Bookstores and libraries are raising awareness about book bans and the importance of the freedom to read with Banned Books Week (September 18-24, 2022).
From Brick and Mortar Books in Redmond, WA:
WARNING: THESE BOOKS MAY CHALLENGE YOUR WORLDVIEW ⚠
Banned Books Week starts today (9/18) and runs through 9/24, celebrating the freedom to read and spotlighting attempts to censor books in libraries and schools. In 2021, more than 1,597 books were banned or challenged in the US, most of which were by or about Black or LGBTQIA+ persons.
This week, we are donating 20% of all proceeds from our table of banned and challenged books to the ACLU to support their commitment to intellectual freedom. Find out what you can do at ala.org/advocacy/fight-censorship.
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From Queen Anne Book Company in Seattle, WA and Books to Prisoners:
Help Seattle Books To Prisoners (BTP) get more books to prisoners by making book purchases from their wish list during this Banned Books week. Again, a generous donor has offered a match of purchases made here during this week. Together we can get double the number of books we send! Purchases must be made Sep 18-24.
Books to Prisoners is a Seattle-based nonprofit organization whose mission is to foster a love of reading behind bars, encourage the pursuit of knowledge and self-empowerment, and break the cycle of recidivism, believing that books are tools for learning and for opening minds to new ideas and possibilities, and engage incarcerated individuals with the benefits of reading by mailing tens of thousands of free books to inmates across the country each year. In 2015, the City of Seattle recognized BTP as a Human Rights Leader.
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Big thanks to Simon Loves Indies for the graphic at the start of this post. You can sign up for the newsletter to get resources and inspiration here.
