Banned books are on display in the GCC Library to bring attention to Banned Books Week (September 22-28), with the theme “Freed Between the Lines”. The freedom to explore new ideas and different perspectives is under threat, and book bans don’t just restrict access to stories—they undermine our rights. Now is the time to come together, celebrate the right to read, and find freedom in the pages of a book. Let’s be “Freed Between the Lines.”
Banned Books Week celebrates the freedom to read and spotlights current and historical attempts to censor books in libraries and schools. For 40 years, the annual event has brought together the entire book community — librarians, booksellers, publishers, journalists, teachers, and readers of all types — in shared support of the freedom to seek and to express ideas, even those some consider unorthodox or unpopular. The books featured during Banned Books Week have all been targeted for removal or restriction in libraries and schools. [from the ALA Office for Intellectual Freedom website]
To read more about book bans, including current data throughout the U.S., please download this pdf from the ALA: OIF-CensorshipByTheNumbers-2024
Part-time Reference Librarian Bryan Schuff posing with his Banned Books display, wearing his banned books shirt!