September 25-October 2 is Banned Books Week, “an annual event celebrating the freedom to read and the importance of the First Amendment” (American Library Association). According to the American Library Association, “Banned Books Week highlights the benefits of free and open access to the harms of censorship by spotlighting actual or attempted bannings of books across the United States.”
The theme of this year’s Banned Books Week is “Think for Yourself and Let Others Do the Same.” In honor of this idea, JCPL staff created a display of books that have been challenged or banned across the United States. We hope you’ll ignore the yellow caution tape surrounding the display and check out the books. By doing so, you celebrate your freedom to read without fear of censorship.
For more information about Banned Books Week, click here. To see a list of the most frequently challenged books of the 21st century, click here. Click here to read about individual cases of censorship.
Banned Books Week is sponsored by the American Library Association along with the American Booksellers Association, the American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression, the Association of American Publishers, the American Society of Journalists and Authors, and the National Association of College Stores.
