Banned Books Week celebrates freedom to read

salvetoday Posted On September 22, 2014
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The McKillop Library is celebrating Banned Books Week with a series of activities, including a panel discussion scheduled for Wednesday, Sept. 24. Students who participate in the week’s ongoing activities will have the chance to win a gift card and a banned book.

Wednesday’s panel discussion, “From Mayan Codexes to Mahfouz’s ‘Children of the Alley’: Books Banned Across the Ages,” will be held at 3 p.m. in the library. The discussion will be moderated by Dr. Sally Gomaa, associate professor of English and communications, and Dr. Jon Marcoux, assistant professor of cultural and historic preservation. Light refreshments will be served.

Other activities taking place in the library include:

  • Take a photo with your favorite banned book at the “I read banned books” photo booth and upload it to the library’s Facebook page or Twitter feed for a chance to win a $50 Amazon gift card. Make “I read banned books” buttons and proudly wear your freedom to read.
  • Answer Facebook/Twitter trivia for the chance to win a banned book.
  • Rescue a banned book by putting it safely back in its home on the library’s shelves, learn more about what the library can do for you, and enter to win a $50 Amazon gift card.

Banned Books Week highlights the value of free and open access to information by bringing together librarians, booksellers, publishers, journalists, teachers and readers of all types to support the freedom to seek and to express ideas, even those some consider unorthodox or unpopular.