Censorship

Freedom of Information, Part One

Censorship, as defined by the American Library Association, is the "limiting or removing access to words, images, or ideas. The decision to restrict or deny access is made by a governing authority. This could be a person, group, or organization/business." Similarly, they define a challenge as "an attempt to have a library resource removed, or access to it restricted, based on the objections of a person or group" (2023). Libraries have increasingly faced both challenges and censorship in recent years, with "2,472 unique titles challenged" in 2024 alone (American Library Association, 2025).

When looking at how censorship impacts language learners, there are three primary areas of study. The first is the banning, censoring, and challenging of books and materials. The second is the censorship of language, with the closely related third area being translation as censorship. This blog will be part one in a Freedom of Information mini-series, focusing on censorship specifically. It will be followed by "Intellectual Freedom," which will explore the effects of censorship and how intellectual freedom impacts the language learning community. The final part, "Professional Ethics," will discuss what can be done to combat censorship and support intellectual freedom.

Book Banning, Censorship, and Challenges

When it comes to censorship within libraries, book banning is often the first type of censorship to be thought of. Challenges to books in public and school libraries has seen a drastic increase in the last few years, creating ripple effects throughout the country. Jensen describes just two county schools in Texas, who are waiting on approval of over $100,000 worth of books, school districts which are cutting school librarian positions, and administrators are lying about the number of books moved or removed. She goes on to describe how this is impacting publishers as well, both impacting what they choose to publish and also causing smaller publishers to be forced into shutting down (2026).

Note. Censorship attempts 2015–2024 [Data Set]. From Censorship by the numbers, by American Library Association Office for Intellectual Freedom, 2025, (https://www.ala.org/bbooks/censorship-numbers).

Book banning and censorship is not just a United States problem either. Recently, over 130 books had been targeted for censorship in a Manchester, UK school library (Dancey-Downs, 2026), and legislation was recently introduced in Alberta, Canada to prevent children accessing "graphic sexual material" (Johnson, 2026). Additionally, in looking through the news tab on the Index on Censorship website, Hungary, Serbia, Kosovo, Russia, Iran, Pakistan, Australia, China, and France are just some of the countries mentioned where censorship is occurring (n.d.).

Note. Top ten most challenged books of 2024 [Image]. From Top 10 most challenged books of 2024, by American Library Association, 2025, (https://www.ala.org/bbooks/frequentlychallengedbooks/top10).

Language learners in particular are impacted by book bans and censorship. Books written by and/or featuring people of color and queer people are often targets for censorship. When these books are removed from shelves or relocated, readers have a harder time finding themselves represented in the books they are reading. While some people learn a language purely as a hobby and have no other ties to a language or culture, many language learners are also immigrants and heritage speakers. If a language learner does not see themselves reflected in the books and materials of the language they are learning, they can feel discouraged, lack a sense of belonging, or feel like they do not fit in. For school-aged children in particular, these feelings can present as "acting up" in the classroom, a refusal to practice or learn a language, or self-isolation. Additionally, language learning textbooks can face censorship as well, directly impacting language learners' ability to communicate with others.

Censorship of Language

When looking at the impacts of censorship, it is important to include the censorship occurring beyond books as well. One area, often overlooked in the United States, is the censorship of the language we use. One of the ways in which this has occurred is through prohibiting use of a language, thereby limiting the intellectual freedom of that person. Native American boarding schools were one of the biggest institutions through which this occurred, "Indian children were forcibly abducted by government agents, sent to schools hundreds of miles away, and beaten, starved, or otherwise abused when they spoke their Native languages" (The Native American Boarding School Healing Coalition, n.d.). Across the globe, many indigenous languages are now considered to be endangered due to these boarding school practices and colonialism. Between 1740 and 1834, the some U.S. states had anti-literacy laws, through which Black people were not allowed to read or write, though there were many who learned anyways despite great risk to their own lives (Maddox, 2022). Today, many organizations, such as Line4Line, Books N Bros, First Nations Development Institute, and the National Indian Education Association, provide literacy initiatives and support for language learners.

Additionally, censorship of language can look like anti-freedom of speech practices. Increasingly over the last year, journalists across the globe have faced targeted violence, harassment, doxing, imprisonment, and killing (Ginsberg, 2026; Index on Censorship, 2026). Ginsberg continues, saying, "the decline in press freedom and journalism safety is directly tied to a decline in democratic norms and a rise in authoritarianism that we are experiencing worldwide" (2026). These anti-journalism campaigns amount to attacks on intellectual freedom for their reader and viewer bases, as well as the general public. When news outlets face such a large onslaught of attacks, including ones to their budget, smaller outlets will inevitably cease operations. This leads to fewer places where people can obtain news, fewer points of view being represented, and eventual homogenization and normalization of one specific viewpoint. When fewer news outlets exist, it becomes more difficult for the public to find information on multiple points of view, harming our intellectual freedom by not allowing us the opportunity to develop our own opinions.

Translation as Censorship

So far, we have looked specifically at intralingual censorship, or censorship that occurs within one language. Now, we will take a look at interlingual censorship, which is censorship occurring between languages, particularly through translation. I will preface this by saying I am not against translation as a whole. Translation serves many people and helps to improve communication, intellectual freedom, cultural understanding, and people's everyday lives. The type of translation I am talking about here is when the translation is used to fundamentally alter the meaning of a text, under the assumption that the people reading the translation will never know what the original document said. As Moreno Tovar (2024) states, "is the difference between interlingual and intralingual censorship only one of access? Does intralingual censorship always become visible and conspicuous to readers? Are there types of intralingual censorship that tend to cause more indignation than others?" (p. 293).

Translation always comes with change to a text. Many different theories and methods of translation exist, with varying degrees of loyalty to the original text. Omissions, attenuations, and additions to a text can alter how a reader interprets a work. Moreover, each translator has their own way of wording bodies of writing. Anytime a work is translated in two separate instances by two or more different translators, the final translation outcome will be slightly different, even if none of the translators censor the text. This is how we have come up with so many different versions of books like The Odyssey, the Bible, and Romeo and Juliet. In the image on the right, each of the ten editions of The Odyssey has a different translator, and therefore, a slightly different translation.

Note. Translations of The Odyssey found in OneSearch [Image]. From Finding Works in Translation, by D. Davey (2025). (https://gclibrary.commons.gc.cuny.edu/2024/04/23/finding-translations/). CC by 4.0.

Generally speaking, translations can be done by humans or by machines. Human translators are the preferred option in most scenarios, as humans are able to understand context, intonation, tone, idioms, and cultural cues, while machines are unable to detect these things, relying exclusively on the texts it has been given and an algorithm to predict what is the "best" option. That being said, even human translations are not perfect. "Translations as cultural products are not immune from the influence of state censorship" (Karoubi, 2024, p. 1135). The sheer volume of opportunities for censorship to occur when it comes to serving language learners means that there are many opportunities for attacks on intellectual freedom to occur. Continue reading part two of this mini-series to learn more about intellectual freedom within the language learning community.

Annotated Bibliography book spotlight

The impacts of censorship: Research on the intersection of censorship and teaching English by Ann D. David, Katharine Covino, Christina L. Dobbs, Christine Emeran, and Mark Letcher.

This book explores the rise of censorship over the last several years and how this has impacted teachers and their teaching methods for English classes, specifically focusing on post-2020 changes and impacts. It covers recent research on the topics, as well as shares some of the strategies used by English teachers to combat censorship and provide meaningful education to their students. While it is not specific to English as a Second Language teachers, the teachers of students who speak other languages are just as impacted. It goes more in depth on the recent surge of book censorship and what is being done about it.

Check out these additional resources!

Books N Bros: Books N Bros is a youth-led book club for Black boys designed to amplify African American stories and BIPOC literature. They have one chapter in St. Louis, MO, and another in Atlanta, GA. They read both fiction and non-fiction books, and work to support literacy among Black children across the U.S.

Chat Censorship: A GitHub resource provided by Ruo et al. (2024) documenting the censorship rules across 4 different online translation software.

Dictionnaire de la censure au Québec: This book, published in 2006, is a comprehensive list of censorship in Quebec. It specifically focuses on documenting censorship of literature and film, and includes the reasons given for their censorship.

First Nations Development Institute: This organization works to uplift and support the Native American communities through advocacy, financial support, and knowledge sharing. Among the learning resources they provide is information on the historical background of the different tribes, language learning resources, recipes, and environmental justice.

Index on Censorship: This organization provides news and resources on censorship and limits to freedom of expression across the globe. They advocate for intellectual freedom and work to combat censorship, focusing on sharing the voices of those who are often censored.

Line4Line: Line 4 Line is a youth mentoring organization designed to support literacy initiatives among Black children. Their original program allowed children access to free haircuts through demonstrated proof of literacy, but they now offer barber training, and do outreach work to provide books for children as well.

National Coalition Against Censorship: This organization was started by the ACLU to advocate for free expression across the nation. They work to protect intellectual freedom and oppose censorship. They work directly with those facing censorship in their communities to provide resources and support to combat it.

National Council of Teachers of English: This is a professional organization designed to support teachers in and out of their classrooms. They specifically work with English teachers and provide support at all levels of education.

National Indian Education Association: This organization works to provide culture-based educational opportunities to Native Americans in the United States. They promote educational sovereignty, traditional knowledge and language, and educational opportunities.

Unite Against Book Bans: This organization mobilizes to public to advocate for the right to read and to combat book censorship. They have many organizational partners who create and share materials to help combat censorship.

References

American Library Association. (2025). Censorship by the numbers. https://www.ala.org/bbooks/censorship-numbers

American Library Association. (2025). Top 10 most challenged books of 2024. https://www.ala.org/bbooks/frequentlychallengedbooks/top10

American Library Association. (2023, July 24). Intellectual freedom & censorship q&a. https://www.ala.org/advocacy/intfreedom/censorship/faq

Dancey-Downs, K. (2026, March 20). School book banning escalates in the UK as greater Manchester secondary school censors scores of books. Index on Censorship. https://www.indexoncensorship.org/2026/03/school-book-banning-escalates-in-the-uk-as-greater-manchester-secondary-school-censors-scores-of-books/

Davey, D. (2024, April 23). Finding Works in Translation. CUNY Academic Commons. https://gclibrary.commons.gc.cuny.edu/2024/04/23/finding-translations/

Ginsberg, J. (2026, March 30). Smearing, harassment, criminalising, and killing no longer the exception for journalists. Index on Censorship. https://www.indexoncensorship.org/2026/03/smearing-harassing-criminalising-and-killing-is-no-longer-the-exception-for-journalists/

Index on Censorship. (2026, March 31). Serbian authorities must stop the spiral of violence against journalists. https://www.indexoncensorship.org/2026/03/serbian-authorities-must-stop-the-spiral-of-violence-against-journalists/

Jensen, K. (2026, April 10). Where and how book censorship is impacting children's publishing right now: Book censorship news April 10, 2026. Book Riot. https://bookriot.com/book-bans-and-publishing/

Johnson, L. (2026, April 2). Alberta tables bill to reduce child access to sexually explicit images in public libraries. CBC. https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/edmonton/alberta-public-library-changes-9.7151744

Karoubi, B. (2024). Ideological and legal foundations of translation censorship in Iran. Perspectives, 32(6), 1133–1145. https://doi.org/10.1080/0907676X.2023.2268630

Latest News and Features (n.d.). Index on Censorship. https://www.indexoncensorship.org/recent-news-and-features-index-on-censorship/

Maddox, C. (2022, January12). Literacy by any means necessary: The history of anti-literacy laws in the U.S. Oakland Literacy Coalition. https://oaklandliteracycoalition.org/literacy-by-any-means-necessary-the-history-of-anti-literacy-laws-in-the-u-s/

Moreno Tovar, M. (2024). Censorship and ideological manipulation in intralingual literary translation. In D. Merkle, & B. J. Baer (Eds.) The Routledge handbook of translation and censorship (1st ed., pp. 291–305). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003149453

The Native American Boarding School Healing Coalition. (n.d.). U.S. Indian Boarding School History. https://boardingschoolhealing.org/us-indian-boarding-school-history/

Ruo, S., Knockel, J., & Reichert, Z. (2024). Lost in translation: Characterizing automated censorship in online translation services. Free and Open Communications on the Internet, 2024(2), 93–101. https://www.petsymposium.org/foci/2024/foci-2024-0018.php

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