Operation Caged Bird Seeks to Unban Books from Naval Academy: Book Censorship News, April 25, 2025

This week, the censorship story is getting fiercely faster. Most notably, the Supreme Court, which is deliberating on Maryland cases. This allows parents to choose their children from classes that mention the existence of LGBTQ+. Judge Neil Gorsuch claimed the picture book Pride puppy! It encouraged readers to look for bondage images with illustrations. This is clearly because the leather jacket is bondage. It appears that the Supreme Court is on their side at this time with these parents.

But that’s not the only story. Also, research into the effects of book bans on library distribution, documentaries about students who fought against the book ban and victory, censorship at the Naval Academy, and books back on shelves.

Kelly Jensen is off this week, but the rest of the editorial team is filling in to cover censorship news! The first story is from S. Zainab Williams, the next two are from Rebecca joining Sinski, and the last two are from Erica Ezeifedi.

First, the association of parents and teachers under Monica’s children (the naming conventions for these groups are separate, but I’m off track) is suing Maryland’s largest school system to allow students to opt out of class on days when queer characters and theme books are being discussed. They argue that the book violates the right to freely exercise religion under the First Amendment. One member of the child first decided that they needed to help find a private school that “brainwashs children with these ideas.” This person clearly doesn’t seem to know what it is to cleanse the brain rather than incorporate books on LGBTQ+ people into a broader curriculum.

People are seeing this incident and are first genuine concern about the meaning of voting in favor of children. “Some jurists have said accepting the logic of Maryland parents’ arguments has broad consequences for public schools’ ability to manage their curriculum. New York Times Peace (This brings me back to Season 4, Episode 16 Abbott Elementary Schoolbut I’m off track).

• Reservations not allowed increase 12% of prohibited books Compared to the control group. In other words, the ban on books does not have a calm effect on readers, but rather a Streisand effect.
• The effect ripples into an unprohibited state, slightly lower (an increase of 11.2%).
• The growing audience is focused on books related to race, gender and LGTBQ+ issues.
• Book Bans will publish new readers in comprehensive contentOn average, children read books that were banned 19% more than the control title after the banned event.
• The distribution of prohibited books increases with the book ban and the red state of the blue state, regardless of the status of the book ban.

(This feels like a good time to remind authors that book bans are not good, regardless of circulation or reader numbers. If you’re working on “well” with a positive spin on book bans, just stop it.)

The findings above may make you wonder: If the book ban is driving an increase in engagement with highly content activists who claim to be trying to protect children, why do they continue to pursue a book ban? Follow the money. The study also considered and found political messages and donations Republican politicians in the Red State saw an estimated 30% increase in donations under $500 After the banned book event.

Again for the people behind: it’s not about books. As Kelly Jensen of Book Riot reminds us, “The book has been used by far-right groups as the thin edge of the wedge to curb information and information on race and LGBTQ+ issues, “books are simple, earthly, concrete targets.” Is it important for conservative politicians that children are actually reading books that have been banned? It’s not the time when their funding is full and their voters are finished.

The bookburn movement is about things much bigger than books. The same move began by attacking key racial theories as surrogates to target black and brown students. Queer and trans students, like my siblings, were added to the list of demonized identities as far-right militants came after stories in schools and libraries. And now the Trump administration is coming after higher education by using unconstitutional terror tactics to dismantle the DEI program and fire international students who challenge their policy positions.

I had the opportunity to see It is prohibited together Before I recently interviewed the producers of Book Riot Podcasts, I can’t recommend it enough. May these bold youth efforts be successful.

“These are some of the smartest and most dedicated students in the world. Many of them will be entrusted with officers leading our Navy and Marines a month from now.

GoFundMe has already received more than 700 donations and has raised over $48,000. Both Amundson and Marks comment on how the DC, Maryland and Virginia areas have supported the project, calling it “Operation Cage Bird.”

“I said I couldn’t do that,” recalls Holiday. “I wouldn’t have been able to talk about courage and doing the right thing in front of these midshipmen, and I think I’ll remove any very reasonable opposition to the very awful concept.”

The Holiday presentation focused on James Stockdale, an honorary award recipient stationed in Vietnam and a graduate of the US Naval Academy who studied Marxist theory to better understand the opposition (at the time).

“The bigger point I was trying to make is that if you’re a leader you have to be able to think critically,” added Holiday. “If you’re not thinking for yourself, you’re not the first by definition.”

The holiday continued. “If you can’t trust memoirs of Stacey Abrams or around Maya Angelou, then you probably won’t have a Navy seal, or you’ll have no business holding an assault rifle or flying a fighter.”

The Alabama Public Library Services had said that Fairhope Library should move books from the Young Adult section to the Adult section because it was “sexually explicit,” but on Monday the Fairhope Public Library Board voted to keep the book up despite it could mean a cut in funding. Luckily, for the library’s $1 million budget and the $46,000 raised in a week for the library by the Anti-Book No Group, the library is not vulnerable to state cuts.