Book banning in the United States is a subject of intense debate and global scrutiny. America is deeply divided on many issues, so of course, book ban trends vary dramatically by state. Some states ban hundreds of books in one semester, while many others ban none at all. In the fall semester of 2022, there were 1,477 total book bans involving 874 unique titles. The team at AAA State of Play has created this infographic to shed light on which states ban the most books as well the most banned authors and the most banned book topics. Take a seat at a picnic table or outdoor bench under a playground shade structure and a look at where the most books are being banned in America:
Texas is the state with the most book bans by far, with 438 in the 2022 fall semester. Here is the master list of book bans by state, according to PEN America:
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Here is a list of book bans by state:
The Austin Chronicle refers to Texas book-banning as “Christian nationalism,” with many of the book bans being demanded and enforced by religious and conservative groups.
During a signing ceremony for Texas’s new statewide book banning bill, Gov. Greg Abbott stated, “Some schools have books with sexually explicit and vulgar materials. I'm signing a law that gets that trash out of our schools." (Some say that the focus should have been on actually cleaning up community and school playgrounds, making sure that students were able to play safe, protected by rubber playground mulch rather than being “protected” from the contents of controversial books.) Many of the book bans in Texas include books exploring topics that are relevant to identity and coming-of-age experiences. Texas book bans have targeted titles exploring racial identity, racism, abortion, and LGBTQ+ issues. While some of these titles may include sexually explicit scenes, one might argue that these book bans are more about conservative and religious censorship than keeping children from being exposed to “inappropriate” materials. Some may say that a child has more of a chance of getting hurt from inadequate rubber surfacing than from these books.
The most frequently banned books in Texas include Gender Queer: A Memoir by Maia Kobabe, The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison, Roe v. Wade: A Woman's Choice? by Susan Dudley Gold, and Out of Darkness by Ashley Hope Pérez, which tells a love story between a Mexican American teenage girl and a black teen boy in East Texas during the 1930s. Even Anne Frank’s The Diary of a Young Girl is a frequently banned book in Texas.
The book with the most bans in fall of 2022 was Gender Queer: A Memoir by Maia Kobabe.
This graphic novel follows the author’s personal journey of growing up and struggling with gender identity and sexuality and addresses topics such as gender euphoria, gender dysphoria, and asexuality.
For fall 2022, the most banned books’ subjects included themes of violence (44%); topics on the health and well-being of students, such as mental health, bullying, substance abuse, and puberty (38%); themes of death and grief (30%); characters of color or themes of race and racism (30%); LGBTQ+ characters or themes (26%); sexual experiences between characters (24%); and mentions of teen pregnancy, abortion, or sexual assault (17%).
Who Bans Books in Schools? The Same People Who Run the School Board and Vote on the Budget for Playground Equipment.
It’s important to note that who decides to ban books in school libraries isn’t educational professionals. The books that are present in a school library or part of a curriculum were selected by librarians and educators. Book bans occur when these choices are overturned by individuals, government officials, or organizations demanding their removal through the school boards; the same group of people who vote on the local school playground equipment budget. In fact, in an American Library Association poll, 71% of voters opposed banning books. But a vocal minority demands censorship, causing school districts to err on the side of caution. Some say that that caution is misplaced and the focus should be on providing the best playground equipment for every student in every school.
According to PEN America, nearly a third of recent book bans were the direct result of newly enacted laws in Texas, Florida, Missouri, and Utah. The legislatures and courthouses in these states are all Republican-dominated.
State | Book Bans |
|---|---|
| 438 |
| 357 |
| 315 |
| 109 |
| 109 |
| 27 |
| 27 |
| 18 |
| 11 |
| 4 |
| 3 |
| 3 |
| 3 |
| 2 |
| 2 |
| 2 |
| 1 |
| 1 |
| 1 |
| 1 |
| 1 |
Frisco Independent School District in Texas, Wentzville School District in Missouri, and Escambia County Public Schools in Florida together banned more than 600 books (compared to 78% of districts nationwide only banning one to 19 books).
Subject | Percentage |
Themes or instances of violence and physical abuse | 44% |
Topics on health and well-being for students (mental health, bullying, suicide, substance abuse, sexual health, and puberty) | 38% |
Themes of death or grief | 30% |
Characters of color or themes of race and racism | 30% |
LGBTQ+ characters or themes | 26% |
Sexual experiences between characters | 24% |
Mentions of teen pregnancy, abortion, or sexual assault | 17% |
Author | Districts Banning Their Books | Instances of Books Banned | Unique Titles Banned |
Ellen Hopkins | 20 | 89 | 17 |
Elana K. Arnold | 16 | 26 | 5 |
Maia Kobabe | 15 | 15 | 1 |
Mike Curato | 15 | 15 | 1 |
Margaret Atwood | 15 | 25 | 4 |
Sarah J. Maas | 14 | 61 | 12 |
Rupi Kaur | 14 | 19 | 3 |
Sapphire | 11 | 11 | 1 |
Toni Morrison | 11 | 14 | 3 |
Patricia McCormick | 11 | 11 | 1 |
This article was last updated on October 7th, 2024 by author Kim Hart
