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In the past two years PEN America has tracked thousands of book bans nationwide.
In that time, a familiar pattern has emerged: excerpts of books circulate online, and organized advocacy groups provide step-by-step strategies to demand their removal. Then, someone—a parent, administrator, concerned citizen or politician—acts on the advice and objects to a book being in a school. School officials give in to these demands often without adhering to their own policies or without first reading the books in question.
This familiar pattern continues to reproduce across districts. At the same time, the movement to ban books is evolving. New tactics and new targets are gaining momentum, and they are likely to intensify in the year ahead.