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This section captures a floor statement or debate entry. It mentions legislation such as Expressing concern about the growing problem of book banning, and the proliferation of threats to freedom of expression in the United States., committees such as Committee on the Judiciary.
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September 29, 2026
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Download official Senate Record PDFReturn to issue contextBOOK BANNING, AND THE PROLIFERATION OF THREATS TO FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION
IN THE UNITED STATES
Mr. SCHATZ (for himself, Mr. Padilla, Mr. Reed, Mr. Van Hollen, Mr. Sanders, Mr. Wyden, Mr. King, Mr. Merkley, Ms. Hirono, Ms. Alsobrooks, Mr. Durbin, Mr. Murphy, Mr. Booker, Mr. Blumenthal, Mr. Markey, Mr. Whitehouse, Mr. Warnock, Mr. Fetterman, and Mr. Lujan) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary:
S. Res. 920
Whereas the overwhelming majority of voters in the United
States oppose book bans;
Whereas an overwhelming majority of voters in the United
States support educators teaching about the civil rights
movement, the history and experiences of Native Americans,
enslaved Africans, immigrants facing discrimination, and the
ongoing effects of racism;
Whereas an overwhelming majority of Americans are confident
that the public schools of their communities select
appropriate books for students to read;
Whereas, in 1969, the Supreme Court of the United States
held in Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community School
District, 393 U.S. 503 (1969), that students do not “shed
their constitutional rights to freedom of speech or
expression at the schoolhouse gate”;
Whereas, in 1982, a plurality of the Supreme Court of the
United States wrote in Board of Education, Island Trees Union
Free School District No. 26 v. Pico, 457 U.S. 853 (1982),
that schools may not remove library books based on “narrowly
partisan or political grounds”, as this kind of censorship
will result in “official suppression of ideas”;
Whereas the First Amendment to the Constitution of the
United States protects freedom of speech and the freedom to
read and write;
Whereas Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human
Rights states that “everyone has the right to freedom of
opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold
opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart
information and ideas through any media and regardless of
frontiers”;
Whereas PEN America has identified more than 10,000
instances of individual books banned between July 2025 and
June 2026;
Whereas books banned between July 2025 and June 2026
include more than 6,000 unique titles, censoring the works of
more than 3,000 authors, illustrators, and translators;
Whereas the majority of book bans were enacted without
following the best practice guidelines for book challenges
outlined by the American Library Association, the National
Coalition Against Censorship, and the National Council of
Teachers of English;
Whereas the unimpeded sharing of ideas and the freedom to
read are essential to a strong democracy;
Whereas books do not require readers to agree with topics,
themes, or viewpoints, but instead allow readers to explore
and engage with differing perspectives to form and inform
their own views;
Whereas suppressing the freedom to read and denying access
to literature, history, and knowledge are repressive and
anti-democratic tactics used by authoritarian regimes against
their people;
Whereas book bans violate the rights of students, families,
residents, and citizens based on the political, ideological,
and cultural preferences of the specific individuals or
groups imposing the bans;
Whereas book bans have multifaceted, harmful consequences
on—
(1) students, who have a right to access a diverse range of
stories and perspectives, especially students from
historically marginalized backgrounds whose communities are
often targeted by thought control measures;
(2) educators and librarians, who are operating in some
States in an increasingly punitive and surveillance-oriented
environment and experience a chilling effect in their work;
(3) authors whose works are targeted and suppressed;
(4) parents who want their children to attend public
schools that remain open to curiosity, discovery, and the
freedom to read; and
(5) community members who want free access to a range of
uncensored information and knowledge from their public
libraries;
Whereas classic and award-winning literature and books that
have been part of school curricula for decades have been
challenged, removed from libraries pending review, or
outright banned from schools, including—
(1) “Brave New World” by Aldous Huxley;
(2) “The Handmaid's Tale” by Margaret Atwood;
(3) “Anne Frank's Diary: The Graphic Adaptation” adapted
by Ari Folman;
(4) “Their Eyes Were Watching God” by Zora Neal Hurston;
and
(5) “To Kill a Mockingbird” by Harper Lee;
Whereas books, particularly those written by and about
outsiders, newcomers, and individuals from marginalized
backgrounds, are facing a heightened risk of being banned;
Whereas, according to PEN America, a disproportionate
number of books banned or otherwise restricted in the United
States have LGBTQ+ characters or themes that recognize the
equal humanity and dignity of all individuals despite
differences, including—
(1) “And Tango Makes Three” by Justin Richardson and
Peter Parnell; and
(2) “This Book Is Gay” by Juno Dawson;
Whereas many books, both fiction and nonfiction, that have
been targeted for bans or restrictions in the United States
are books about race or racism, or that feature characters of
color, including—
(1) “The Story of Ruby Bridges” by Robert Coles and
illustrated by George Ford;
(2) “Letter from Birmingham Jail” by Martin Luther King
Jr.;
(3) “Thank You, Jackie Robinson” by Barbara Cohen;
(4) “Malala: A Hero For All” by Shana Corey;
(5) “Fry Bread: A Native American Family Story” by Kevin
Noble Maillard;
(6) “Hair Love” by Matthew A. Cherry;
(7) “Good Trouble: Lessons From the Civil Rights
Playbook” by Christopher Noxon; and
(8) “We Are All Born Free: The Universal Declaration of
Human Rights in Pictures” by Amnesty International;
Whereas the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund has reported a
dramatic surge in challenges at libraries and schools to the
inclusion of graphic novels that depict the diversity of
civic life in the United States and the painful and complex
history of racism, homophobia, anti-Asian bias, and
antisemitism embedded in the human experience, including—
(1) “New Kid” by Jerry Craft;
(2) “Maus” by Art Spiegelman;
(3) “American Born Chinese” by Gene Luen Yang; and
(4) “Drama” by Raina Telgemeier;
Whereas books addressing death, grief, mental illness, and
suicide are targeted alongside nonfiction books that discuss
feelings and emotions written for teenage and young adult
audiences that frequently confront these topics;
Whereas, during congressional hearings on April 7, 2022,
May 19, 2022, and September 12, 2023, students, parents,
teachers, librarians, and school administrators testified to
the chilling and fear-spreading effects that book bans have
on education and the school environment;
Whereas, since 2021, State legislation censoring certain
content within schools and libraries has been enacted across
the country, resulting in more than 30,000 book bans;
Whereas an increasing amount of book censorship goes
unreported and may be higher than is able to be reported due
to mass removals implementing vaguely-written State
legislation and a lack of transparency about district-based
removals;
Whereas, according to PEN America, from July 2025 to June
2026, 24 States across the country limited access to certain
books for limited or indefinite periods of time, including—
(1) Florida, where at least 2,304 books have been banned or
restricted in 33 school districts;
(2) Texas, where at least 1,781 books have been banned or
restricted in 7 school districts;
(3) Tennessee, where at least 1,622 books have been banned
or restricted in 8 school districts;
(4) Idaho, where at least 150 books have been banned or
restricted in 1 school district; and
(5) Iowa, where at least 113 books have been banned or
restricted in 4 school districts;
Whereas the President of the United States has repeatedly
expressed support for the censorship of certain subjects such
as gender, sexuality, and race through public statements and
executive orders;
Whereas, following these executive orders in 2025,
Department of Defense Education Activity (referred to in this
preamble as “DoDEA”) schools removed books related to
diversity, equity, and inclusion, “gender ideology”, and
anything that would suggest “that America's founding
documents are racist or sexist”, resulting in the censorship
of classroom instruction and student activities, as well as
the removal of at least 596 books in DoDEA schools;
Whereas, following the same executive orders, the
Department of Defense directed all military academies to
identify and remove books from their libraries that include
themes related to race, “gender ideology”, and other
“divisive concepts” that the Administration considers
“incompatible with the department's core mission”, which
led to the temporary removal of nearly 400 books from the
Nimitz Library of the United States Naval Academy, including
“I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings” by Maya Angelou;
Whereas grants administered by the National Endowment for
the Arts, the National Endowment for the Humanities, and
other Federal agencies have been terminated or revoked for
using language related to race, gender, and LGBTQ+ identity
or addressing social inequality;
Whereas the President of the United States has further
signed executive orders targeting the Smithsonian
Institution, an independent Federal trust instrumentality of
the United States which has served as a global model for
scholarship and public engagement documenting the full and
complex history of the United States, for promoting
“improper ideology”; and
Whereas the Office of Civil Rights of the Department of
Education has claimed book bans are a “hoax”, ended
investigations of alleged discrimination related to book
banning, and fired the staff person in charge of addressing
the book banning crisis: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the Senate—
(1) supports the designation of the week of October 4
through October 10, 2026, as “Banned Books Week”;
(2) expresses concern about the spreading problem of book
banning and the proliferating threats to freedom of
expression in the United States;
(3) reaffirms the commitment of the United States to
supporting the freedom of expression of writers that is
protected under the First Amendment to the Constitution and
the freedom of all individuals in the
United States to read books without government censorship;
(4) calls on local governments and school districts to
follow best practice guidelines when addressing challenges to
books;
(5) calls on local governments and school districts to
protect the rights of students to learn and the ability of
educators and librarians to teach, including by providing
students with the opportunity to read a wide array of books
reflecting the full breadth and diversity of viewpoints and
perspectives; and
(6) calls for the repeal of executive orders and rescission
of directives that have enacted content-based and viewpoint-
based restrictions on the freedom to read and learn in United
States public schools and libraries.