This Thanksgiving, the National Coalition Against Censorship gives thanks for our right to free expression — and the voices who enrich, defend, and amplify it.

We're grateful for you. For the artists, educators, writers, students, and advocates who have challenged censorship, ignited difficult conversations, and defended the voices that shape our culture and democracy during this tumultuous year.

As we gather to give thanks, we renew our promise to stand with you for the freedom to read, write, think, and imagine without fear.

In gratitude,
The NCAC Team

"Together we can continue to ensure that libraries remain free, welcoming, and trustworthy places where democracy can do its quiet, essential work."

— Dr. Carla Hayden

NCAC's 2025 Judith Krug Outstanding Librarian Award

Annual Gala

Thank you to all of you who joined us for a night of celebration and reflection at the National Coalition Against Censorship’s Annual Gala, honoring free speech champions whose tireless commitment to protecting artistic freedom, intellectual inquiry, and the fundamental right to speak one’s mind has inspired us and made us all freer.

Legal Advocacy

The National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC), joined by right to read advocate Steven Pico, has filed an amicus brief before the United States Supreme Court. In May 2025, a majority of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit ruled in Little v. Llano County that library patrons have no First Amendment right to receive information and ideas from the government in the form of library books. A plurality of the court took this a step further, finding that the curation of public library materials amounts to a concept known as “government speech,” meaning that the addition or removal of books from public library shelves is not subject to the limitations of the First Amendment. The plaintiffs in Little, who are Llano County library patrons, have filed a petition for a writ of certiorari with the Supreme Court requesting that they reverse the Fifth Circuit’s egregious ruling.

NCAC’s brief supports this petition, arguing that the right to receive information is well established under the First Amendment and the removal of a library book based on disagreement with its viewpoint violates the Constitution – a standard established over forty years ago in Board of Education v. Pico, 457 U.S. 853, a case taken to the Supreme Court by then-plaintiff, and current amicus partner, Steven Pico in 1982. NCAC and Pico were represented by the First Amendment Clinic at SMU Dedman School of Law.

Arts & Culture

Advocacy Program

NCAC, FIRE, ACLU-CO Oppose Removal of Art from Exhibition at History Colorado Center

In a letter sent to History Colorado Center President and CEO Dawn DiPrince, the National Coalition Against Censorship, the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression, and the American Civil Liberties Union of Colorado condemned the Center’s decision to exclude artwork that contained criticism of Colorado public officials— including two U.S. Senators and the state’s governor— from an upcoming exhibition because History Colorado Center administrators raised unfounded concerns that the display would be in violation of the state’s Fair Campaign Practices Act (FCPA).

Drewno’s censored work, titled None of Us Are Free Until All of Us Are Free, depicts two community members of the Little Saigon business district sitting together on a couch against a backdrop of chrysanthemums, lanterns, and lion dancers collaged between images of immigrants detained by ICE, prominent activists, protests, and unflattering portrayals of two U.S. Senators from Colorado and the state’s governor. Censoring this expression conflicts with the Center’s goal of centering local communities, deepening knowledge, and catalyzing the transformative power of history. NCAC, FIRE, and the ACLU of Colorado urge HCC to acknowledge its wrongdoing, publicly apologize to the artist, and take steps toward reinstating the work within its intended exhibition.

Youth Free

Expression Program

NCAC Opposes Book Bans at Benton School District in Arkansas

The National Coalition Against Censorship has written to the school board of Benton School District in Arkansas following their removal of two books from school library shelves. Both Kathleen Gros’ Jo: An Adaptation of Little Women (Sort Of) and E. L. Konigsburg’s From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler were removed without following proper district policy or state law.

NCAC’s letter reminded the board that the Supreme Court has established that public school officials’ discretion regarding the removal of library books is particularly limited to ensure the protection of students’ First Amendment right to access information. Removing books from the shelves of the school library based on the intent to deny students access to ideas with which the district does not agree exposes the district to constitutional liability. Moreover, disregarding the district’s own policy simultaneously erodes public faith in local leadership and deprives students of access to literature to which they are otherwise entitled.  

NCAC urged the district to rectify its misapplications of the law, commit to following district policy, and return the books to the school libraries from which they were removed.

NCAC Urges North Little

Rock School District to Fix its Misinterpretation of Arkansas Law and Restore LGBTQIA+ Books to Epic Library Platform

The North Little Rock School Board removed fifty LGBTQIA+ books from the district’s Epic Reading platform, an online library used by students for supplementary reading. These books were hidden from student view without following proper district policy or Arkansas law.

NCAC’s letter reminded the board that the laws cited to justify the removal—Acts 237 and 372—apply only to instructional classroom materials or physical library books, not to digital platforms like Epic, and urged the district to restore access to the LGBTQIA+ books, follow its own review policies for challenged materials, and ensure that all students continue to have the opportunity to see themselves and others reflected in the literature they read.

We cannot fight the censors alone. In moments of repression, moral courage is essential…and contagious. We are standing up to this moment of censorship because you stand with us.