Under the current administration, American censorship has increased significantly to the point where the federal government is now breaking fundamental human rights. Most censorship applies to books, rap music, and hardcore rock and roll. There are also other contributing factors, such as the targeting of specific groups of people, such as the LGBTQ+ community or different races.
Censorship in the United States first started with the targeting of free speech rights of many individuals, most of whom were college-aged immigrants. Rumeysa Öztürk and Mahmoud Khalil were pro-Palestine activists who were arrested by ICE officials. After their arrest, many have questioned whether or not this act violates free speech for non-citizens. Similar to this, the Trump Administration has released a directive named NSPM-7 that he signed on September 25, 2025. NSPM-7 basically calls for federal agencies to investigate and disrupt any individuals, groups, or networks affiliated with or involved in political violence and/or intimidation. Many people have raised concerns that NSPM-7 could be used to silence dissent and conflate protected speech with political violence. Censorship violates both Article 2 and Article 7 of the Declaration of Human Rights, an international document that outlines the rights and freedoms of all human beings. Article 2 states that everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms that the Declaration has to offer without distinction of any case, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political opinion, national or social origin, property, birth, or any other status. Article 7 states that all people are equal before the law and are entitled to equal protection. Yet, censorship is still everywhere. For example, a book that was recently banned in many schools, named “The Bluest Eye”, talks about the struggles of racism and beauty in a person of color’s life. This ban targets an individual of color, which clearly violates the articles. At this point, both the country and state governments have filtered so much media and literacy to suit their own preferences.
Book bans are the most common form of censorship: both PEN America and the American Library Association (ALA) showed a dramatic increase in book bans spanning from 2021 to 2025. In the 2023–2024 school year, PEN America reported 10,000 book bans in public schools in the United States. Compared to the 2022–2023 school year, book bans spiked nearly 300%, most of which regard sexuality and people of color. Approximately 40% of book bans feature characters of color, another 41% of books are banned due to LGBTQ+ themes, and 21-22% banned books feature racism. PEN America states that from July 2023 to June 2024, they recorded 10,046 instances of book bans across 29 states and 220 public school districts. Since July 2021, they have recorded 15,940 instances of book bans across 43 states and 415 public school districts. This shows that censorship in the United States has been significantly increasing over the years, especially in media such as books, which is harming democracy and limiting freedoms.
More examples of censorship include the U.S. Open tennis match in New York on September 7, 2025, in which the president was shown during the national anthem. Because of the match, the U.S. Tennis Association sent an email to broadcasters to filter out any negativity towards Trump. Additionally, the Trump administration is implementing new laws that require journalists to withhold information until it has been reviewed and approved by the government. This is a clear case of censorship in the United States that is limiting our knowledge and limiting access to the truth, which is harmful for the American people. If journalists fail to do this, they risk losing their credentials that give them access to the Pentagon. In fact, depending on how important the document is, the reporter may even face legal action. This example of censorship highlights the danger of restricting the press in our society. The truth is hidden, and the public is kept in the dark about the knowledge and details that are going on within their own government. Advocates for press freedoms claim that the new restrictions on the press are an assault on independent journalism.
Although some cases of censorship don’t directly violate the First Amendment because they may not be educationally suitable, censorship still limits access to unique and diverse perspectives on an individual’s life. As a society, we should have access to the banned books and media not only for knowledge but for the power of democracy. Our society deserves more freedom of the media. We have to put a stop to the ban of American literature and media based on specific groups of people and cultures.