Banned Books Week is an annual event that highlights the importance of intellectual freedom and the right to access a wide range of ideas, perspectives and stories.
Many well-known books have faced challenges or calls for removal over the years, often because they explore complex, controversial or challenging topics. Banned Books Week encourages us to reflect on the value of diverse voices and the role reading plays in helping us better understand the world around us.
Libraries are committed to supporting access to information, encouraging curiosity, and creating opportunities for exploration and learning. Whether a book challenges our views, broadens our perspective, or simply introduces us to a different experience, reading helps us engage with new ideas.
To learn more about current debates around censorship and access to information, staff and students can watch Storyville: The Librarians on Box of Broadcasts (BoB). The documentary explores how librarians are responding to increasing challenges to books and library collections, and the important role they play in defending the freedom to read.
This Banned Books Week, why not pick up a book you’ve never considered before, revisit a challenged classic, or explore something new from the library’s collections?
Happy reading!