From July 2021 to the end of the 2024 school year, PEN America recorded nearly 22,810 cases of book bans across 45 states and 451 public school districts.
These numbers represent a crisis of censorship that is only growing, especially targeting historically marginalized voices that share stories and lived experiences of racism and LGBTQ+ oppression.
Book bans erase history and represent the effort to silence those most underrepresented in literature.
But we know that diverse stories are essential. They validate the experiences of those who can see themselves in those stories and they encourage empathy and understanding in those who don’t. Reading is a powerful act of resistance and so many are scared of that power.
So, when it feels like our reality has crumbled into a dystopian nightmare, what do we do? We use the power of books, form our own team of heroes, and fight against censorship and for stories that matter!
Banned Books Week is an annual event that takes place from October 5-11 in 2025. Here are 14 ways you can fight book bans today and every day!
By the way, some of the links in this article (like books!) are affiliate links, which means if you make a purchase after clicking a link, we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. Thank you!
Ideas and Activities on How To Fight Book Bans
Stay informed
Follow organizations such as the National Coalition Against Censorship, the American Library Association, We Need Diverse Books, PEN America, and the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund to stay up-to-date on everything happening with books and censorship.
They'll help you stay informed so you can take action during Banned Books Week all year long.
Read banned books.
One of the easiest (and most fun!) ways to support a banned book is to read it. Stories have power, and the more people who read a story, and share that story with others, the harder it is to silence that story.
While you’re at it, purchase the banned book from an independent bookstore and show the authors of banned books that we will continue to support them no matter what!
Check out PEN America’s 2025 Banned Books List to select one of the 10 of the most-challenged books from the last year:
- “A Clockwork Orange” by Anthony Burgess (Bookshop) (Amazon) (Libro.fm)
- “Breathless” by Jennifer Niven (Bookshop) (Amazon)
- “Sold” by Patricia McCormick (Bookshop) (Amazon) (Libro.fm)
- “Last Night at the Telegraph Club” by Malinda Lo (Bookshop) (Amazon) (Libro.fm)
- “A Court of Mist and Fury” by Sarah J. Mass (Bookshop) (Amazon) (Libro.fm)
- “Crank” by Ellen Hopkins (Bookshop) (Amazon) (Libro.fm)
- “Forever…” by Judy Blume (Bookshop) (Amazon) (Libro.fm)
- “The Perks of Being a Wallflower” by Stephen Chbosky (Bookshop) (Amazon) (Libro.fm)
- “Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West” by Gregory Maguire (Bookshop) (Amazon) (Libro.fm)
- “All Boys Aren’t Blue” by George M. Johnson (Bookshop) (Amazon) (Libro.fm)
Report banned books.
According to the American Library Association, as many as 82-97% of challenges (attempts to ban books) remain unreported. If you find out that a library, school, or institution is attempting to ban a book in your community, make sure it doesn’t happen in the darkness.
The American Library Association has an excellent resource for reporting censorship of books. Visit their website to fill out the information about a book that was banned to raise awareness.
You can also report book bans via PEN America through a simple form on the organization’s website.
Advocate on social media.
Post on social media about a banned book and advocate for why it shouldn’t be banned. Whether it’s a photo from your camera roll, a poem you were inspired to write, or a piece of art you created, visibility is such an important part of defending banned books.
Show (and tell) us why your favorite banned book shouldn’t be banned!
Your efforts will help ensure these silent and reported challenges become public challenges and are eventually overturned.
Donate to organizations making banned books accessible to all.
Support any of the following organizations, which work to ensure that reading materials stay accessible to all:
- PEN America
- American Library Association
- National Coalition Against Censorship
- Freedom To Read Foundation
- Little Free Library
- ACLU
- GLSEN Rainbow Library
Donate books to a community in need.
Lots of places in your community should be open to book donations like libraries, shelters, schools, or other nonprofits dedicated to literacy and education.
Where you donate books is up to you, but it’s important that you first confirm if the organization is able to accept the donations. Some organizations might also have specific requirements for donations or might be looking for books for certain age groups. Always make sure to ask what they’re looking for.
When it’s appropriate – and when the organization tells you it’s okay – donate banned books to increase accessibility to the book!
Find or contribute to a Little Free Library that stocks banned books.
Little Free Library’s new interactive book ban map makes it easy to find locations that intentionally include restricted titles for community members to find at no cost.
Look up some of these locations to “shop” for books, donate your own copies, or — if you can’t find a location in your area — create your own Little Free Library.
Host or attend a Banned Books Week event.
There will certainly be a wide variety of Banned Books Week events at your local libraries, which you can search on the ALA’s website, based on your location.
The last day of the week — October 11 — is Let Freedom Read Day, so be sure to keep your eyes peeled for any events or called to actions on that date, too!
Join (or start!) a banned book club.
Reading and discussing books with others give those stories power. In response to recent bans, book clubs solely focused on reading banned books are popping up all over the place.
Join one in your local community, or join a national club like the Author’s Guild Banned Books Book Club.
Volunteer your time.
Volunteer at your local library. (Libraries are important and amazing!) As a library volunteer, you can encourage supervisors and peers to support banned books and make sure they are available for members of your community.
Even better, join the board of your local library so you have a seat at the table when decisions around censorship are being made!
Attend PTA meetings.
Follow efforts to ban books in your area by keeping up with PEN America’s detailed reports — and by keeping your ears open in your own community.
After you’ve found a school or library that needs support in your area, send an email to decision makers expressing that you are against book bans.
If these restrictions are still being considered, the next best thing you can do is show up in person.
Whether it’s a PTA meeting, a school board meeting, or some other type of public forum, find out who makes the decision to ban books and make your voice heard.
As the National Coalition Against Censorship says, “Expressing your views on the book and why students should be allowed to read it would help to balance the objecting parents’ perspectives, making it more likely for school officials to take an objective decision, rather than pressured one.”
Contact the press.
The media is hugely important in spreading the news of book banning, and also influencing public opinion on the topic. If you know of book censorship happening in your community, contact the local press and ask them to write about it!
All reputable media outlets will have a contact page, tip line, or editors’ email addresses easily accessible. Another effective method is writing a letter to the editor explaining why this is such an important issue.
Write a supportive letter to an author of banned books.
Learning that a book you’ve written, a story that you’ve poured your whole self into, has been banned can’t be a good feeling. Plus, authors themselves are some of the fiercest advocates against book bans.
Take some time to write some supportive letters to the authors who are being targeted by these book bans and be sure to share with them what their book meant to you. Let them know that not everyone wants to censor their words.
The American Library Association has created a helpful guide full of resources on how to get involved.
Run for school board.
This is certainly the most daunting action on this list, but we think you’re up for the challenge! Arguably, the most direct way that you can stop book bans is to become part of those making the decisions.
Get connected with Run For Something — an organization that recruits and supports young progressives running for offices at all levels of government — to get started.
Good Good Good hosted the founder of Run For Something on the Sounds Good Podcast and she laid out all the reasons you should run for office. Most important: If you care, you’re qualified.
Frequently Asked Questions
When is Banned Books Week?
Banned Books Week typically takes place at the beginning of the American school year during the last full week of September or first full week of October. In 2025, Banned Books Week is October 5-11.
When was Banned Books Week started?
Banned Books Week was launched in 1982 thanks to the advocacy of Judith Krug.
What is the Banned Books Week theme for 2025?
According to the American Library Association, this year's theme is “Censorship Is So 1984.”
Who is the Honorary Chair for Banned Books Week 2025?
Pioneering actor, author, and activist George Takei has been named honorary chair of Banned Books Week.
When is National Reading Month?
National Reading Month is in October every year. You can read our guide on how to celebrate National Reading Month.
Header image courtesy of PEN America
