Silencing LGBTQIA+ Voices

Abstract

The United States has been in a book-banning crisis for the past three years. According to the American Library Association, in 2021 there were 1,858 titles targeted; in 2022, 2,571 titles; and in 2023, 4,240 unique titles were challenged (American Library Association 2024). This is the highest number of titles targeted since the ALA began collecting this information 20 years ago. In 2010, former Office for Intellectual Freedom Director Barbara Jones estimated that only 75–80 percent of challenges are reported. It is almost impossible to know, for example, if books aren’t purchased for collections because they might provoke controversy (“Campaign Urges Book Challenge Reporting” 2011). Following the pattern of the past two years, almost all of the top ten challenged titles in 2023 were diverse books. Seven of the books focus on LGBTQIA+ content or have LGBTQIA+ characters.