Texas Library System Must Return Removed Books to Circulation

A Texas public library system that removed more than a dozen books was ordered to put them back into circulation and update catalogs to reflect that the books, many of which concerned LGBTQ+ or racism-related issues, are available for checkout, a federal court said.

The lawsuit coincides with an increase in school book bans, which have emerged as a political and cultural flashpoint. Nearly 2,532 school book bans affecting 1,648 titles have been documented from July 2021 to June 2022 by PEN America, a group dedicated to preservation of free expression. Most of the challenged books address LGBTQ+ issues ...