People for the American Way
People for the American Way (PFAW) is a progressive advocacy organization founded in 1980 by television producer Norman Lear and co-founded by civil rights leader Barbara Jordan. Established as a response to the growing influence of conservative groups, particularly the Moral Majority led by Jerry Falwell, PFAW aims to protect First Amendment rights, promote tolerance, and celebrate diversity in the United States. The organization initially focused on preserving religious freedom and opposing the imposition of fundamentalist Christian beliefs through legislation and institutional practices.
Over time, PFAW expanded its efforts to address censorship in public education, launching an annual survey to document incidents of censorship and challenges to learning, revealing a concerning trend of restrictions on educational materials. By the mid-1990s, PFAW reported hundreds of censorship challenges, particularly in states like Texas, California, and Pennsylvania. As of 1995, the organization boasted over 300,000 members, engaging in grassroots organizing, research, and public education campaigns to advocate for pluralism and freedom of expression. PFAW also operates a corollary organization, the People for the American Way Action Fund, which engages in lobbying and legal advocacy to influence policy at various government levels. With regional offices across the country, PFAW remains a key player in the ongoing conversation about civil liberties and educational freedom in America.
People for the American Way
Founded: 1980
Type of organization: Citizen group dedicated to fighting censorship and protecting First Amendment rights
Significance: Originally founded to combat the procensorship philosophy of the Moral Majority, this organization has also promoted religious freedom, excellence in education, an independent judiciary, and free and open debate of public issues in the media
In 1980 television producer Norman Lear, with the support of a range of liberal, religious, educational, labor, and business leaders, founded PFAW to celebrate and protect First Amendment rights, tolerance, and diversity. This was a direct political reaction to gains made by conservative groups, most notably Jerry Falwell’s Moral Majority. Early activities focused on maintaining religious freedom, not allowing fundamentalist Christians to impose their definitions and practices on entire communities through legislation or institutional directives. Soon PFAW took up the issue of censorship in the schools. It discovered and monitored an interlocking network of extremist organizations exerting influence on school boards and community leaders throughout America, involved in such projects as book banning, book burning, and curriculum restrictions.
In 1982 PFAW began publishing an annual survey of censorship and related challenges to public education. These surveys have generally followed a standard format: The first section analyzes general trends in censorship for the previous year; the second section gives a state-by-state listing of all reported attacks on the freedom to learn, with a short description of each. Since its founding, PFAW has documented a steady rise in censorship activities in the United States, and the American Library Association has estimated that for every censorship incident reported, four or five go unreported. For the 1994-1995 school year, for example, PFAW researchers confirmed 458 censorship challenges in schools throughout the United States, with the highest number reported in Texas, California, and Pennsylvania. In half of all the reported incidents, the challenged materials were subsequently removed or restricted in some way.
PFAW had an estimated membership of slightly more than 300,000 in 1995. Through grassroots organizing, research, and public education it continued to speak out for pluralism, individuality, freedom of expression, freedom of religion, and tolerance. Through its corollary organization, the People for the American Way Action Fund, it has lobbied at all levels of government and provided legal advocacy. It has regional offices in New York; Los Angeles; and Boulder, Colorado; and state offices in Texas and Florida. The national office maintains an extensive research and video library of resources on religious right political groups and leaders.