New study shows more British schools are removing LGBTQ+ books from their range after complaints from parents
According to a recent survey, over half of UK school librarians have been asked to remove books from their collections, often LGBTQ+ titles, with the main source of these requests being parents.
ADVERTISINGA six-month investigation by the Censorship Index found that 28 of 53 librarians surveyed – 53% – said they had been asked to remove books. In more than half of these cases, the books were removed from the shelves.
A school librarian who participated in the study was reportedly instructed to fill all books with LGBTQ+ Topics following a single complaint from a parent about a particular book.
Notable titles that have received complaints include “This Book Is Gay” by Juno Dawson, “Julián is a Mermaid” by Jessica Love, and “ABC Pride” by Louie Stowell, Elly Barnes, and Amy Phelps.
Several schools faced challenges with books, including various “Heart Stopper“ Titles by Alice Oseman that were criticized for homophobic language, swear words, and discussions of self-harm, although they were ultimately not removed.
More than half of the requests for book removal came from parents.
Many librarians, who wished to remain anonymous for fear of reprisal, expressed concern about losing their jobs if they refused to comply with book removals. Some reported defying orders by discreetly offering “unofficial loans” from a back cabinet, being fired by parents for allowing their child to read an LGBTQ+ book, and being instructed by senior staff to keep certain books but not display them openly.
External influences
The British bans could be influenced by similarly tightened Trends in book censorship in the USAwhich reached record highs last year.
Accordingly PEN AmericaAccording to a free speech organization, there were 1,477 book bans in the United States during the 2022-2023 school year, affecting 874 different titles.
Of the 874 individual banned book titles in the index, 44% include themes or instances of violence and physical abuse; 38% address health and wellness issues for students (including content on mental health, bullying, suicide, substance abuse, and books addressing sexual wellness and puberty); 30% include characters of color or address race and racism; 26% depict LGBTQ+ characters or issues.
As part of an initiative by Star Trek: The Next Generation star and Reading Rainbow host LeVar Burton, nearly 200 well-known celebrities signed a petition against book bans in the USA. The prominent signatories included Ariana Grande, Guillermo del Toro, Mark Ruffalo, Sharon Stone, Billy Porter, Aisha Tyler and Judy Blume.
“It’s embarrassing that we ban books in this country, in this culture, in this day and age. And it’s dangerous that a handful of individuals decide that any book featuring black and queer people is divisive,” said Burton, executive producer of the 2023 documentary The right to read.
“We call on everyone to join us in raising their voices to defend artistic freedom, embrace multicultural history and put an end to book bans once and for all.”
