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Library advocates educating supporters against censorship and for intellectual freedom.
About the Alliance
The Library Alliance of North Idaho is a grassroots movement. We support local libraries, raise community awareness about library issues, educate, and fight against censorship.
News and Updates
SCOTUS is primed to take up a censorship case, and a concerning lawsuit out of Oregon is worth keeping an eye on. For years, conservatives have claimed they’ve been subjects of unrelenting censorship. Most of that discourse has centered on being “silenced” on college and university campuses nationwide, and much of it has been patently untrue.
As book bans become increasingly prevalent, diverse books for young readers are disappearing from library shelves across the United States. We step into other people’s experiences through literature, use our imaginations, exercise critical thinking, enhance language skills, and better understand cultures and communities. Children’s literature works the same way. A child’s perspective in books and stories takes things beyond their experience and makes them approachable. Literature is an essential part of the ways that humans connect. “‘Diversity’ should just be called ‘reality.’ Your books, TV shows, movies, articles, and curricula must reflect reality.” — Tananarive Due, author, and American Book Award winner The question we are exploring today is not the importance of literature. Instead, we are exploring why diversity is critical in children’s books.
Here in Idaho: Attempts were made to censor more than 136 unique book titles in 2023 according to the Idaho Library Association. 26% of books challenged had NO sexual content of any kind. 49% of the challenged books were written by or about individuals who are black, indigenous, or people of color (BIPOC).