The country saw a growing effort to ban
books in schools and libraries nationwide in 2022, and researchers expect to see more efforts to challenge books in 2023 as some Republican-backed laws across the country aim to restrict LGBTQ and racial content in school books.
While activists across the political spectrum have sought to restrict or protest some forms of literature, the vast majority of book challenges are from conservative-leaning groups, researchers say. Only a handful of efforts have also come from liberal sources, mainly targeting books with racist or offensive language.
Books targeted by conservative groups were overwhelmingly written by or about people of color and
LGBTQ people, according to anti-censorship researchers. According to PEN American and the ALA, many of the challenges reference the sexual content or inherent messaging in the books.
Banned Books Lists from the ALA show that these groups have challenged young adult books such as "The Hate U Give" and "The Bluest Eye," which discuss racism in the United States, as well as book titles like "Gender Queer" and "All Boys Aren't Blue" which discuss LGBTQ identities, sexuality and gender.
Meanwhile, liberal efforts criticized or restricted books in the name of anti-racism or progressive ideals. Books like “Of Mice and Men;” “Adventures of Huckleberry Finn,” and several Dr. Seuss titles have been challenged in some schools and libraries due to racist language or imagery
throughout the years, including the use of the n-word or insensitive imagery of racial stereotypes, according to the ALA.
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