Banned Books Week Press Kit

Banned Books Week is an annual event celebrating the freedom to read. Typically held during the last week of September, it spotlights current and historical attempts to censor books in libraries and schools.
Banned Books Week. Oct 5-11, 2025. Censorship is so 1984. Read for your rights. ALA.org/BBooks

The ALA Office for Intellectual Freedom (OIF) tracks attempts to ban or restrict access to books across the United States and to inform the public about censorship efforts in our libraries and schools. 

In 2024, OIF tracked 821 attempts to censor library materials and services. In those cases, 2,452 unique titles were challenged. In 2023, ALA tracked 1,247 attempts with 4,240 unique titles challenged. Though the number of reports decreased in 2024, the number of documented attempts to censor books continues to far exceed the numbers prior to 2020. Read the full announcement.

A challenge is an attempt to remove or restrict materials, based upon the objections of a person or group. A banning is the removal of those materials.

Banned Books Week (October 5-11, 2025) is an annual event celebrating the freedom to read. Typically held during the last week of September, it spotlights current and historical attempts to censor books in libraries and schools. It brings together the entire book community — librarians, booksellers, publishers, journalists, teachers, and readers of all types — in shared support of the freedom to seek and to express ideas, even those some consider unorthodox or unpopular.

Media Contacts:

Media interested in scheduling interviews with ALA spokespersons may contact the ALA Communications, Marketing & Media Relations Office, cmomedia@ala.org.

Press Releases

Sep 22: Legendary Actor/Author/Activist George Takei Named Honorary Chair of Banned Books Week 2025

Sep 3: Banned Books Week 2025 taking place Oct. 5-11 

Apr 7: American Library Association kicks off National Library Week with the Top 10 Most Challenged Books of 2024 and the State of America’s Libraries Report

 

Resources

Yearly Field Reports for Most Frequently Challenged Books

Each year, ALA releases an annual report that examines attempts to curtail the freedom to read, offering more information about censorship attacks on the Top 10 Most Challenged Books, as well as details on additional frequently challenged titles. 

The current report, now called The Book Report, can be found here. 

The current report will be made available on this page at a future date. Press can request an embargoed copy for reporting purposes by emailing oif@ala.org.