Will UK Censorship Pressure Spreads to the US
May 2, 2025
It seems we can add an item to the list of successful American exports: censorship. “Librarians in UK Increasingly Asked to Remove Books, as Influence of US Pressure Groups Spreads,” reveals the Guardian. Oh goodie. The cloud of unknowing is becoming more widespread. The UK does not get nearly as many book challenges as the US and, unlike here, most have come from individuals or small groups. That may be changing. We learn:
“Evidence suggests that the work of US action groups is reaching UK libraries too. Alison Hicks, an associate professor in library and information studies at UCL, interviewed 10 UK-based school librarians who had experienced book challenges. One ‘spoke of finding propaganda from one of these groups left on her desk’, while another ‘was directly targeted by one of these groups’. Respondents ‘also spoke of being trolled by US pressure groups on social media, for example when responding to free book giveaways’. It is ‘certainly possible that the scale of censorship we’re seeing in the US will influence the debate over here’, said Jewell.”
According to one 2024 study, UK challenges seems to mostly target LGBTQ+ material. US censorship is more inclusive, targeting content related to race, ethnicity, and social justice as well as LGBTQ+ issues. A 2023 study, however, found UK censorship targeting race and empire as well as LGBTQ+ topics. Whichever the case, librarians and the tomes they love are under attack in both countries. That’s the US for you—spreading our nation’s ideals around the world.
Cynthia Murrell, May 2, 2025
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