Banned Books Week is an annual event celebrating the freedom to read and promoting awareness about books that have been historically banned or challenged. The event first started in 1982 when Judith Krug, a librarian and activist, partnered with the American Library Association's Intellectual Freedom Committee to bring public attention to banned books.
Pence Law Library is committed to the freedom to read and consistently partakes in the promotion of Banned Books Week. We welcome you to stop by the Circulation Desk to see our Banned Books Week display and grab a bookmark, or peruse the online resources collected below.
Starting October 1-7, 2023 during the national Banned Books Week initiative and continuing throughout the month of October, the DC Public Library offers a variety of special programs and activities that celebrate the public library’s role as a space of intellectual and creative freedom.
Brooklyn Public Library provides free ebook access to commonly banned books along with other resources related to their Books Unbanned initiative.
The Marshall Project, a nonprofit criminal justice journalism organization developed a "reporting recipe" based on a year of reporting on banned books in prisons. Click here to learn about the Marshall Project's reporting and learn why the issue of banned books in prisons matters.
Amnesty International is a sponsor of Banned Books Week. Click here to see their resources, including a list of recently challenged books.
The Comic Book Legal Defense Fund is a regular sponsor of Banned Books Week. Click on the image below to see their many resources related to banned book awareness.
HB 2281 is an Arizona state bill that is commonly used as justification in the banning of books across school boards in the state. Click the images below to read the bill and to see a list of books that have been banned as a result of HB 2281. There are other states that have recently proposed similar bills, as detailed in the news article below.
The American Library Association's Freedom to Read Statement outlines the tenants that libraries abide by in protecting patron access to books.
View the top 10 most challenged books of 2021 in the infographic below. Click on it to see the lists for previous years.
