Premieres Monday, Feb. 9, 2026 at 10 p.m on KPBS TV / Stream with KPBS+
The award-winning documentary, “The Librarians,” offers a gripping, human look at the escalating wave of book bans unfolding across the United States. The film follows a courageous network of besieged librarians as they unite to examine how book restriction policies are shaping library collections.
From Oscar-nominated Director/Producer Kim A. Snyder ("Death By Numbers," “Newtown,” “Us Kids”) and Executive Producer Sarah Jessica Parker through her Pretty Matches Productions banner, “The Librarians” takes viewers from Texas to Florida and beyond, where local libraries have become unexpected battlegrounds in a national struggle over parental control, intellectual freedom, and democracy itself.
Sparked by the controversial “Krause List” in Texas, which targets 850 books centered on race and LGBTQIA+ stories, the film takes a deep investigative dive into the escalating movement against book banning.
The film captures the courage and resilience of the everyday heroes, librarians, as well as concerned parents and students flanking them, who have become first responders in the fight for the freedom to read, standing defiantly against censorship at all costs.
Filmmaker Quotes:
“When we began this journey three and a half years ago, I was inspired by the courage of everyday librarians who risked so much to protect our First Amendment rights,” said Kim A. Snyder, director/producer of “The Librarians.” “As we embedded in Texas, we evolved our vision to expand the scope of their stories into an odyssey with national dimension against the backdrop of a historically unique time, imbued by archival references and some of our greatest challenged books.”
“Fighting a coordinated effort to ban books in public schools, librarians have become the canary in the coal mine—often at great personal and professional risk—when they find themselves at the center of censorship debates in communities across the country,” said Lois Vossen, a founding executive producer of INDEPENDENT LENS.
“The Librarians” explores our most sacred American ideal, the Freedom of Expression, and reminds us what's at stake when conformity outlaws curiosity, endangers free thinking, and, in the case of some librarians, criminalizes public service. It’s absolutely at the center of what ITVS and INDEPENDENT LENS stands for—supporting films that inspire thoughtful discussion and champion the freedoms that define our communities.”
Across the country, librarians are standing on the front lines of this debate on access to information. Champions like Amanda Jones, a school librarian in Livingston Parish, Louisiana, and Martha Hickson of North Hunterdon High School in Annandale, New Jersey, have faced harassment, death threats, and even been labeled “criminals” for defending students’ rights to read books that explore LGBTQIA+ experiences and racial justice.
Despite retaliation and public attacks, librarians such as former Keller Independent School District librarian Audrey Wilson-Youngblood, Florida elementary school librarians Julie Miller and Marie Masferrer, and former Llano County librarian Suzette Baker continue to advocate for the freedom to read, and protect access to books for their communities.
The Librarians Film on Facebook / Instagram
Credits: Directed by Oscar-Nominated Kim A. Snyder and Executive Produced by Sarah Jessica Parker. Produced by Janique L. Robillard, Maria Cuomo Cole, and Jana Edelbaum.
