This year during Banned Books Week 2022 (Sept. 18-24), not only are books being banned, but also the right to teach about racism and LGBTQI identity — essentially placing thousands more titles off limits. The official lists of banned books, while useful, are a drop in the bucket.

The Oklahoma law HB 1775, passed in 2021, restricts teaching that could make a student “feel discomfort, guilt, anguish or any other form of psychological distress on account of his or her race or sex.”

Proponents of the bills argue they are protecting children from feeling guilty and from propaganda.

In addition to banning books and curriculum, the right is threatening teachers who pledge to teach truthfully.

In Oklahoma, the state has gone beyond attacking individual teachers to punishing entire school districts. Lawmakers’ intent is to stifle discussions about race and justice in every classroom in the state. As Jeremy C. Young and Jeffrey Sachs explain in the Tulsa World,

The recent attacks draw on the same language used over the past decade in attempts to ban people’s history in K–12 classrooms in Tucson, Arizona; Arkansas; and Indiana. In those cases, grassroots efforts helped to protect students’ right to learn.

Historian Kidada E. Williams reminds us that teachers must work collectively to defend the right to teach truthfully. Check out the audiogram below from the Howard Zinn Centennial.

For Banned Books Week, make sure more students read banned books and learn the history missing from textbooks. With your donation to the Zinn Education Project, we can equip thousands more classroom teachers to bring people’s history to millions of students.