Two years in the past in fall 2023, Ebook Riot teamed up with the EveryLibrary Institute–a nonpartisan nonprofit that helps libraries nationwide–to create and administer three surveys associated to parental perceptions of the library. These surveys explored how mother and father consider college and public libraries have been functioning within the present local weather, issues about e book banning in these libraries, belief in librarians as professionals, and the content material out there in library books, amongst different associated subjects. Outcomes and studies on these three parental perceptions surveys can be found right here.
Insights gleaned from the surveys resulted in a six-part collection of posts that explored a few of the nuances, complexities, and key takeaways of the state of e book censorship and libraries. These posts helped construct a framework for fascinated by efficient and needed actions to guard these establishments of democracy, each for supporters and library employees themselves, in addition to helped form fascinated by what might come subsequent:
With two extra years of unfettered assaults on books and libraries, Ebook Riot and the EveryLibrary Institute have teamed up once more to gauge parental perceptions of libraries. In late August, the organizations developed two new surveys. The primary explored parental perceptions of the general public library, whereas the second assessed parental perceptions of the college library.
The 2025 Parental Perceptions of Libraries surveys have simply accomplished their time within the discipline. Over the following a number of weeks, outcomes and insights from these can be shared right here, on EveryLibrary Institute’s web site, and in different retailers targeted on understanding the present panorama of American censorship and libraries.
Literary Activism
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This biennial survey collection contains many related inquiries to these posed in 2023. Among the many questions are beliefs a couple of youngster’s security within the library, who’s liable for deciding what supplies can be found within the library, and ongoing makes an attempt to legislate the library and its employees. Some questions search to grasp when mother and father consider particular subjects are acceptable for youngsters, together with books about gender and sexuality, books about spiritual beliefs, each Christian and in any other case, books by and about marginalized individuals, and books particularly exploring trans themes and subjects. Over the past two years, it’s turn into clear what books have taken the highlight on the subject of censorship, and a part of the objective of those surveys is to raised perceive whether or not these subjects are broadly controversial or whether or not such discourse is proscribed to a small, politically motivated inhabitants.
Different survey questions embrace understanding how a lot mother and father are engaged with their native libraries, parental perceptions of why sure books are being banned in colleges and public establishments, and their beliefs about when it’s applicable to withhold entry to supplies.
The final large-scale survey of libraries and e book banning in America was put collectively by The Knight Basis in 2024 and shared broadly final summer time. Since then, we’ve seen a brand new administration sworn in and an unprecedented rise in assaults on the basic rights of People to entry data. Libraries and the supplies inside them have been targets, each nationally and internationally, as with the Division of Protection Training Exercise colleges. The Institute of Museum and Library Companies–the one federal company devoted to public libraries and museums–was gutted in an Government Order in March 2025, with its doable closure imminent as quickly as September 30. We’ve seen politicians wield their energy to overstep their very own state legal guidelines by demanding colleges take away books they deem “pornographic” or face penalties.
Elsewhere, politically-motivated mother and father are handed the keys to deciding what books can be found of their public colleges. On the identical time, capitalists promote those self same colleges AI-powered book-banning software program to “help” the method (undermining the professionals in these establishments and ignoring the necessity to safeguard the non-public data of minors). We’ve additionally seen a big circuit court docket ruling over whether or not or not patrons have a First Modification Proper to library supplies and a Supreme Courtroom case that purports to permit spiritual mother and father to take away their college students from classroom classes that embrace books with optimistic portrayals of LGBTQ+ individuals.
That’s to not contact the wave of latest legal guidelines associated to e book bans, both applied to limit content material or make sure that content material stays protected by the First Modification.
A lot has modified over the previous two years. Our objective isn’t solely to grasp this second in time on the subject of how mother and father view their native public libraries. It’s also meant to permit us to check with the place we have been two years in the past. We’ll spotlight the great, the dangerous, the ugly, and the promising, hoping to create alternatives to impression change and empower library advocates with actual information and perception to do good work proper of their communities.
Highlights and insights from the brand new Ebook Riot and EveryLibrary Institute parental perceptions surveys will start to seem subsequent week, and a full report is anticipated to be launched throughout Banned Books Week in early October 2025.
Ebook Censorship Information: September 5, 2025
