Banned Books Week (September 18 – 24, 2022) is an annual event celebrating the freedom to read. Typically held during the last week of September, it spotlights current and historical attempts to censor books in libraries and schools. It 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.
In 2021, the American Library Association’s Office for Intellectual Freedom (OIF) tracked 729 challenges to library, school, and university materials and services, affecting 1,597 books. OIF has documented 681 challenges to books through the first eight months of 2022, involving 1,651 different titles
The office also noted a focus on demands to remove books that addressed racism and racial justice or those that shared the stories of Black, Indigenous, or people of color. A list of banned and challenged titles can be found on the ALA website. Click here to visit ALA’s website.
A challenge is an attempt to remove or restrict materials, based upon the objections of a person or group. A banning is the removal of those materials.
As a public library, FCL is committed to providing all community members with equal access to information. The decision to read any materials is left up to the individual or the individual’s caretaker. You can read FCL’s Collection Development Policy here.
You may download a copy of ALA’s 2020-2021 Banned & Challenged Books Report here.