Latest news with #SabrinaBaêta
USA Today
12-03-2025
- Politics
- USA Today
Most banned books feature people of color and LGBTQ+ characters: Graphics explain the data
Most banned books feature people of color and LGBTQ+ characters: Graphics explain the data The majority of books banned last school year highlighted stories featuring people of color and LGBTQ+ characters and subjects. A recent analysis of thousands of banned titles by PEN America found that more than a third of unique banned titles featured people of color or fictional characters of color. A quarter of banned titles included LGBTQ+ people or characters. PEN America is a nonprofit organization that tracks book bans. The organization said that commonly censored books portray themes of race, sexuality and gender identity. They also show young people dealing with substance abuse, suicide, depression and other mental health issues. Across all genres and reading levels ‒ including fiction, history, biography, memoir and picture books ‒ characters and people of color were disproportionately affected by book bans in the past school year. Of all the history and biography titles, 44% featured people of color, according to the report. Some of the titles removed include "Fences," a Pulitzer-prize winning play, "Another Brooklyn" by Jacqueline Woodson, as well as "A is for Activist," a children's picture book. 'When we strip library shelves of books about particular groups, we defeat the purpose of a library collection that is supposed to reflect the lives of all people. The damaging consequences to young people are real," said Sabrina Baêta, senior manager for PEN America's Freedom to Read program. Unable to view our graphics? Click here to see them. Moms For Liberty, a right-wing political activist group, has been a powerful crusader within the parents' rights movement, with a major focus on restricting access to books with sexual content. The advocacy group previously posted online that, 'age appropriate is not banning,' The organization wrote, "Schools have the responsibility of keeping obscene and pornographic materials out of the hands of children. Our moms are working within their communities to make sure books in public schools are age appropriate for all children.' In their analysis, PEN America found that 31% of banned titles had references to sexual experiences but with minimal detail, they added. Another 13% described the sexual experiences 'on the page." States with the most book bans A different PEN America report shows that Florida was the state with the most book bans during the 2023-2024 school year, followed by Iowa. The organization said laws in both states censor certain books in public schools. In Florida, legislation dictates that titles including sexual content, even if it is not pornographic, are subject to removal. Teachers in the state can be charged with a felony for possessing and distributing inappropriate books. 'Inappropriate' can be hard to define. Mentions of race or an LGBTQ+ person or relationship and sexual violence in any context have fallen under that term. Book bans nearly tripled during the 2023-2024 school year with more than 10,000 books banned in public schools, according to PEN America. The spike reflects a renewed effort since 2021 to ban or restrict books in the U.S. Top banned books of the previous school year: According to PEN America, these are the most commonly banned books in schools: Suzanne Trimel, senior adviser for communications and media at PEN America, previously told USA TODAY that the group tracks bans through school board minutes, local news stories and reports from organizational partners across the country. PEN America notes on its website that it does not document book challenges that do not result in bans. This story was updated to add new information.
Euronews
28-02-2025
- Politics
- Euronews
New data shows US authorities ban majority of books with race and gender themes
Books focusing on race and LGBTQ+ subjects were the majority of those attacked by book bans across the US in the past year. A new study by PEN America has revealed that the majority of books banned in US schools were about racial or sexual diversity. Of the 4,218 unique banned titles in the 2023-2024 school year, 36% featured fictional characters or real people of colour. 29% of banned books included LGBTQ+ characters, people, or themes. Today, more than half of all American schoolchildren are people of colour, yet across the country there has been a concerted attempt to reduce students' access to literature on race. Digging into the details of the books banned, PEN found that of historical and biographical books banned, 44% featured people of colour with 29% specifically featuring Black people. 'This targeted censorship amounts to a harmful assault on historically marginalized and underrepresented populations – a dangerous effort to erase their stories, achievements, and history from schools,' said Sabrina Baêta, senior manager for PEN America's Freedom to Read programme. 'When we strip library shelves of books about particular groups, we defeat the purpose of a library collection that is supposed to reflect the lives of all people. The damaging consequences to young people are real.' Often books on LGBTQ+ themes are accused of exposing children to sexually explicit material as justification for their bans. However, PEN analysed that of the 4,218 books banned, 31% had references to sexual experiences but with minimal detail with just 13% describing sexual experiences 'on the page'. There were over 10,000 book bans across the US in the timeframe, according to the PEN research. They point to an alarming rise in 'white supremacist and Christian nationalist ideology' as the root cause of these bans and why they statistically target race and queer literature. PEN's research covered the last school year. Since Donald Trump came into office at the beginning of 2025, the newly re-elected president has brought in wide-reaching policies to reduce access to education on diversity. A Department of Defence memo stripped 67,000 children in 160 Pentagon schools across the US and 11 countries – including 65 schools in Germany, Türkiye, Italy, Spain, the Netherlands, the UK, and Belgium – from access to books on topics such as gender and race. This became headline news when actor Julianne Moore's children's book 'Freckleface Strawberry' was flagged for a ban for its tale of a girl accepting her freckles. Trump's DEI bans have been wide-reaching, removing materials on Black History Month, typically celebrated in February, from DoD classrooms. Earlier this month, the Department of Education's Acting Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Craig Trainor issued a letter that threatened to withhold federal funds to educational institutions that engage in Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) training, programming, and discipline.
Yahoo
27-02-2025
- General
- Yahoo
More than half of books banned last year featured LGBTQ characters or people of color, report finds
More than half of books banned during the last school year featured or were about people of color or members of the LGBTQ community, according to a report released Thursday. PEN America, a nonprofit group that advocates for free expression in literature, released data in the fall that found more than 10,000 instances of schools or their districts removing books from school, classrooms or curriculums last year, affecting 4,218 titles. The analysis released Thursday found that those bans disproportionately affect books about certain identities, including people of color, and also more often apply to certain genres, such as history. The analysis found that 36% of the more than 4,000 banned titles featured characters or people of color and 25% included LGBTQ characters or people. Of the titles featuring LGBTQ people, 28% featured a transgender and/or genderqueer character. One in 10 of the banned titles featured characters or people with a physical and/or learning or developmental disability, the analysis found. 'This targeted censorship amounts to a harmful assault on historically marginalized and underrepresented populations — a dangerous effort to erase their stories, achievements, and history from schools,' Sabrina Baêta, senior manager for PEN America's Freedom to Read program, said in a statement. 'When we strip library shelves of books about particular groups, we defeat the purpose of a library collection that is supposed to reflect the lives of all people. The damaging consequences to young people are real.' Book challenges and bans — which are often spearheaded by parents and conservative activists — have skyrocketed in recent years, according to the American Library Association, which found that in 2024 the number of books challenged in libraries across the U.S. reached the highest level ever documented by the nonprofit. During the 2021 school year, PEN America found that more than 1,600 books were banned in schools, compared to the 4,218 removed from shelves last year. For the first time, PEN America tracked the genres that were banned in schools. The top banned genres last year were realistic fiction, dystopia/sci-fi/fantasy, history and biography, mystery and thriller, educational and memoir and autobiography. Picture books and books with graphic or illustrated content made up nearly one-fifth, or 17%, of all banned books. The nonprofit found that people of color and LGBTQ people were disproportionately affected across multiple categories. For example, 44% of banned history and biography titles featured people of color, and 26% featured Black people, specifically. Of the banned titles with pictures or illustrated content, 60% had illustrations related to race and racism or featured characters of color. Of banned history and biography titles, 25% featured LGBTQ people and 9% featured trans and genderqueer people. More than one-third, 39%, of banned titles with pictures or illustrated content included LGBTQ themes and characters. Picture books made up about 2% of all banned titles, and PEN America found that 'nowhere is the attack on stories of LGBTQ+ children and families more apparent' than in that category, where about 64% of all banned titles have LGBTQ+ characters or stories. The analysis also found that book bans often affect titles that feature more than one marginalized identity. More than half, 54%, of all banned books with LGBTQ characters or people also featured characters or people of color. Educational institutions that receive federal funding have become ground zero for the conservative-led effort in recent years to limit students' access to information about race and racism as well as the LGBTQ community. Proponents of the restrictions argue that such information can make students uncomfortable and that students shouldn't have access to sexually explicit material. In Florida, for example, the state Department of Education in November released a list of hundreds of books — including 'The Bluest Eye' by Toni Morrison and 'Slaughterhouse Five' by Kurt Vonnegut — that officials had removed from some schools across the state. Sydney Booker, a spokesperson for the department, told The Associated Press at the time that no books are being banned in the state. 'Once again, far left activists are pushing the book ban hoax on Floridians,' Booker said. 'The better question is why do these activists continue to fight to expose children to sexually explicit materials.' Critics of the bans argue that restricting access to information harms all students' abilities to learn, can promote further discrimination and doesn't allow students of color and LGBTQ students to see their lives reflected in books. PEN America noted in the analysis that more than half of all U.S. schoolchildren are students of color, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. Younger generations are also increasingly identifying as LGBTQ, according to a recent Gallup survey, which found that nearly one-quarter, 23.1%, of Gen Z identify as LGBTQ. The nonprofit's analysis also found that sex-related content is one of the most criticized subjects in book-banning efforts. However, PEN America found accusations that the targeted titles are 'explicit' to be exaggerated. Out of the more than 4,000 overall titles banned last year, PEN America found that 31% had references to sexual experiences but with minimal detail, while 13% described the sexual experiences 'on the page' with more descriptive sex scenes between characters. 'Books with sexual content allow students to raise questions about this aspect of human experience, which can help guide them,' PEN America's analysis said, noting that books on other real-world experiences — such as death and grief, violence, abuse and mental health issues — made up more of the banned titles. This article was originally published on
NBC News
27-02-2025
- General
- NBC News
More than half of books banned last year featured LGBTQ characters or people of color, report finds
More than half of books banned during the last school year featured or were about people of color or members of the LGBTQ community, according to a report released Thursday. PEN America, a nonprofit group that advocates for free expression in literature, released data in the fall that found more than 10,000 instances of schools or their districts removing books from school, classrooms or curriculums last year, affecting 4,218 titles. The analysis released Thursday found that those bans disproportionately affect books about certain identities, including people of color, and also more often apply to certain genres, such as history. The analysis found that 36% of the more than 4,000 banned titles featured characters or people of color and 25% included LGBTQ characters or people. Of the titles featuring LGBTQ people, 28% featured a transgender and/or genderqueer character. One in 10 of the banned titles featured characters or people with a physical and/or learning or developmental disability, the analysis found. 'This targeted censorship amounts to a harmful assault on historically marginalized and underrepresented populations — a dangerous effort to erase their stories, achievements, and history from schools,' Sabrina Baêta, senior manager for PEN America's Freedom to Read program, said in a statement. 'When we strip library shelves of books about particular groups, we defeat the purpose of a library collection that is supposed to reflect the lives of all people. The damaging consequences to young people are real.' Book challenges and bans — which are often spearheaded by parents and conservative activists — have skyrocketed in recent years, according to the American Library Association, which found that in 2024 the number of books challenged in libraries across the U.S. reached the highest level ever documented by the nonprofit. During the 2021 school year, PEN America found that more than 1,600 books were banned in schools, compared to the 4,218 removed from shelves last year. For the first time, PEN America tracked the genres that were banned in schools. The top banned genres last year were realistic fiction, dystopia/sci-fi/fantasy, history and biography, mystery and thriller, educational and memoir and autobiography. Picture books and books with graphic or illustrated content made up nearly one-fifth, or 17%, of all banned books. The nonprofit found that people of color and LGBTQ people were disproportionately affected across multiple categories. For example, 44% of banned history and biography titles featured people of color, and 26% featured Black people, specifically. Of the banned titles with pictures or illustrated content, 60% had illustrations related to race and racism or featured characters of color. Of banned history and biography titles, 25% featured LGBTQ people and 9% featured trans and genderqueer people. More than one-third, 39%, of banned titles with pictures or illustrated content included LGBTQ themes and characters. Picture books made up about 2% of all banned titles, and PEN America found that 'nowhere is the attack on stories of LGBTQ+ children and families more apparent' than in that category, where about 64% of all banned titles have LGBTQ+ characters or stories. The analysis also found that book bans often affect titles that feature more than one marginalized identity. More than half, 54%, of all banned books with LGBTQ characters or people also featured characters or people of color. Educational institutions that receive federal funding have become ground zero for the conservative-led effort in recent years to limit students' access to information about race and racism as well as the LGBTQ community. Proponents of the restrictions argue that such information can make students uncomfortable and that students shouldn't have access to sexually explicit material. In Florida, for example, the state Department of Education in November released a list of hundreds of books — including 'The Bluest Eye' by Toni Morrison and 'Slaughterhouse Five' by Kurt Vonnegut — that officials had removed from some schools across the state. Sydney Booker, a spokesperson for the department, told The Associated Press at the time that no books are being banned in the state. 'Once again, far left activists are pushing the book ban hoax on Floridians,' Booker said. 'The better question is why do these activists continue to fight to expose children to sexually explicit materials.' Critics of the bans argue that restricting access to information harms all students' abilities to learn, can promote further discrimination and doesn't allow students of color and LGBTQ students to see their lives reflected in books. PEN America noted in the analysis that more than half of all U.S. schoolchildren are students of color, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. Younger generations are also increasingly identifying as LGBTQ, according to a recent Gallup survey, which found that nearly one-quarter, 23.1%, of Gen Z identify as LGBTQ. The nonprofit's analysis also found that sex-related content is one of the most criticized subjects in book-banning efforts. However, PEN America found accusations that the targeted titles are 'explicit' to be exaggerated. Out of the more than 4,000 overall titles banned last year, PEN America found that 31% had references to sexual experiences but with minimal detail, while 13% described the sexual experiences 'on the page' with more descriptive sex scenes between characters. 'Books with sexual content allow students to raise questions about this aspect of human experience, which can help guide them,' PEN America's analysis said, noting that books on other real-world experiences — such as death and grief, violence, abuse and mental health issues — made up more of the banned titles.
