As book bans proliferate, Latine authors are increasingly caught in the cultural crossfire
By hola | Published | No Comments
What happens when a community’s stories are stripped from the shelves? What does it mean when young Latine readers can’t find books that reflect their own experiences? These are just a few of the questions posed by the growing number of book bans in U.S. school districts.
Among those removed from shelves, experts say, are books that engage in open discourse on topics like sexuality, identity and navigating abuse. Banned books have included award-winning tomes like “In the Dream House” by Carmen Maria Machado, a memoir following her abusive lesbian relationship, and “The House on Mango Street” by Sandra Cisneros, a story about a young Latina girl navigating the limitations of her new environment.
While book bans have a long history, the most recent wave has been building since at least the late 2000s.
In its annual report on banned books in the United States published earlier this month, the nonprofit literary organization, PEN America, said the past year “saw continued attacks on books, stories, identities, and histories.”
The report examined the period between July 1, 2024, and June 30, 2025, describing a “complex and extensive climate of censorship” in the U.S., part of “a larger campaign to restrict and control education and public narratives, wreaking havoc on our public schools and democracy.”
The organization tracks book bans and reports that there have been nearly 23,000 instances since 2021. But the restrictions on book access have also sparked controversy. Many parents, authors, students and schools are standing up for their First Amendment rights and pushing back on censorship that would suppress the voices and stories of marginalized groups, including Latine voices.
Senior program manager at PEN America
Sabrina Baêta, a senior program manager for the Freedom to Read movement at PEN America, says the organization defends against “assaults on literature and the liberty of human thought and expression.”
PEN, which originally stood for Poets, Playwrights, Editors, Essayists and Novelists, was first established in London in 1921, with PEN America opening the following year. The group began as a club for writers to foster fellowship in the aftermath of World War I. From the start, the organization took a stance against the injustices that underrepresented authors face. After its worldwide launch, PEN America became known as a staunch defender of freedom of literary expression in the U.S. In recent years, the century-old organization has increasingly sounded the alarm over book banning and the rise of censorship in multiple forms.
“Since 2021, PEN America has been tracking trends around the danger posed by book bans, mounting a public awareness campaign that has inspired advocacy around the country,” says Baêta. A poet and essayist, she also uses her research to build awareness about censorship in K-12 public school education.
“We are proud to partner with numerous authors and celebrities, local, state, and national groups and coalitions, and similarly positioned organizations,” Baêta says.
Besides tracking the number of banned titles and themes, PEN America hosts authors’ evenings, advocacy training, writers’ workshops, and community gatherings. Its annual World Voices Festival promotes unity by celebrating international literature and writers. One of the tools embedded on the PEN America website is a template letter opposing book bans that you can customize and send to your own state-elected official.
Since censorship laws typically target books with LGBTQ+ characters and Black and Latine stories, organizations like PEN America increasingly acknowledge the importance of minority voices buried under these restrictions. In addition to the template letter, PEN America, for instance, has tip sheets and up-to-date statistics on banned books.
Baêta says the types of genres, character identities and subject matter of books being removed from public schools reveal that book banning isn’t coincidental.
“It’s the result of a well-funded campaign to dismantle public education, backed by a coordinated network of groups that largely espouse white supremacist and Christian nationalist ideology,” says Baêta, who adds that “the silencing and erasing of stories is tremendously concerning” in both the U.S. and other countries where similar dynamics are on the rise.
PEN America leaders and the organization’s Freedom to Read initiative hope to uplift marginalized authors through work in the education field and advocacy programs, such as Writers in Dialogue, an exchange program involving U.S.-based and Russian writers. Documenting the book ban crisis and its attacks on authors and stories from Latine communities is another step in this resistance.
Baêta says PEN America, like many activist groups, provides a crucial platform where literary activists in communities nationwide can “push back against censorship and protect the Freedom to Read.”
— Story by Sbeyde Herrera
— Copy edited by Kami Waller
Sbeyde Herrera is currently a student at San Jose State University studying professional and technical writing. As a first-generation Latina student, she is motivated to bring social issues to light and provide accessible pieces for all audiences.
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