Banned Books and Censorship: Information Resources
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Most would-be book banners act with what they consider to be the highest
motives -- protecting themselves, their families and communities from
perceived injustices and evil and preserving the values and ideals they
would have the entire society embrace. The result, however, is always
and ever the denial of another's right to read. This Web page is offered
in support of our basic right to read guaranteed in the First
Amendment to the Constitution of the United States.
The message of Banned Books Week
is more than the freedom to choose, the freedom to express one's opinion
even if that opinion might be considered unorthodox or unpopular. The
essential message of Banned Books Week is the importance of ensuring the
availability of those unorthodox or unpopular viewpoints to all who wish
to read them.
American libraries have a long tradition of supporting intellectual freedom
as expressed in the Library Bill of Rights and
its interpretations.
Banned Books Week, through such activities as making available lists of books that have been banned or challenged (such as Banned
Books On-line or Most
Frequently Challenged Books in the 1990s),
stimulates awareness of our right to read the materials of our choice.
Attempts to restrict access to materials of our choice are not a thing
of the past, nor are they restricted to any city, state, or nation. Even
in the 1990s numerous books, magazines, online sevices, and other material
have come under fire. The Fileroom keeps
track of censorship worldwide. Organizations in other countries have pages devoted to censorship
issues relevant to them. And, of course, since the introduction of the
Communications Decency
Act of 1996, censorship of electronic resources has been a
hot topic on the web.
Banned Books Week is sponsored by the American Booksellers Association, the American Booksellers Foundation
for Free Expression, the American
Library Association, the American
Society of Journalists and Authors, the Association of American Publishers
and the National Association of College
Stores. It is also endorsed by the Library of Congress' Center
for the Book.
For more information, see our list of
related web sites.
Questions? Please consult our FAQ.
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