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Bridgeport Public Library : Banned Books Reading Challenge!

Bridgeport, WV – The Bridgeport Public Library challenges the community to join the national conversation on censorship! The library compiled a list of books attached to recent controversies nationwide. To participate in this program, simply register and obtain the list at the library’s circulation desks, beginning Tuesday, September 3rd through Tuesday, September 30th. In most cases, books are banned from school libraries in elementary, middle, and high schools, but this year also witnessed uproar over university curriculum in South Carolina. No matter where you stand on the subject, the library encourages all to be informed regarding the material at the center of debate.

If you have questions about this event, please contact Sarah Nora at 304-842-8248. About Banned Books Week Banned Books Week is an annual event celebrating the freedom to read. Typically held during the last week of September, it highlights the value of free and open access to information. Banned Books Week brings 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. By focusing on efforts across the country to remove or restrict access to books, Banned Books Week draws national attention to the harms of censorship. The books featured during Banned Books Week have all been targeted with removal or restrictions in libraries and schools. While books have been and continue to be banned, part of the Banned Books Week celebration is the fact that, in a majority of cases, the books have remained available. This happens only thanks to the efforts of librarians, teachers, students, and community members who stand up and speak out for the freedom to read. Source: http://www.ala.org/bbooks/bannedbooksweek Books usually are challenged with the best intentions—to protect others, frequently children, from difficult ideas and information. Often challenges are motivated by a desire to protect children from “inappropriate” sexual content or “offensive” language. The following were the top three reasons cited for challenging materials as reported to the Office of Intellectual Freedom: • the material was considered to be "sexually explicit" • the material contained "offensive language" • the materials was "unsuited to any age group" Although this is a commendable motivation, Free Access to Libraries for Minors, an interpretation of the Library Bill of Rights (ALA's basic policy concerning access to information) states that, “Librarians and governing bodies should maintain that parents—and only parents—have the right and the responsibility to restrict the access of their children—and only their children—to library resources.” Censorship by librarians of constitutionally protected speech, whether for protection or for any other reason, violates the First Amendment. Source: http://www.ala.org/bbooks/about According to ALA records, parents challenge materials more often than any other group. Source: http://www.ala.org/bbooks/frequentlychallengedbooks/statistics The above statistics regarding parents refer to the parental challenges brought to the fore to be imposed on children other than their own.