The fault in Canada鈥檚 commercialized censorship & misconceptions about banned books
Student research spotlight by Aurora Campbell
This research-based op-ed was originally written for HUMA 180: Encountering Humanities Research
When walking by sections in libraries or local bookstores, I’ve been proud to see that Canada is fighting against censorship, and that I live in such a free country. But the question arose for me: if these books are banned, why are they so easy for me to access? Eager to learn more, this led me to an investigation of literature attainability, including considering some recent arguments about freedom versus safety. Scouring for controversial pieces that weren’t easy to consume, I've learned about in the process. Book censorship does still exist in Canada, and it shows up in making novels inaccessible to the average reader. This is dangerous because in a democracy people make decisions based on the information available, and we shouldn’t allow the government to influence that.
Are there banned books in Canada?
The government of Canada currently has no federally banned books. refer to books that have been but are no longer banned, or are regionally restricted.
Despite this, some books are inaccessible; either they can’t be shipped to Canada, or they have ludicrous prices and aren’t available digitally. This makes the problem of censorship nuanced. If material is officially banned, that decision is public, meaning it could potentially be unbanned by parliament responding to the will of the people. However, if material isn’t officially banned, but just quietly removed or impossible to find, bringing it back becomes more difficult to address.
For example, in 1971 William Powell published what Time Magazine refers to as a : The Anarchist Cookbook. This novel details the manufacture of weapons and explosives, as well as the DIY production of illicit drugs. Though not “banned” in Canada, accessing it is unviable. On Amazon a is over $460 before tax. Additionally, though it appears to offer a for ten dollars, exploring that option will display the message that “This edition of this title is not available for purchase in your country.”
Inaccessibility and censorship
One argument for these novels’ inaccessibility is that the market rejected them, meaning a disinterest from readers, so publishers stop printing them, and they become . However, books without demand are cheap. If novels are undesirable, they don’t cost hundreds of dollars, as seen and .
Obviously, the Government of Canada is not destroying controversial materials à la Fahrenheit 451. However, there are certainly books with controversial ideas that are effectively impossible for an average person to obtain in Canada, and making them this inaccessible cannot qualify a nation to be censorship-free. Recent arguments concerning freedom versus safety at the federal level make this topic relevant today. In October 2025, Canadian Parliament tabled which creates new offenses for hate speech. Some are saying that the removal of religious exemption, and the corresponding criminalization of sections of religious texts is an and that the law must .
Content control, or censorship?
Content control is well-meaning at first, with the goal of protecting a group of people from some genre of obscenities. It’s reasonable to point out that materials like these seem inherently intolerant, and truthfully some do support ideas that don’t fit into a peaceful society. However, I argue a society structured to ensure a novel can’t turn someone into a public threat is a healthier one. That begins with outreach, not secrets.
When hateful literature is misused, the work itself is not the only factor in the user’s life, and it’s not an immediate cause and effect. This occurs in the same way that kids who play video games aren’t destined to become violent if they also have a community that upholds strong moral values. Put simply, introduction to violent media is most harmful ” like a supportive community that buffers the media from being a model for youth.
Anti-censorship infrastructure is necessary if a nation wants to succeed, and giving into censorship is submitting to the accumulation of power. In Canada’s context, we would benefit from exploring new legislation that doesn’t stealthily ban books under the guise of “safety”. Additionally, I believe we would be well served by public discussion of why certain books or materials are nearly impossible to get in Canada, when that isn’t the case for the same materials in other places.
Controversial literary materials should be protected from unreasonable prices, when they aren’t special editions and can be reproduced. I don’t claim that these materials are benign, and want to emphasize that media — just like the absence of it — has power. However, it is better to live in a nation that acknowledges the power of dangerous media, while offering their own data and discussion, than to live in a state that claims informational abstinence is the only way to protect their citizens. I challenge readers to consider their values on free literature, and reflect on their knowledge of the process by which media can be removed.