T
here are many important benefits
of providing children and youth
with a wide variety of developmentally
appropriate reading materials
–
books which reflect their personal
life experiences, as well as the
experiences, stories, and histories of
others in and beyond their commu-
nities. Reading books that represent
a range of perspectives promotes
student achievement, enhances
youth wellbeing, and contributes to
community cohesion. Trusted adults,
including teachers, school librarians,
and public librarians work to provide
access to high-quality reading
materials and teach youth to read
them critically.
Promoting student
achievement and wellbeing
Encouraging students to read is
profoundly important. Reading skills
aect all other aspects of learning
in school, as well as future oppor-
tunities in career and life. Research
has demonstrated that access to
books can outweigh the academic
disadvantages of poverty. Youth read
more when they can choose what
they read and find what they are
reading to be interesting and relevant
to their lives. When they read more,
“
When we provide students with texts
that tug at their hearts, open their minds,
or touch their souls, we are fueling interest, which fuels
engagement, which fuels learning.”
—
Jenny Eisenman
1
KEY TAKEAWAYS
` Providing children and youth with access to a wide variety of reading materials
in which they can both see themselves and experience the lives of others
benefits the individual reader as well as the community.
` Books that engage readers with relevant and authentic stories encourage
deeper and more prolific reading which, in turn, improve students’ academic
achievement, wellbeing, and future opportunities.
` Books on controversial and challenging topics create bridges for dicult
conversations with parents and other trusted adults and help youth critically
navigate their world.
Empowered by Reading
The Benefits of Giving Youth Access to a Wide Variety of Reading Materials
UNITE AGAINST BOOK BANS 1
REPRESENTATION OF YOUTH
IN CHILDREN’S BOOKS
A 2018 study from the Cooperative Children’s Book Center at
the University of Wisconsin–Madison found just 1% of children’s
books depicted American Indian/First Nations characters, 5%
portrayed Latino characters, 7% Asian Pacific Islander/Asian
Pacific American, 10% African/African American, 27% Animals/
Other, while 50% depicted White characters.
2
Elementary and secondary school students in the United States
have a wide variety of backgrounds. Educators and librarians
strive to provide readers with materials that authentically
reflect those backgrounds and the larger world in which they
and their peers live.
3
their reading abilities improve, fueling
a virtuous circle.
6
Giving children and youth access
to books that they can personally
relate to encourages reading,
improving reading outcomes and
student wellbeing. One bilingual
teacher described how her Spanish-
speaking second graders became
much more engaged in reading
when she substituted standard
elementary texts with books that
reflected the social and cultural
experiences of her students.
7
Similar results were found when
African American students in grades
two to eight read culturally relevant
books whose characters, places,
and events reflected their own
experiences. Reading engagement
deepened, and comprehension
scores improved.
8
Encouraging critical
thinking and family
connection
Books that reflect the complexity of
our society and thoughtfully address
dicult and controversial issues
can be valuable tools in helping
young people explore the struggles
of others and the consequences of
decisions.
In one study, teachers provided
eighth grade students with collec-
tions of young adult literature that
had positive reviews, many containing
“disturbing” but also personally
relevant topics. As a result, students
read more, and students and
caregivers reported improvements
in student achievement, personal
growth, development of empathy,
as well as improved caregiver/teen
relationships. Among other things,
the books presented youth and their
families with opportunities to talk
about challenging topics. As one
parent said, “The books give us an
excuse, permission to discuss things
with [our child] that might be harder
to talk about otherwise.” The books
“
Growing up, I was the only mixed person in my school. I wasn’t
allowed to play princesses because there wasn’t a dark princess.
When I moved and went to a more diverse high school I was still
alone because of my sexual orientation. Books allowed
me to find people who are and were like
me and in that never feel alone.”
—
DeAnna S.
4
50%
White
27%
Animals / Other
10%
African /
African
American
7%
Asian Pacific
Islander/
Asian Pacific
American
1%
American Indian/
First Nations
5%
Latino
“
Parents also agree reading is a way
to help their child understand dierent
points of view and help their children find
their place in the world. And, just as many adults
turn to books to help us through dicult times, many parents have
also seen how the right story can support their child through life’s
challenges—a finding that children themselves agree to be true.”
—
Scholastic Kids & Family Reading Report 
5
2 UNITE AGAINST BOOK BANS
also helped students grapple with the
experiences of close family members
on topics like the diculties posed
by teen pregnancy or having a sibling
with a disability.
11
Fostering community
cohesion
Giving youth access to a wide variety
of reading materials has significant
value at the community level as well.
Reading books that feature people
or situations that young people have
little direct experience of in their
own lives can help foster empathy,
tolerance, and connection. Literature
can act as a window, enabling
readers to put themselves in the
shoes of people living lives dierent
from their own.
12
Peering through the
window of literature allows readers to
consider the complexities, nuances,
and diculties of a variety of situa-
tions. This includes learning about
dierent cultures, traditions, religions,
and family situations. For example,
a read-aloud of a book with a child
protagonist who has a parent who is
incarcerated, encouraged fifth grade
students to reflect on the impact of
incarceration on families and helped
students who had experienced this
personally to feel more comfortable
talking about it.
13
Similarly, when kindergarten-age
Korean American children read a
variety of picture books dealing
with racial equality, discrimination,
freedom, and racial diversity, their
attitudes changed over time. Among
other things, the children’s previ-
ously negative attitudes were visibly
reduced, and they were more open
to making diverse friends.
14
Those
benefits extend to older students.
Research shows that when schools
oer an inclusive curriculum, including
relevant reading materials, LGBTQ+
students feel safer and encounter
less bullying. They also report
better mental health and academic
outcomes.
15
Access to books
–
including and,
perhaps, especially those that raise
dicult questions
–
is integral to
healthy development for young people
and our communities. When we ban or
READING WITH A CRITICAL EYE
Teachers and librarians help students learn how to
read and critically reflect on challenging books. Rather
than shielding youth from literature on controversial
topics, we should help students learn to navigate these
narratives. This gives young people an opportunity to reflect on moral
questions, changes in social norms, diering points of view, and the
impact of historical events on the present.
“
When we censor,
we discourage open
discussion instead of
building our children’s
capacity to think
for themselves.”
—
Jerie Blintt 
16
“
As our nation
continues to
diversify, it is
essential that
children learn to
understand the
important role of
their culture and
the cultures of
other people in creating
an overall global culture
respectful of dierences.”
—
Jamie Campbell Naidoo
10
Only
19.6%
of LGBTQ students report
the inclusion of LGBTQ-related
topics in textbooks or
assigned reading.
Only
48.9%
of LGBTQ students report
that they could find books or
information on LGBTQ-related
topics in their school library.
9
SAFER SCHOOL COMMUNITIES
Students who attend schools with LGBTQ-
inclusive curriculum and materials report
feeling safer and experiencing less harassment
than their peers in schools without inclusive
curriculum and materials.
UNITE AGAINST BOOK BANS 3
restrict access to books, we deprive
young people of the opportunity to
see themselves reflected in stories,
to fully engage in their learning, and
to grapple with the complexity of the
real world in which they live and must
learn to navigate. In our pluralistic and
democratic society, every book has
its reader, and professional educators
and librarians connect youth with
those books that nurture literacy,
critical thinking, and other skills and
dispositions necessary for future
success.
REFERENCES
1. Jenny Eisenman (2021): “Why Diversity and
Equity in Content Matters for Reading Growth,”
National Association of Secondary School
Principals. Available at: nassp.org/2021/06/08/
why-diversity-and-equity-in-content-matters-
for-reading-growth.
2. SLJ Sta (2019): “An Updated Look at
Diversity in Children’s Books,” School Library
Journal, June 19, 2019. Available at: slj.com/story/
an-updated-look-at-diversity-in-childrens-books.
3. National Center for Education Statistics (2022):
“Racial/Ethnic Enrollment in Public Schools.”
Institute of Education Sciences. Available at:
nces.ed.gov/programs/coe/indicator/cge/
racial-ethnic-enrollment.
4. Emily Morrow (2018): “14 readers tell us why
diverse books are so important,” On Our Minds
Scholastic Blog. August 20, 2018. Available at:
oomscholasticblog.com/post/14-readers-tell-us-
why-diverse-books-are-so-important.
5. Scholastic (2019): “Kids & Family Reading
Report.” Available at: scholastic.com/readingreport/
home.html.
6. Scholastic (2019): “The Foundational Principles of
Scholastic Literacy.” Available at: teacher.scholastic.
com/education/literacy/research.htm.
7. Sandra Osorio (n.d.): “¿Qué es deportar?
Teaching from students’ lives,” Rethinking Schools.
Available at: rethinkingschools.org/articles/
que-es-deportar-teaching-from-students-lives.
8. Tanya Christ et al (2018). “Cultural relevance and
informal reading inventory performance: African-
American primary and middle school students,”
Literacy Research and Instruction, 57:2, 117
–
134.
9. Joseph G. Kosciw et al (2020): “The 2019
National School Climate Survey: The Experiences
of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender,
and Queer Youth in Our Nation’s Schools,”
GLSEN. Available at: https://www.glsen.org/
research/2019-national-school-climate-survey.
10. Jamie Campbell Naidoo (2014): “The Importance
of Diversity in Library Programs and Material
Collections for Children,” Association for Library
Service to Children. Available at: ala.org/alsc/
sites/ala.org.alsc/files/content/ALSCwhitepaper_
importance%20of%20diversity_with%20graphics_
FINAL.pdf.
11. Gay Ivey and Peter Johnston. “Engaging
Disturbing Books.” Journal of Adolescent & Adult
Literacy, 62: 2 (2018): 143
–
50.
12. Rudine Sims Bishop (1990): “Mirrors, Windows,
and Sliding Glass Doors.” Available at:
scenicregional.org/wp-content/uploads/
2017/08/Mirrors-Windows-and-Sliding-Glass-
Doors.pdf.
13. Mary Ellen Oslick (2013). “Children’s Voices:
Reactions to a Criminal Justice Issue Picture Book.”
The Reading Teacher, 66:7, 543
–
552.
14. So Jung Kim (2015). “Korean-Origin
Kindergarten Children’s Response to African-
American Characters in Race-Themed Picture
Books.” Education Research International, 2015,
1
–
13.
15. Ibid. Joseph G. Kosciw et al.
16. Jerie Blintt (2022): “Why Diversity Needs to Be
at the Heart of Children’s Literature,” International
Literacy Association, May 5, 2022. Available at:
literacyworldwide.org/blog/literacy-now/2022/
05/05/why-diversity-needs-to-be-at-the-heart-of-
children-s-literature.
17. ALA Oce for Intellectual Freedom (2021):
“Who Initiates Challenges?” Available at:
ala.org/advocacy/sites/ala.org.advocacy/files/
content/banned/bannedbooksweek/
2021-OIF-who-initiates-1.jpg.
YOUTH WANT ACCESS TO BOOKS
Recent years have seen rising numbers of demands to ban or restrict
youth access to books in schools and libraries. This is nothing new
—
through history, access to many books that are now considered
classics, such as The Diary of Anne Frank, To Kill a Mockingbird, Of
Mice and Men, Brave New World, and Beloved have been restricted.
Yet, young people themselves are often the starkest
defenders of access to information. In 2021 only 1% of
challenges to books were brought by students.
17
Unite Against Book Bans, an initiative of the American Library Association, is a broad coalition of
organizations and individuals that believe:
1. Reading is a foundational skill, critical to future learning and to exercising our democratic freedoms.
2. Books are tools for understanding complex issues. Limiting young people’s access to books does not
protect them from life’s complex and challenging issues.
3. Individuals should be trusted to make their own decisions about what to read.
4. Parents should not be making decisions for other parents’ children.
5. Young people deserve to see themselves reflected in a library’s books.
Learn more at UniteAgainstBookBans.org.
ABOUT UNITE AGAINST BOOK BANS
4 UNITE AGAINST BOOK BANS