Banned Books Week

    This week we are celebrating Banned Books Week.  Every year during the last week in September librarians, book sellers, and others all over America highlight issues of censorship and reaffirm our commitment to fight for intellectual freedom.
This fight happens on many fronts--at home the Kids’ Right to Read Project fights challenges made against books and promote kids’ freedom to read.  The American Library Association keeps track of book challenges and has lists of frequently challenged books available.  According to their calculations the most frequently challenged and banned book from the last decade is the Harry Potter series, which is often challenged by groups who are afraid it will promote witchcraft to children. Cases of book challenges are also mapped in an interactive map online, which you can view to see what books are being challenged where.
   

In America the first amendment protects authors so that even if their books are banned from certain places, the authors remain free.  This is not the case in all countries, however. Each year during Banned Books Week, Amnesty International highlights stories of individuals who have been persecuted for their writings.  On their website you can find their stories and download petitions and postcards to help them.  Amnesty also keeps track of ways that data are being censored and has interactive maps that highlight online censorship globally.

    A common reaction we hear this week is “That book was banned...but I love that book!” So this week we ask you what is your favorite banned book?  How might your life be different if you had never been able to read it?