They have empowered a small number of activists and state officials to dramatically reshape library collections, restrict the availability of diverse books, and expose library professionals to legal and professional risks—effectively changing the character of libraries as open forums for ideas and learning.
Library censorship laws in the United States have evolved through distinct historical phases, reflecting broader societal tensions over morality, politics, and civil rights. While efforts to restrict access to certain books date back centuries, trends have intensified in response to changing cultural and political climates.
Early History: Foundations and Moral Censorship
• The first recorded book ban in what is now the U.S. occurred in 1637, when Puritan authorities in Massachusetts prohibited Thomas Morton’s New English Canaan for its critical views of colonial leadership and customs.
• Sporadic incidents of censorship were common throughout the 18th and 19th centuries, often related to political or religious objections.
19th–Early 20th Century: Institutional Censorship and the Birth of Library Advocacy
• The 1873 Comstock Laws instituted federal restrictions on the circulation of “obscene” materials, targeting not just pornography but also literature addressing sexuality and reproductive topics. These laws influenced local library policies for generations.
• Campaigns by groups like the United Daughters of the Confederacy in the early 20th century led to the exclusion of textbooks that challenged racist or revisionist interpretations of history.
• Libraries generally practiced self-censorship in response to local standards until the adoption of professional ethics documents.
1930s–1960s: Intellectual Freedom and Organized Resistance
• Concerns over “growing intolerance, suppression of free speech and censorship” led Forrest Spaulding, director of the Des Moines Public Library, to draft the Library Bill of Rights in 1938. The American Library Association (ALA) adopted it in 1939, making it the cornerstone of library intellectual freedom.
• Subsequent amendments to the Library Bill of Rights responded to crisis moments, such as McCarthy-era blacklists and resistance to materials on sexuality or Communism.
• State and local laws at times criminalized the display or loan of “obscene” or “controversial” books, but courts gradually expanded protections under the First Amendment.
1970s–1990s: School Library Battles and a National Conversation
• The U.S. Supreme Court’s 1982 decision in Board of Education v. Pico established that public school officials could not remove books from libraries simply because they disagreed with their content, affirming student access as a First Amendment right.
• However, book challenges surged, often orchestrated by local parental groups reacting to changing cultural values around race, sexuality, antiwar sentiment, and religion. The ALA began systematically tracking censorship attempts and launched Banned Books Week in 1982 to raise public awareness.