This year’s honorees at the 2025 Eleanor Roosevelt Banned Book Awards

Every year, Banned Books Week reminds us of the power of stories and the ongoing fight to protect our freedom to read them. In a time when book bans are surging across the United States, this annual event (Oct. 5–11, 2025) is more than a celebration; it’s a call to action.

This year, Banned Books Week will culminate in a powerful moment of recognition: the Eleanor Roosevelt Awards for Bravery in Literature, presented on Oct. 11, 2025 at the historic Bardavon Opera House in Poughkeepsie, New York. These awards will honor authors whose works have faced censorship yet continue to champion human rights, racial justice, LGBTQ+ visibility, and gender equality.

What are the Eleanor Roosevelt Banned Book Awards?

Founded by the Eleanor Roosevelt Center, the awards build on Roosevelt’s legacy as a tireless advocate for civil liberties and intellectual freedom. A writer herself, Eleanor Roosevelt believed that censorship undermined democracy. In a 1959 column, she wrote:

“I don't think any book should be banned by a censor. We should try to educate the public so that it will not buy books that have no literary value. I think an educated public is quite capable of doing its own censoring.”

The awards recognize authors whose books have been challenged, banned, or targeted, yet continue to inspire and empower readers. At the heart of the awards is Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which Roosevelt helped champion: the right to seek, receive, and impart information.

The 2025 honorees

This year’s honorees include authors and librarians whose works have sparked dialogue and faced censorship, yet remain vital to the cultural conversation.

Margaret Atwood, author of The Handmaid’s Tale, will receive the Lifetime Achievement Award.

A chilling, feminist dystopian novel set in a theocratic regime where women’s rights are stripped away—now a critically acclaimed Hulu series starring Elisabeth Moss.

Becky Calzada, a Texas librarian and freedom-to-read advocate, will be honored with the Literary Freedom Award.

Becky is the District Library Coordinator in Leander, Texas, is a leading voice for intellectual freedom and co-founder of the grassroots group Texas #FReadom Fighters. A longtime advocate for school librarians, she currently serves as AASL President and was honored by People Magazine in 2023 as one of its “Women Changing the World.”

Matthew A. Cherry & Vashti Harrison for Hair Love

A devoted dad steps up to style his daughter’s hair for a special day, celebrating self-confidence, family bonds, and the beauty of natural hair from Academy-Award winning director and former NFL wide receiver Matthew A. Cherry and New York Times bestselling illustrator Vashti Harrison.

Juno Dawson for This Book Is Gay

A candid, funny, and inclusive guide to gender and sexuality for teens, offering honest answers, real stories, and empowering advice for LGBTQ+ youth and allies.

John Green for Looking for Alaska

A poignant coming-of-age novel about love, loss, and self-discovery, following a teen’s search for meaning at boarding school and the unforgettable girl who changes everything.

Malinda Lo for Last Night at the Telegraph Club

A gripping, tender coming-of-age novel exploring identity, queerness, and historical upheaval set in San Francisco’s Chinatown during the 1950s.

Justin Richardson & Peter Parnell for And Tango Makes Three

The heartwarming true story of two penguins who create a nontraditional family.

About this year’s ceremony

The awards ceremony will be co-presented by PEN America, whose Freedom to Read Program has documented nearly 16,000 book bans in public schools since 2021. Jennifer Finney Boylan, author and PEN America’s president, will deliver the keynote address.

The event will also feature a panel moderated by Hilarie Burton Morgan, actress and bestselling author of Grimoire Girl and The Rural Diaries. Panelists include leaders in the fight for intellectual freedom:

• Deborah Caldwell-Stone, Director of the ALA’s Office for Intellectual Freedom
• Cameron Samuels, Executive Director of Students Engaged in Advancing Texas (SEAT)

The last word

The Eleanor Roosevelt Awards remind us that authors who write boldly deserve our recognition and support. As Eleanor Roosevelt once said:

“You have got to be willing to listen, to allow people to state any point of view they may have... for no reason whatsoever should we allow ourselves to be dominated by fear so that we curtail civil liberties.”

Let’s celebrate the authors who refuse to be silenced and the readers who keep their stories alive. For more information or to purchase event tickets and merchandise, visit ervk.org/banned-books/.