Banned Books Week: Sept 26 - Oct 3

[Zomby Woof]

http://www.ala.org/ala/issuesadvocacy/banned/bannedbooksweek/index.cfm

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.

The books featured during Banned Books Week have been targets of attempted bannings. Fortunately, while some books were banned or restricted, in a majority of cases the books were not banned, all thanks to the efforts of librarians, teachers, booksellers, and members of the community to retain the books in the library collections. Imagine how many more books might be challenged—and possibly banned or restricted—if librarians, teachers, and booksellers across the country did not use Banned Books Week each year to teach the importance of our First Amendment rights and the power of literature, and to draw attention to the danger that exists when restraints are imposed on the availability of information in a free society.

Banned Books Week is sponsored by the American Booksellers Association; American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression; the American Library Association; American Society of Journalists and Authors; Association of American Publishers; and the National Association of College Stores. It is endorsed by the Center for the Book in the Library of Congress.

[LynneSin]

1. Our local independant bookstore showcases this week every year

The chain ones don't even bother.

[Zomby Woof]

2. I worked at B&N p/t from '94 to '98

We had a huge display table featuring many of the books that had been targeted over the years, with a brochure about it, and Banned Books Week themed bookmarks for anyone to take. I haven't set foot in a B&N in some time, but it would be sad indeed if they are now overlooking this. Hell, from a commercial standpoint, it makes perfect sense to promote it: Banned books have a forbidden aura (not deserved, but you get the idea) that should create some built-in sales. And many of them are already popular titles, such as Harry Potter and so forth.