NYC library reps will testify on book bans, local efforts to preserve access

NEW YORK (PIX11) – City library officials on Monday will outline their efforts to fight book bans as censorship attempts increase across the country, according to the American Library Association.

The presidents of New York, Brooklyn and Queens Public Libraries will join a City Council oversight hearing on book bans held in-person at City Hall at 1 p.m. The meeting can also be streamed online. 

The country saw 695 attempts to censor library materials from Jan. 1 to Aug. 31, 2023, according to the American Library Association. Nearly half of these efforts were aimed at books in public libraries, according to the association. 

“Efforts to ban books have surged over the last few years - and troublingly, books by and about people of color and LGBTQ+ individuals are more likely to be targeted for censorship,” said City Council Member Carlina Rivera, who chairs the Committee on Libraries and Cultural Affairs. 

The city’s libraries have already made efforts to oppose book banning - like with The New York Public Library's annual Banned Book Week to educate and uplift books banned across the country. In 2023, Mayor Eric Adams declared Oct. 4 as “Freedom to Read Day” in New York City. 

The public library system in 2023 also embarked on an anti-censorship educational campaign to educate teenagers all over the country and secure access to books. 

"Since their founding, public libraries have combated the forces of ignorance and hate by making information and knowledge freely available to all,” said Tony Marx, President of The New York Public Library. “We stand in solidarity with the library workers and communities across the country who are being censored and threatened.”