From the President

Abstract

On March 14, 2024, the American Library Association (ALA) reported a record number of unique book challenges in 2023.1 The press release went on to note a 65% increase in challenges of unique titles with 4,240 unique book title challenges and a total of 9.021 title challenges. These numbers represented a 92% increase in title challenges at public libraries which accounted for nearly half of all book challenges occurring in 2023. Interestingly, the sharp increase in the sheer number of titles being challenged was related to groups and individuals challenging numerous, sometimes hundreds, of items at once rather than one specific title. Unfortunately, North Carolina was amongst 17 states who experienced attempts to censor more than 100 titles for the year.