“I am no bird; and no net ensnares me: I am a free human being with an independent will.”

-Charlotte Bronte, Jane Eyre

Wednesday, September 24, 2014

Have You Read a Banned Book Today?

     The United States stands out from the world as a pillar of freedom and liberty.  At least I thought that was the idea.  And yet amongst all our so called freedoms there is still a need to stand up against censorship.  It is still a place where many think it perfectly appropriate to tell others what they can and can't read.  This makes no sense to me at all.  In my opinion, censorship more often than not is the product of ignorance.  The books under attack have frequently never even been read by those who think they should be banned.  How do you fight ignorance?  With education.  Hence a week to promote those books that have made the naughty list.  If you're curious about which books have been challenged the American Library Association has a list here.  I bet you'll be surprised by some of the titles on the list.  It's not all 50 Shades of Grey.  To Kill a Mockingbird, for example, has made the list more than once.  For ideas on how to celebrate banned books week check out this site.
     Alright, I'll get down off my soap box now.  
photo credit: <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/mjlaflaca/163862635/">mj*laflaca</a> via <a href="http://photopin.com">photopin</a> <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.0/">cc</a>

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