Barack Obama kicks off TikTok campaign defending 'banned books:' 'Librarians are on the front lines'

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Former President Barack Obama appeared in what’s expected to be the first in a series of TikToks to promote reading books that defy "profoundly misguided" restriction efforts.

The Kankakee Public Library in Illinois debuted a video that featured a series of people reading books that have faced controversy, such as Alice Walker’s "The Color Purple" and Angie Thomas’ "The Hate U Give." The video ended with Obama reading from a book himself while drinking from a Kankakee Public Library mug.

The Washington Post reported that Obama has filmed multiple videos in libraries throughout the country to support library services and access to books.

"To have someone like President Obama appreciating the work that we do, and also sharing our mission for intellectual freedom, it just couldn’t come at a better time," Harris County Public Library system program director Linda Stevens said.

Former President Barack Obama filmed a series of TikTok videos in libraries all over the country. (Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

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The video is a response to efforts to restrict school libraries from carrying books considered political or containing explicit material. According to PEN America’s Index of School Book Bans lists, nearly 1,500 books were banned from schools in the first half of the 2022-2023 school year.

Obama attacked these efforts in a letter posted on his Twitter account Monday, highlighting how most of them target "people of color, Indigenous people, and members of the LGBTQ+ community."

"Today, some of the books that shaped my life—and the lives of so many others—are being challenged by people who disagree with certain ideas or perspectives. It’s no coincidence that these ‘banned books’ are often written by or feature people of color, Indigenous people, and members of the LGBTQ+ community—though there have also been unfortunate instances in which books by conservative authors or books containing ‘triggering’ scenes have been targets for removal," Obama said in his open letter to librarians.

He continued, "Either way, the impulse seems to be to silence, rather than engage, rebut, learn from or seek to understand views that don’t fit our own. I believe such an approach is profoundly misguided, and contrary to what has made this country great."

In a followup tweet, he referred people to the Unite Against Book Bans campaign from the American Library Association to "support librarians and defend the right to read."

In Florida, the Parental Rights in Education prohibits educators from distributing classroom instruction about "gender identity" or "sexual orientation." (Jefferee Woo/Tampa Bay Times via AP)

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At the forefront of book restrictions in school libraries is Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ Parental Rights in Education Law which prohibits school employees or third parties from distributing materials on "gender identity" or "sexual orientation" throughout all grade levels.

DeSantis has also criticized efforts by mainstream media to paint his law as an outright ban against books rather than a response to parental objection.

"They are doing that to try to create a narrative, they're not doing that because Florida has a law," DeSantis said. "They're doing it because they know there is enough people in corporate media who will just take that, and run with that… if it is explicit and pornographic, parents have the right to object."

The Washington Post reported that 75% of picture book challenges focused on LGBT content. (Duval County Public Schools)

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The Washington Post reported 75% of children's picture books that have been challenged involved "titles with LGBTQ characters and storylines."