Celebrate Banned Books Week 2023 with YDL

Let Freedom Read

A letter from Julianne Smith, Assistant Director

October 1–7 is Banned Books Week! This year’s theme is “Let Freedom Read,” with a focus on overcoming censorship and protecting the right to read.

Each year, libraries across the country celebrate Banned Books Week to raise awareness about the dangers of censorship. The American Library Association reported that 2022 saw the highest number yet of recorded attempts to remove books from our country’s libraries. Headlines across the nation’s newspapers published dramatic and alarming stories about the “censorship wars,” librarians being attacked and vilified, and de-funding public libraries.

Our profession—known for its welcoming and inclusive approach to helping people access information—has been targeted and disparaged, with librarians being called “pedophiles” and “groomers,” among other names. Librarians have long served as both the keepers of information and the protectors of our right to privately access that information. We select, organize, and make available information in its many formats, and, without bias, allow citizens to arrive at their own informed conclusions. In short, our libraries are the places where our residents can freely become informed. Love it or hate it, if you can’t access it, you don’t have an opportunity to form an opinion. Censorship thus happens when some people or groups succeed in imposing their personal, political, or moral values on others. Protecting the freedom to read is a core tenet of librarianship, and we are prepared to continue this fight every day. For as Pericles wrote in c. 425 BC, “Freedom is the sure possession of those alone who have the courage to defend it.” Your YDL librarians have that courage.

Banned Books Week 2023 in a nutshell

When: Oct. 1-7

2023 Theme: Let Freedom Read

2023 Honorary Chair: LeVar Burton

“Books bring us together. They teach us about the world and each other. The ability to read and access books is a fundamental right and a necessity for life-long success,” says Burton. “But books are under attack. They’re being removed from libraries and schools. Shelves have been emptied because of a small number of people and their misguided efforts toward censorship. Public advocacy campaigns like Banned Books Week are essential to helping people understand the scope of book censorship and what they can do to fight it. I’m honored to lead Banned Books Week 2023.”