Book censors have flooded social media with out-of-context book excerpts and imagery to support their arguments. In 2025 alone, more than 4,200 titles touching on race, gender, and sexuality were challenged in the United States.
According to Paul T. Jaeger, a professor and scholar at the University of Maryland’s College of Information, the purpose of current censorship movements is not to simply remove individual books from library shelves, as is typically the case with concerned parents. Their goal is to erase entire groups of people from society.
Canada isn’t immune to the issues ailing the United States. Up until recently, the Canadian government censored gender diverse books and authors that failed a test called the Hicklin test, which had roots in an English obscenity trial from 1868.
Like their American counterparts, far-right groups like Action4Canada hold workshops to inform parents on the dangers of “sexually explicit” books, and instigate them to mobilize against LGBTQ2S+ rights, which they characterize as indoctrination.
Early in 2025, the CBC reported on the impact anti-LGBTQ2S+ narratives are having on Albertans. In Valleyview, a small town in northern Alberta, a 17-year-old became fearful of her own neighbours, who accosted the transgender teen for having stood up in support of LGBTQ2S+ titles in the public library’s catalogue.