Today marks the beginning of Banned Books Week. Each and every year I can recall, there has been some sort of incredible book challenge just as we begin celebrating the right to red. This year is no exception. The novel 1984 is being challenged in Idaho. Here is a link to the story: https://www.idahoednews.org/news/jefferson-county-administrators-consider-banning-classic-novel/. what is most heartening here are the responses from the students themselves. They are fighting back against a ban while some of the adults are wanting to "protect" them from the ideas and themes of the book. And so it goes...



Anyone who reads my blog knows where I stand on the right to read. They know I eschew censorship in any form. They know I speak out against attempts to curtail access to books and reading. I am not alone, thankfully. There are organizations who fight against book banning. The American Library Association offers a ton of resources for those who wish to engage in the battle. The Office of Intellectual Freedom (http://www.ala.org/aboutala/offices/oif) and the Banned Books site (http://www.ala.org/advocacy/bbooks/banned) are just two resources. Other resources are located here http://bannedbooksweek.org and here http://ncac.org and here http://www.ftrf.org.

It is imperative that we stand up and speak out when we encounter censorship in any form. There are plenty of opportunities, sadly.