Texas tried to enact more book bans last year than any other state

Texas has another unflattering No. 1 to add to its list.

The Lone Star State tallied the highest number of attempts to ban books from schools and libraries in 2022, according to a new study by the American Library Association. Texas also was also the state in which would-be censors tried to restrict the highest number of titles during each of their attempts.

Last year, people and organizations in Texas demanded 93 separate bans, calling for removal of a total of 2,349 individual books titles, according to the ALA’s Office for Intellectual Freedom. That amounts to an average of 25 book titles per challenge.

A similar study released last fall by free-speech advocacy group PEN America also found Texas to be the state with the most book bans. That survey tracked censorship attempts between July 2021 and June 2022.

Nationwide, ALA researchers documented 1,269 requests to censor school and library books in 2022, the highest number since the organization began tracking those numbers more than 20 years ago. Last year’s total was also nearly double the 729 such censorship attempts in 2021.

Would-be censors went after a record 2,571 unique book titles in 2022, up 38% from the 1,858 unique titles targeted the prior year. The “vast majority” of last year’s targeted books were penned by or about members of the LGBTQ+ community or were by or about people of color, according to the ALA.

Although many of Texas’ attempted book bans last year occurred in small-town libraries and rural school districts, the Alamo City wasn’t immune. In 2022, San Antonio’s North East ISD was the district that reviewed and banned the most books in the state, according to a Hearst News investigation.

In June, bookstores and industry trade groups sued the state of Texas over a recently passed law that Republicans pushed through the state legislature to keep “sexually explicit” works out of school libraries. 

HB 900, signed by Republican Gov. Greg Abbott, would force booksellers to give ratings to materials they carry based on their sexual content. It also would require schools to remove those rated as sexually explicit from libraries and only make them available to students who obtain parental permission.

In a complaint filed in Austin federal court, the booksellers argue the new law is vague, overly broad and violates constitutional free-speech protections. They also say the legislation illegally forces private businesses to become part of the state’s enforcement scheme by threatening them with punishment.

ALA President Lessa Kananiʻopua Pelayo-Lozada told National Public Radio that past book challenges tended to result when a parent or community member encountered a library book they reacted to negatively. However, that strategy has changed to more of a blanket approach to seeking bans.

“Now we’re seeing organized attempts by groups to censor multiple titles throughout the country without actually having read many of these books,” Pelayo-Lozada said.

Despite right-wingers’ growing fervor for banning material from schools and libraries, a CBS poll conducted earlier this year found that 80% of Americans disagree with censoring books about history or race.

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This article appears in Aug 23 – Sep 5, 2023.