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As book bans continue to surge across the country, there is heightened national concern about censorship and the limitations imposed on young people’s education and enrichment. At the same time, organizations, individuals, and communities are invested in fighting bans, supporting authors, and taking action on behalf of targeted books and those who benefit from them. Booksellers and libraries, for example, can give visibility to the titles most frequently affected, many of which are written by and for LGBTQ+ people and BIPOC. But anyone can get involved in fighting book bans, and there’s never been a better time to do so.
In conjunction with Banned Books Week (September 22-28, 2024), an annual event established in 1982 to draw attention to problems of censorship, we share a few ways you can support efforts to fight book bans in your community, and on a larger scale, too.
We attended the ALA Conference this year and had a blast connecting with librarians and publishers. Here are some of our key takeaways.
Many thanks to Michelle Lee, of NYPL's Riverside Library, who tells us about their Grow Up Work Fashion Lending Library!
Can you please tell us a bit about the Grow Up Work Fashion Lending Library? What is it? To whom is it available?
This program lets any teen or adult who has a New York Public Library card with low (below $15) or no fines borrow a tie, briefcase or handbag for job interviews, prom, graduation or other special events. Items may be borrowed once for a three-week loan period, and must be returned in-person to the Riverside Library staff. The late fee is $.25 a day per item. The replacement fee for ties is $25 and varies for briefcases and handbags.
Many thanks to Darcus Smith, of Metropolitan Library System's Edmond Library in Oklahoma, who shares a successful idea for honoring military veterans on Veterans Day:
Last winter we had an awesome three-tier display for Veterans Day (November 11th) that featured books about all branches of the military. In addition, we invited our library patrons to write the names of their loved ones who had served in the military on white stars, so others could read their names.
The picture here is an early shot, but as word spread, the tiers were full and it became a huge, beautiful display of white stars. This idea could also be adapted for Memorial Day - there's so much that can be done in remembrance of our veterans.
BookBrowse suggests the following non-fiction titles:
Does your library have an idea - big or small - to share?
We would love to hear it!
To receive more librarian ideas in your mailbox, subscribe to BookBrowse's Librarian Newsletter: A monthly newsletter geared towards the interests of public librarians with reading lists, previews, advice & tips, news, and special offers.
September 23rd is the start of Banned Books Week, an annual awareness campaign promoted by the American Library Association and Amnesty International that celebrates the freedom to read, draws attention to banned and challenged books and highlights persecuted individuals. Last year's top ten banned titles consisted mainly of titles written for children and teens that address sex and gender, and two adult titles read in schools: The Kite Runner and To Kill a Mockingbird.
In honor of Banned Books Week, here's part of an interesting infographic of the top banned books in different genres, the reasons why they've been banned in the past, and interesting facts and stats. You can see the full infographic at Invaluable.
Dean Baumeister at Memorial Hall Library in Andover, Massachusetts talks about ways to maximize a library's welcome kit.
Hello Dean! Please tell us about Memorial Hall Library's welcome kit; I'm curious to hear what you include.
While welcome kits certainly aren't unique to MHL, we do a few things that other libraries might enjoy knowing about. We include a library-branded tote bag - either green or blue - with each kit. These are generously paid for by our Friends of Memorial Hall Library group. New patrons often react quite positively when being given a bag for their books, and they sometimes request more information about services highlighted in our kits.
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