According to a national survey, the surge in book challenges nationwide is having a chilling effect on school librarians, who are more likely to avoid buying books or to remove titles from collections because of their content than they were last year. "And while the percentage of U.S. librarians who have experienced a book challenge dropped from 43 percent to 38 percent, 30 percent of those challenges led to a book’s removal in 2023, up from 19 percent last year. Urban school librarians were the only segment to report a rise in book challenges, from 31 percent in 2022 to 39 percent this year.
Perhaps in response to the spike in challenges, 55 percent of respondents said their school’s book challenge procedure was new or revised, an increase from 49 percent in 2022.
The number of librarians who voluntarily removed books from their library also rose, from 42 percent in 2022 to 47 percent in 2023.
All 729 respondents are responsible for selecting books for their library. Their most cited reason for choosing not to buy a book was sexual content, especially at the high school level—increasing from 60 percent in 2022 to 75 percent in 2023. As for other concerns, 43 percent said profanity or vulgar language caused them to reject a book, while 37 percent named LGBTQIA+ content." School Library Journal
Controversial books survey. (2023). School Library Journal.
https://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/story/Book-Challenges-Are-Having-a-Chilling-Effect-on-School-Librarians-Nationwide-SLJ-Survey
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