We’re now into the second half of Banned Books Week, when attention is paid to censorship and celebrating the freedom to read. Banned Books Week (BBW) unites the community of librarians, booksellers, publishers, journalists, teachers, and readers in shared support of the freedom to seek and express ideas.
In the United States, since 1982 when BBW began, there have been official challenges to more than 11,300 books! Some of the most challenged books are the most popular, like recognizable titles of the list toppers of 2013: Fifty Shades of Grey, Captain Underpants, The Perks of Being a Wallflower, and The Hunger Games. I, of course, come down on the side of, “If it ain’t your cup of tea, don’t read it…”
In celebration, and some easy defiance of those that would curtail intellectual freedoms, honor banned books by volunteering with a program like READ Global, whose work in Bhutan, Nepal, and India is building and filling libraries for entire communities that were previously book-poor. Since their start in 1991, more than 2.1 million villagers have access to READ centers, and the mission has grown from supporting access to books and supporting literacy, to also taking on broader education issues, economic empowerment, technology, and women’s empowerment. Find out more, and support READ here.
Change by Doing 