Banned Books Week

Banned Books Week 2012 starts this Saturday. In celebration, the Arkansas State Library will have a display of some frequently banned books, and some members of the staff have written reviews of some of the banned books they have read. The Central Arkansas Library System has a banned book related event scheduled for Saturday evening at the Main Branch in the River Market. For more information on that event, check their website. Here is the official description of Banned Books Week from the American Library Association:

Banned Books Week (BBW) is an annual event celebrating the freedom to read and the importance of the First Amendment.  Held during the last week of September, Banned Books Week highlights the benefits of free and open access to information while drawing attention to the harms of censorship by spotlighting actual or attempted bannings of books across the United States.
Intellectual freedom—the freedom to access information and express ideas, even if the information and ideas might be considered unorthodox or unpopular—provides the foundation for Banned Books Week.  BBW stresses the importance of ensuring the availability of unorthodox or unpopular viewpoints for all who wish to read and access them.

For more information about banned books and Banned Books Week, visit the Banned Books Week homepage.