PEN Reports Nearly 12,000 School Book Bans

Tom Gallagher · 2026-10-05T19:20:24.166Z

It's troubling to see over 8,100 bans in Texas alone after that new law. Kids need access to all kinds of books to learn.

PEN Reports Nearly 12,000 School Book Bans — Photo: Mikhail Nilov / Wikimedia Commons (Pexels)

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PEN America reported 11,982 book bans in U.S. public schools in the 2025-26 school year, a record since tracking began in 2021, bringing its total since then to about 34,000. The Banned in the USA report was released Oct. 5, 2026, during Banned Books Week. Texas recorded over 8,100 bans and overtook Florida (over 3,200) after Florida led three years; PEN tied the Texas surge to SB13. More than 7,370 unique titles were hit across 114 districts, with over 4,500 banned for the first time. Sold by Patricia McCormick led with 25 district removals; Stephen King's books were pulled 312 times. PEN said AI tools scrape commonly banned titles without nuance, context, or intent. Kasey Meehan, director of PEN America's Freedom to Read program, said bans on popular and engaging titles are "exceptionally tragic" when reading for pleasure is in decline. PEN called its figures an undercount; Philomena Polefrone said thousands of Florida and Texas cases surface only via public records requests. Coverage was rated 3 left, 0 center, 0 right.

PEN Reports Nearly 12,000 School Book Bans

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