Banned Books Week is all about celebrating the freedom to read,
This year’s theme is “Books Unite Us. Censorship Divides Us.” Sharing stories important to us means sharing a part of ourselves. Books reach across boundaries and build connections between readers. Censorship, on the other hand, creates barriers.
Banned Books Week is an annual event celebrating the freedom to read. During the week of September 26 – October 2, 2021, Wedsworth Library will once again be promoting Banned Book Week. We will have a display of books that have been listed on the ‘Banned Book List’. These books have all been targeted with removal or restrictions in libraries and schools. Books continue to be banned, but part of the Banned Books Week celebration is the fact that, in a majority of cases, the books have remained available. This happens thanks to the efforts of librarians, teachers, students, and community members who stand up and speak out for the freedom to read.
The freedom to read is essential to our democracy and reading is among our greatest freedoms and protected by our Constitution. Intellectual freedom and the freedom to read what we want are essential to creativity and a free society. Words have power and access to diverse ideas gives us all the power to fight ignorance and strengthen understanding. Celebrate the freedom to read by reading your favorite banned book. Fight censorship and exercise your freedom to seek and express ideas, during this year’s Banned Books Week.
“With a central image showing two hands sharing a book, the 2021 Banned Book Week theme is intended to be inclusive and emphasizes the ways in which books and information brings people together, help individuals see themselves in the stories of others, and aid the development of empathy and understanding for people from other backgrounds.”
“Books can help young people and readers of all ages explore worlds, lives, and experiences beyond their own,” said Nora Pelizzari, director of communications for the National Coalition Against Censorship. “This exploration is crucial in learning to think critically and independently and to navigate ourselves through life. Limiting access to ideas hurts everyone, and particularly students. Banned Books Week gives us a chance to champion the diverse ideas books let us explore.”
Wedsworth Library does not promote or permit censorship. “Libraries should challenge censorship in the fulfillment of their responsibility to provide information and enlightenment.” —Article 3, Library Bill of Rights. Censorship by librarians of constitutionally protected speech, whether for protection or for any other reason, violates the First Amendment.
Since its inception in 1982, Banned Books Week has reminded us that while not every book or movie is intended for every reader, each of us has the right to decide for ourselves what to read, listen to, or view. Banned Books Week has looked to help people recognize and navigate censorship.
In the interest of books having a profound effect on us, the Library of Congress created “Books that Shaped America”. This exhibit explored books that “have had a profound effect on American life” and have been banned/challenged. Books such as: ‘The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn’, by Mark Twain, 1884; ‘Invisible Man’, by Ralph Ellison, 1952; and ‘Moby-Dick’; or ‘The Whale’, by Herman Melville, 1851 were included in the exhibit.
American libraries are the cornerstones of our democracy. Libraries are for everyone, everywhere. Because libraries provide free access to a world of information, they bring opportunity to all people. Now, more than ever, celebrate the freedom to read @ your library! Read an old favorite or a new banned book this week.