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Banned Books Week, Lawmakers and Libraries Push Reading Rights

booksOct 8, 202648567

EveryLibrary formally backed the resolution introduced by Representative Jamie Raskin and Senator Brian Schatz defending the freedom to read, write, learn, and access information without government censorship, saying libraries and schools must remain places to encounter ideas and explore history. EveryLibrary Executive Director John Chrastka said the groups applaud Raskin and Schatz for linking these fights and standing up for the constitutional rights of readers, students, educators, librarians, journalists, authors, and every American. The organization warned of an alarming escalation in efforts to remove books, restrict access to information, interfere with librarians' and educators' professional judgment, and use government power to suppress viewpoints and histories some politicians find objectionable. Coverage of the week highlights weird or tautological targets, including Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick’s list that names books about censorship and intellectual freedom among those he wants removed. Librarians quoted in reporting criticized bans of books addressing campus sexual assault, saying efforts to ban such books are especially misguided. EveryLibrary urged every member of Congress to reject government censorship, mobilized activists from small towns to statehouses, and said it will fight to defend the First Amendment and the freedom to read.

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