In classrooms and libraries across the United States, the shelves are becoming increasingly bare. Not because students don’t want to read, but because the government is keeping certain stories out of their reach. Book bans are reshaping educational standards, and the consequences are far more dangerous than many realize.

PEN America reported that in the 2023-2024 school year, there were more than 10,000 recorded cases of book bans, encompassing over 4,000 different titles. A group of PEN America experts highlighted various ways the movement to ban books is harmful to society, stating “‘quiet’ or ‘soft’ censorship can also silence specific authors, viewpoints, and books with diverse representation.”

Many of these targeted works were written by authors of color, LGBTQ+ authors and social critics throughout history.

While supporters argue these removals protect children, the eradication of diverse perspectives deprives young people of the opportunity to expand their knowledge and empathy. This disturbing shift in educational regulations reveals the underlying desire to control how people learn and what they are allowed to question. This attack on literature is also an attack on critical thinking.

Without exposure to challenging material, students lose the chance to engage with difficult questions and controversial histories, which are essential for democratic participation. Students are being taught not how to think critically, but rather how to avoid thinking at all. It makes people less prepared to confront reality and vulnerable to ignorance.

The dangers of censorship are perhaps best seen in the nationwide banning of The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison. This novel confronts the psychological damage of systemic racism and white beauty ideals on Black identity. When Morrison’s stories are erased, so is the chance to confront uncomfortable but necessary truths about American history and Eurocentric beauty standards.

From Florida to Missouri, organized groups and politicians have dedicated themselves to erasing books that feature marginalized voices from American shelves. The pressure has grown so severe that it has negatively impacted educators and librarians. Research from First Book’s 2023 study about banned books reveals that 65 percent of educators are struggling to teach because of the recent bans. Among these educators, the study also reports, “71% said that book banning undermines their expertise as educators.”

As books are removed, both teachers and librarians are reconsidering their careers. Education Week writer Eesha Pendharker reported in 2023 that 21% of library personnel have confirmed their professional expertise has been questioned, and 8% are concerned about termination. These findings show that censorship not only undermines intellectual freedom for students but also destabilizes the careers of those who safeguard it.

Additionally, a 2022 survey by Stand for Children found that 37% of teachers said they would be likely to leave the profession at the end of the school year if laws restricting honest teaching and classroom conversation reached their classrooms.

Silencing librarians and educators has ripple effects that extend far beyond institutional walls. Students lose access to both books and the ability to engage with them critically. This narrowing of available perspectives directly undermines democratic values.

With the historical understanding of violent repression inflicted on minorities, literature is even more powerful in preserving compelling narratives. Promoting censorship is not only a violation of the First Amendment; it also reveals how certain ideas, cultures and histories are too inconvenient for Americans to remember.

At its core, the rise of book bans is not simply about what sits on a shelf — it is about whose voices are heard and whose are silenced. By limiting what stories are available in schools and libraries, it erases marginalized voices and weakens the foundation of a pluralistic society. The cost will not only be measured in lost stories but also in the shrinking capacity of a generation to think critically, to understand difference and to build a more inclusive future.