded 156 reported book challenges in the United States, a significant decrease from the 377 reported challenges in 2019 perhaps due to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, in 2022 challenges jumped to an all-time high with in 2021 with 729 challenges, containing a total of 1,597 books. [ 22 ] [ 27 ] [ 28 ]

In 2022, attempts to ban books doubled from 2021 with 1,269 attempts to ban 2,571 unique titles, according to the ALA. The numbers also reflect a trend in which one complaint includes challenges for multiple books, whereas in the past most complaints only included one book. As of Aug. 31, 2023, there were 695 book challenges 1,915 unique titles; the ALA notes this is a 20% increase from 2022. [ 31 ] [ 32 ]

In most years, about 10% of the reported challenges result in removal or ban from the school or library. However, in 2016, five of the top ten most challenged books were removed. The ALA estimates that only about 3% to 18% of challenges are reported to its Office for Intellectual Freedom, meaning that the actual number of attempts to ban books is likely much higher. [ 1 ] [ 24 ]

In 2021, challenges were most frequently brought by parents (39%), followed by patrons (24%), a board or administration (18%), librarians or teachers (6%), elected officials (2%), and students (1%). Books were most often challenged at school libraries (44%), public libraries (37%), schools (18%), and academic libraries (1%). [ 30 ]

Sexually explicit content, offensive language, and “unsuited to any age group” are the top three reasons cited for requesting a book be removed. The percentage of Americans who thought any books should be banned increased from 18% in 2011 to 28% in 2015, and 60% of people surveyed believed that children should not have access to books containing explicit language in school libraries, according to The Harris Poll. A 2022 poll found 71% disagreed with efforts to have books removed, including 75% of Democrats, 58% of independents, and 70% of Republicans. [ 1 ] [ 3 ] [ 28 ]

As the wave of book bans increased nationwide, 2023 brought bans on book bans themselves from two states: Illinois and California. The Illinois law is focused on libraries and “protects the freedom of libraries to acquire materials without external limitations.” California’s law focuses on school administration and “prohibit[s] the governing board of a school district or a county board of education from prohibiting the continued use of an appropriately adopted textbook, instructional material, or curriculum on the basis that it contains inclusive and diverse perspectives.” [ 33 ] [ 34 ] [ 35 ]

Asking parents’ opinions provided conflicting answers for Book Riot and the EveryLibrary Institute. They found:

• “95% of parents believe every school should have a school library
• 93% of parents believe their child is safe using the school library
• 80% of parents trust school librarians to select age-appropriate material for the school library, while 82% trust school librarians to recommend age-appropriate material to students.
• 60% of parents believe school libraries should restrict access to books by age or require parental permission to check out a book
• 57% believe that parents should receive notifications when a child checks out a book
• 53% of parents believe they should be able to opt their children out of access to the school library while 38% believe they should have to opt their children into access.” [ 36 ]

Should Parents or Other Adults Be Able to Ban Books from Schools and Libraries?

Pro 1 Parents have the right to decide what material their children are exposed to and when. Having books with adult topics available in libraries limits parents’ ability to choose when their children are mature enough to read specific material. “Literary works containing explicit [scenes, as well as] vulgar and obscene language” were on the approved reading list for grades 7-12, according to Speak up for Standards, a group seeking age-appropriate reading materials for students in Dallas, Texas. [ 4 ] If books with inappropriate material are available in libraries, children or teens can be exposed to books their parents wouldn’t approve of before the parents even find out what their children are reading. [ 16 ] Bans are necessary because “opting your child out of reading [a certain] book doesn’t protect him or her. They are still surrounded by the other students who are going to be saturated with this book,” said writer Macey France. [ 17 ] Read More

Pro 2 Children should not be exposed to sex, violence, drug use, or other inappropriate topics in school or public libraries. Books in the young adult genre often contain adult themes that young people aren’t ready to experience. Of the top ten most challenged books in 2020, one had LGBTQ+ content, two were sexually explicit, five dealt with racism and anti-police opinions, and others had profanity and drug use. [ 18 ] [ 27 ] According to Jenni White, a former public school science teacher, “Numerous studies on the use of graphic material by students indicate negative psychological effects,” including having “more casual sex partners and [beginning] having sex at younger ages.” [ 19 ] The American Academy of Pediatrics has found that exposure to violence in media, including in books, can impact kids by making them act aggressively and desensitizing them to violence. [ 17 ] Kim Heinecke, a mother of four, wrote to her local Superintendent of Public Schools that “It is not a matter of ‘sheltering’ kids. It is a matter of guiding them toward what is best. We are the adults. It is our job to protect them – no matter how unpopular that may seem.” [ 19 ] Read More

Pro 3 Keeping books with inappropriate content out of libraries protects kids, but doesn't stop people from reading those books or prevent authors from writing them. Peter Sprigg of the Family Research Council noted that removing certain books from libraries is about showing discretion and respecting a community’s values, and doesn’t prevent people from getting those books elsewhere: “It’s an exaggeration to refer to this as book banning. There is nothing preventing books from being written or sold, nothing to prevent parents from buying it or children from reading it.” [ 20 ] What some call “book banning,” many see as making responsible choices about what books are available in public and school libraries. “Is it censorship that you’re unable to go to your local taxpayer-funded branch and check out a copy of the ‘Protocols of the Elders of Zion’? For better or for worse, these books are still widely available. Your local community has simply decided that finite public resources are not going to be spent disseminating them,” Weekly Standard writer and school board member Mark Hemingway stated. [ 18 ] Read More

Con 1 Parents may control what their own children read, but don't have a right to restrict what books are available to other people. Parents who don’t like specific books can have their kids opt out of an assignment without infringing on the rights of others. The National Coalition against Censorship explained that “Even books or materials that many find ‘objectionable’ may have educational value, and the decision about what to use in the classroom should be based on professional judgments and standards, not individual preferences.” [ 6 ] In the 1982 Supreme Court ruling on Board of Education v. Pico, Justice William Brennan wrote that taking books off of library shelves could violate students’ First Amendment rights, adding that “Local school boards may not remove books from school libraries simply because they dislike the ideas contained in those books.” [ 21 ] Read More

Con 2 Many frequently challenged books help people get a better idea of the world and their place in it. Robie H. Harris, author of frequently challenged children’s books including It’s Perfectly Normal: Changing Bodies, Growing up, Sex, and Sexual Health , stated, “I think these books look at the topics, the concerns, the worry, the fascination that kids have today… It’s the world in which they’re living.” [ 8 ] Many books that have long been considered to be required reading to become educated about literature and American history are frequently challenged, such as: The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger, The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck, To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, The Color Purple by Alice Walker, Beloved by Toni Morrison, and Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston. [ 9 ] 46 of the Radcliffe Publishing Group’s “Top 100 Novels of the 20th Century” are frequently challenged. Banning these books would deprive students of essential cultural and historical knowledge, as well as differing points of view. [ 9 ] Read More

Con 3 Books are a portal to different life experiences and reading encourages empathy and social-emotional development. One study found that reading J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series, which is frequently challenged for religious concerns about witchcraft, “improved attitudes” about immigrants, homosexuals, and refugees. [ 11 ] Another study found that reading narrative fiction helped readers understand their peers and raised social abilities. [ 12 ] [ 13 ] A study published in Basic and Applied Social Psychology found that people who read a story about a Muslim woman were less likely to make broad judgments based on race. [ 14 ] Neil Gaiman, author of the frequently challenged novel Neverwhere , among other books, stated that fiction “build[s] empathy… You get to feel things, visit places and worlds you would never otherwise know. You learn that everyone else out there is a me, as well. You’re being someone else, and when you return to your own world, you’re going to be slightly changed. Empathy is a tool for building people into groups, for allowing us to function as more than self-obsessed individuals.” [ 15 ] Read More

Discussion Questions

• Should parents or other adults be able to ban books from schools or libraries? Why or why not?
• Have you read any of the Top 10 Challenged Books of 2021 (see the graphic below)? Should those books be banned or restricted? Explain your answers.
• Is book banning censorship? Why or why not?

Take Action

1. Evaluate the perspective of parents who would like to remove a book from a school library.

2. Consider “ 11 Banned Books through Time ” at Encyclopaedia Britannica.

3. Explore the American Library Association’s resources and efforts against banning books, including the 13 most challenged books of 2022 .

4. Consider how you felt about the issue before reading this article. After reading the pros and cons on this topic, has your thinking changed? If so, how? List two to three ways. If your thoughts have not changed, list two to three ways your better understanding of the “other side of the issue” now helps you better argue your position.

5. Push for the position and policies you support by writing US national senators and representatives .

ProCon/Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc. 325 N. LaSalle Street, Suite 200 Chicago, Illinois 60654 USA

Natalie Leppard Managing Editor [email protected]

© 2023 Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc. All rights reserved

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‘From the classroom to the courtroom’: Former Norman teacher’s battle over banned books isn’t over

Thursday, two years after former Norman High School English teacher Summer Boismier shared a QR code with students to the Brooklyn Public Library’s website, the State Board of Education revoked her teaching certificate.

But Boismier said the fight isn’t over yet.

“I see this as a much larger fight beyond just me versus [State Superintendent Ryan Walters] or me versus [the State Board of Education], kind of situation,” Boismier said. “So what our next steps would be, essentially, is to move this fight from the classroom to the courtroom.”

Boismier didn’t yet have a timeline for filing for a judicial review, but hopes to move forward soon.

After the board meeting, Walters told reporters the move from the board was an attempt to hold teachers accountable “if they do things that operate outside the law.”

“She broke the law, you know,” Walters said. “And I said from the beginning, when you have a teacher that breaks the law, says she broke the law, says she’ll continue to break the law, that can’t stand.”

However, in August 2023, a state department hearing officer concluded, after reviewing evidence and testimony, there was no evidence to show Boismier violated the Standards of Performance and Conduct for Teachers or Oklahoma Administrative Code concerning certain discussions of race or sex in the classroom — more commonly known as House Bill 1775.

The policy says the board must “prohibit discrimination on the basis of race or sex in the form of bias, stereotyping, scapegoating, classification, or the categorical assignment of traits, morals, values or characteristics based solely on race or sex.”

House Bill 1775 went into effect in the summer of 2021, and since then, Tulsa and Mustang Public Schools’ accreditation statuses have been downgraded due to violations. While the law’s authors say the bill language is not vague or overly restrictive, teachers say it has created a chilling effect in the classroom around having hard conversations pertaining to history and culture.

According to the hearing officer’s review, obtained by StateImpact, Boismier covered her classroom bookshelves in red bulletin board paper, with “Books the state doesn’t want you to read,” written on it. The QR code was taped to the paper.

The code linked to the website of the Brooklyn Public Library, where students could apply for a free library card. The library’s Books Unbanned program offers library cards to teens and young adults and is a “response to an increasingly coordinated and effective effort to remove books from library shelves,” according to its website.

While the state department provided excerpts of three books from the “banned books” list, the hearing officer concluded there was no evidence Boismier used the books in classroom instruction, shared the books with students, encouraged students to read the books, or that students accessed, attempted to access or were provided access to the books.

Ultimately, the hearing officer recommended Boismier’s certificate not to be revoked.

Boismier said she doesn’t understand the purpose of the hearing officer’s recommendation if it was going to be ignored.

“It feels a little like, to me, shaking a magic eight ball,” Boismier said. “And the board got to shake it more than once because they didn’t get the result they wanted to begin with.”

Boismier’s teaching certificate was set to expire this summer, and she said she applied for renewal in May. But the state department sent her an email saying they would not renew her certificate until a decision was made on her case. Between then and the Aug. 22 meeting, her certificate expired.

Because her certificate is now expired, she is not eligible for an expedited certification process, or “interstate reciprocity,” if she wants to return to the classroom in another state like New York, where she now lives. Additionally, she’s concerned about the stain a revocation leaves on her record.

“No matter where I go… if I decide to teach in a classroom, the fact that I have now had a certificate revoked does matter,” Boismier said. “On the application that you’re going to fill out whenever you apply for any school classroom job… there’s that box that you have to check that says, ‘Have you ever had a certificate suspended or revoked?’ I will have to check that box. There is no space on that application to explain why. So effectively, this locks me out of the teaching profession entirely.”

Boismier said the saga with the state board has been emotionally taxing and made her the target of harassment and death threats. But, she said, what she struggles the most with is making sure she takes the “right steps” to support teachers and students.

“I understand what the stakes are for my colleagues who are in classrooms right now and can’t recommend book titles to kids who want to read,” Boismier said. “I understand what it’s like to be afraid that a single text on your classroom library shelf, a single errant comment, like, ‘Hey, you should read this book if you like this one,’ could ultimately, as we’ve seen, now result in a revocation of your license.”

Boismier’s advice for teachers trying to navigate controversial classroom restrictions was measured. She said while she has certain privileges, she acknowledged not all teachers are able to be outspoken.

“For me, it was never a question of whether or not I would do this, but when. Many of my colleagues cannot say the same because they have livelihoods on the line that others depend on,” Boismier said. “So what I would say to them, I think, would be, ‘Do whatever you can, in whatever way you can, to affirm who your students are, who they’re becoming, and to do your job the way that you know how to do it.’”

StateImpact Oklahoma is a partnership of Oklahoma’s public radio stations which relies on contributions from readers and listeners to fulfill its mission of public service to Oklahoma and beyond. Donate online .

How Americans feel about book bans, restrictions: Survey

The nation has seen record-breaking numbers of book banning attempts.

As schools and libraries across the country face record-breaking attempts to remove books from shelves, most Americans are opposed to book restrictions in public schools, according to a new survey.

In 2023, the American Library Association (ALA) documented 4,240 unique book titles targeted for censorship, as well as 1,247 demands to censor library books, materials and resources.

The targeting of unique book titles increased by 65% from 2022 to 2023, reaching the highest level ever documented by ALA.

These efforts have increased alongside state legislation restricting certain school content on topics like race, sex, gender and more.

However, a new study by the Knight Foundation – a nonprofit that provides grants for journalism and the arts – found that two-thirds of Americans oppose efforts to restrict books. There are more strong opponents than strong supporters of book restrictions, with a 3-1 divide among respondents.

The study found that 62% of Americans oppose their state government legislating what content is allowable in school books.

Public school parents are more likely to be in favor of book restrictions, but more than half of parents (59%) still oppose book restrictions. This is lower than the 67% opposition rate among non-parents.

MORE: Books dumped en masse at Florida's New College, sparking controversy

About 7% of parents with reading-age children reported their child reading an age-inappropriate book from school, and 25% of pre-K-12 parents are concerned about this happening in the future.

Classroom or library content restrictions are often based on concerns about what is deemed “age-appropriate” for certain ages -- as is the case in legislation in Florida , Utah , Texas and other states.

More survey participants said it is a bigger concern to restrict students’ access to books that have educational value than it is for them to have access to books that have inappropriate content, especially when it comes to students in middle school and high school.

Six in 10 survey respondents saw age appropriateness as a legitimate reason to restrict students’ book access. However, the report found that far fewer say it is legitimate to block access to books that contradict parents’ political views, religious beliefs or moral values.

Most public school parents are confident in the appropriateness of their school’s book selections. The study also found that 78% of all adults say they are confident that their community’s public schools select appropriate books for students to read.

Though the public feels strongly about the issue -- 62% call it highly important -- very few have taken action themselves on the issue. Only 3% have personally engaged in the debate, according to the report -- 2% engaging to maintain access and 1% to restrict access.

Conservatives are over-represented in the support for book restrictions, making up 57% of book restriction supporters but only 27% of all adults, according to the Knight Foundation. Conservatives are also less likely to feel politically represented in public school books.

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Utah’s New Law Banning Books Ignites Censorship Debate

More than a dozen books are now banned from all public schools in Utah under a new state law. It’s the latest in what is a growing trend across the United States. In an April report , PEN America said that there were more than 4,000 instances of school book bans in the fall of 2023, more than twice the number from the previous spring.

Katherine Kidd

Katherine Kidd is an English Studies professor at Syracuse University who organizes a banned book read-out event each year. She took time to answer some questions about the new law and how this and other book bans can have far-reaching effects.

Q: Is there anything in particular about this latest banning effort that stands out to you? 

A: It’s hard not to think of it as part and parcel to the broader trend toward censorship and suppression of information, and the repression of marginalized identities, especially the aims of Project 2025, which seeks to create a conservative Christian social order by way of government restructuring.

The fact that almost all of Utah’s book bans this go-around are written by women and are about women’s experiences in the world, makes it pretty clear that there’s a correlation between the book bans and the ideology that drives Project 2025, as well as a correlation with the overturning of Roe v. Wade, etc. That it’s happening statewide in Utah is not entirely surprising, but I worry that Utah’s reputation with regard to its unique religious demographics can obscure the details of the actual law that passed and what it entails for the rest of the US.

The law passed there that has allowed for this banning is actually bananas . According to the law, a book can be banned if at least three of the state’s school boards determine the content is pornographic or otherwise offensive. That’s only 3 of over 40 statewide school districts in Utah. So, in Utah, if fewer than 10% of the districts deem a text inappropriate, the other 90%+ don’t have a choice in the matter. That kind of thing can happen anywhere, there are people actively working to make it happen everywhere, and those people have an agenda that goes well beyond books.

A silver lining is that for some authors and books, a banning or contestation can amplify the message. A book can become a best-seller and a cultural touchstone that people talk about for a long time because of a banning. Katherine Kidd

Q: What kind of impact might it have on young readers and their teachers? 

A: As an English professor, book banning is a personal affront to the values that I hold dear. However, I teach young adults, so I have more freedom (as of now) to share texts that aren’t likely to be taught in elementary, middle, and high schools, regardless of whether there’s a ban.

I feel sad for the kids who won’t have access to certain books. It will be more difficult for some kids to find books in which they see themselves, or books that answer real and valid questions about life. Since even textbooks are susceptible to being deemed pornographic, I also worry that young people – especially young girls, gender nonconforming people, and racial and ethnic minorities – will be deprived of crucial lessons about themselves, the working and care of their bodies, and their histories. It is antithetical to education.

A silver lining is that for some authors and books, a banning or contestation can amplify the message. A book can become a best-seller and a cultural touchstone that people talk about for a long time because of a banning. I think Gender Queer  by Maia Kobabe is such a book. Without the backlash about one particular scene/set of panels, the book would be just one of many queer coming-of-age stories that came out that year. Now it’s everywhere, and loads of people have heard of it and read it. I teach it in one of my classes because of its cultural significance as well as its content. It is a success because it was deemed a problem. Still, that’s only the case with some books on some topics.

I read everything under the sun as a child and introduced myself to all sorts of texts that challenged my mind and offered alternative perspectives, and I wonder what my life and trajectory might have been if I had not had access to all those books.

P.S. Banning books by angel-person Judy Blume just makes you look like a cartoon villain.

Q: What can people do to push back on banning efforts that might be happening in their own community?

A: Keep yourself informed on local politics, especially those related to education. Read all the time and share what you’ve read with others. Support and use the public library. Hug a librarian (but ask permission first).

To request interviews or get more information:

Chris Munoz Media Relations Specialist Division of Communications [email protected]

Christopher Munoz

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Oklahoma revokes license of teacher who gave class QR code to Brooklyn library in book-ban protest

FILE - Former Norman High School English teacher Summer Boismier holds up a T-shirt with a QR code link to the Brooklyn Public Library at the Green Feather Book Company in Norman, Okla., on Oct. 6, 2022. (AP Photo/Sean Murphy, File)

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Oklahoma’s education board has revoked the license of a former teacher who drew national attention during surging book-ban efforts across the U.S. in 2022 when she covered part of her classroom bookshelf in red tape with the words “Books the state didn’t want you to read.”

The decision Thursday went against a judge who had advised the Oklahoma Board of Education not to revoke the license of Summer Boismier, who had also put in her high school classroom a QR code of the Brooklyn Public Library’s catalogue of banned books.

An attorney for Boismier, who now works at the Brooklyn Public Library in New York City, told reporters after the board meeting that they would seek to overturn the decision.

“I will not apologize for sharing publicly available information about library access with my students,” the former teacher posted on X. “My livelihood will never be as important as someone’s life or right to read what they want.”

Brady Henderson, Boismier’s attorney, and the office of Oklahoma State Superintendent Ryan Walters did not immediately respond to phone messages seeking comment Friday.

Boismier, a fervent reader with a passion for fantasy novels, had been teaching English for nine years when she was involuntarily thrust into the center of Walters’ campaign for statewide office in August 2022. She received threats on social media and was accused of being part of a broader movement led by teachers to influence children’s political beliefs. Boismier resigned soon after.

She said at the time that she had hoped to spark a discussion about Oklahoma legislators’ book restrictions and a new law prohibiting lessons on critical race theory and other concepts about race and gender. Instead, she was summoned to a meeting with school administrators after a parent complained.

Walters, who was a candidate for Oklahoma’s top education office when Boismier was teaching, had called on the board in 2022 to revoke her teaching license in a letter he shared on social media.

“There is no place for a teacher with a liberal political agenda in the classroom,” Walters had wrote. He accused her of providing “banned and pornographic material” to students.

Walters said at Thursday’s meeting that Boismier violated rules that prohibit instruction on topics related to race and gender. He told reporters that she “broke the law.”

Boismier has maintained that she did nothing wrong.

Teachers in public schools across the country continue to face scrutiny at the local and state level as lawmakers in Republican-led statehouses push forward with book bans and restrict curriculum on issues related to race, gender, and sexuality such as in Iowa and Utah .

Lathan is a corps member for The Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.