America is facing a book banning crisis. Conservative politicians are silencing Black, Brown and LGBTQIA+ voices by forcing librarians to take their books off the shelf. In 2023 alone, 3,059 books were banned - more than in any other year. The Digital Public Library of America holds that our democracy relies on our freedom to read. And believes books should always be available to everyone. https://thebannedbookclub.creativesupportmaterial.com

The DPLA created the most up-to-date database of all of the books banned in America. Then, geo-fenced the exact footprint of every library that banned the books - and made those books available via a mobile app for anyone when they are within those very libraries. Sending a strong message - that every time they try to take a book off the shelf, we'll put it right back, virtually.

The Banned Book Club launched in partnership with President Obama, the most notable defender of our freedom of speech. The campaign reached more than 20 states that have books banned with geo-located Instagram and Facebook ads, that alerted people just as they were near those offending libraries.

The Banned Book Club is a digital solution for today and the future. Whenever a book is banned, it’s added to our database, making it available instantly. Ensuring no book is ever banned again.

We collaborated with the most credible sources on the issue of banned books including Pen America, the ALA, and libraries across the country to develop the most comprehensive database of book bannings in America. We researched the book bannings happening across thousands of municipalities across the country in 21 states. Using available third party data, we updated the database to include the precise geolocation coordinates for over 2,000 libraries. We brought together the database of banned books, geolocation and our existing app that houses over a million digital book titles.

This strategy provided all of the necessary data to execute our initiative to provide access to every banned book at the very location they are banned.

We used this data to target people in communities most affected by the issue. So when they were in proximity of a library with banned books, we alerted them and provided immediate access.

We launched at scale in partnership with President Obama at over 2,000 libraries in 21 states. Our placement for the solution is at the very point of the problem; the libraries being forced to ban books.

The Digital Public Library of America is instrumental in providing digital book services to thousands of libraries across the US. The book banning issue that is growing in America is the perfect issue for the DPLA to address - as the brand’s bedrock is about providing access to knowledge and information.

The DPLA created the most up to date database of all of the books banned in America. Then, geo-fenced the exact footprint of every library that banned the books - and made those books available via a mobile app for anyone when they are within those very libraries.

We developed a digital solution that addresses the immediate need of readers, sending a message to future would-be book banners.

The Banned Book Club was implemented on our existing technology platform called the Palace Project. We transferred the offerings on this existing legacy platform in a way that provides access to banned books based on our dynamic database and geo-fence data.

The Banned Book Club serves millions of Americans by providing them immediate free access to the thousands of books being banned by those pushing their own ideologies. The Club was embraced by the free speech community and led by former President Barack Obama.

The work provided access to thousands of books across thousands of libraries and was downloaded by nearly 80k new users. But as importantly, it sent a strong message to book banners everywhere that if they attempt to ban a book, we will unban it in real-time.