UNITED STATES / RankWire.AI / – According to PEN America, U.S. public schools enacted 11,982 book bans during the 2025-26 school year, setting a new yearly high since the organization began tracking such restrictions in 2021. These bans affected 7,370 distinct titles across 114 school districts. The records include contributions from over 4,000 authors, illustrators, and translators. Notably, Canadian writers Margaret Atwood and Ryan North were among those impacted by the ongoing wave of removals.
The title The Handmaid’s Tale by Atwood remained among those caught in censorship disputes within schools. Meanwhile, North’s Romeo and/or Juliet: A Chooseable Path Adventure was included in PEN America’s index for the first time. More than half of the banned books were young-adult titles, with fiction accounting for over 80% of the total bans. Additionally, more than 4,500 titles appeared in the index for the first time, illustrating the extensive reach of these restrictions.
States such as Texas and Florida led the national figures. Texas accounted for over 8,100 bans, whereas Florida reported more than 3,200. PEN America noted that in 72% of the districts it monitored, bans were influenced by state legislation. During the 2025-26 academic year, Texas Senate Bill 13 expanded parental authority regarding school library content and established statewide standards for materials deemed harmful, indecent, profane, or inappropriate for minors.
Conservative Movements Amplify Pressure on Educational Institutions
Organizations advocating conservative policies have taken a leading role in many of the efforts to remove books from schools. Groups such as Moms for Liberty, Citizens Defending Freedom, and Parents’ Rights in Education have led removal campaigns across numerous states. PEN America has linked these groups to organized conservative activism related to education. Data from 2025 reveals that 92% of reported book challenges originated from pressure groups, government officials, and institutional decision-makers, while individual parents contributed less than 3%, challenging the narrative that the surge is mainly driven by isolated family complaints.
Patterns emerge in the content of challenged books. PEN America reports that titles often focus on topics such as race, racism, LGBTQ+ issues, sexuality, and sexual violence. Books featuring people of color frequently appear in their tracking. Many of these titles were already selected for school collections by educators and librarians before facing new challenges. Increasing influence from conservative campaigns, legislation, and public pressure now significantly impacts which books are accessible to students.
Expansion of Book Bans Raises Free-Expression Worries
The scope of restrictions extends well beyond isolated local conflicts. Since 2021, PEN America reports more than 34,000 school book bans. Separately, the American Library Association documented 4,235 unique titles challenged in 2025, alongside 5,668 books banned from libraries and an additional 920 with restricted access. Although these organizations use different methodologies, both highlight ongoing nationwide pressures on access to books and educational resources.
The involvement of Canadian authors like Atwood and North adds an international dimension to a conflict largely driven by U.S. state politics. Laws supported by Republicans and conservative advocacy networks have significantly influenced decisions regarding school library collections. Organizations dedicated to free expression warn that broad removals limit access to books on race, identity, sexuality, and other sensitive issues. Supporters of increased controls contend that schools need to vet materials for age appropriateness. The latest data demonstrates that politically motivated book restrictions now impact thousands of titles across American public schools.