Freedom to Read Foundation Awards Grants for Banned Books Week Celebrations
Friday, August 13, 2021
Posted by: Joyce McIntosh
The Freedom to Read Foundation has awarded four public libraries and one school library with grants for Banned Books Week celebrations. The theme of this year’s celebration, which runs from Sept. 26-Oct. 2, 2021, is “Books Unite Us. Censorship Divides Us.”
Acadia Parish Library, Crowley, Louisiana. A recent challenge raised awareness for staff that they would like to promote education about banned books. Staff will host a Parish-wide Banned Books Week Poster Contest for Elementary, Middle School, and High School students to raise awareness of Banned Books Week and the issues of censorship and banned books. All entries to the contest will be put on display at The Acadia Parish Library and winners will be selected from the three age groups. Winning entrants will receive $100 for a first prize winner, $50 for second prize, and $25 for third. They will host a community-wide reception at the end and the posters will be on display through October.
Highland County District Library, Hillsboro, Ohio will hold a week-long Banned Books Festival. One highlight is “Dear Banned Author” Day, during which patrons will have the opportunity to write letters to their favorite authors whose works have been banned. The festival will culminate on Friday with a Banned Books Discussion and Dinner, catered by a local business. Throughout the week patrons will be given tickets to be entered in a drawing for a banned book-themed gift basket. The more activities patrons attend, the better chance they will have of winning. The five gift basket themes will be: Harry Potter, To Kill a Mockingbird (southern-themed basket), The Great Gatsby (1920s-themed basket), Lord of the Flies (survival/camping/hiking-themed basket), and The Call of the Wild (dog-themed basket).
New Madrid County Library, Portageville, Missouri. To bring awareness of censorship and banned books to the county’s young people, the library will sponsor an essay contest for all high school and middle school (grades 6-8) students using the “Books Unite Us, Censorship Divides Us” theme. They will award cash prizes of $100 for 1st place, $75 for 2nd place and $50 for 3rd place in both high school and middle school. While adult patrons may be aware that books such as A Catcher in the Rye or To Kill a Mockingbird have been banned in the past, they may not be aware that book censorship is still happening. For this reason, the library will create a display in a high-traffic area and titles that have been challenged or banned during the past 1-2 years will be displayed along with older titles such as those mentioned above.
Patchogue-Medford Library, Patchogue, New York will offer a wide variety of opportunities for its diverse community. A main display will include banned and challenged books wrapped in kraft paper, with the reason for the challenge written on the outside. During the week anyone who checks out a banned book from the display will receive a themed mug. The library will host a community wide ‘Hide A Book’ activity where banned and challenged books will be placed in local businesses for people to find and keep. The main event will be a live author talk featuring Suzanne Nossel, CEO of PEN America. She will talk about the necessity of free speech, listening, and debating to create productive conversations in a democratic society. Patrons may also attend remotely. Finally, the library will offer an educational webinar for staff developed by the ALA Office of Intellectual Freedom.
West Lake Middle School and Northglenn Middle School, Broomfield, Colorado. The only school on the list this year will celebrate by pairing banned books with primary sources, studying events that took place during the time when the book was written, and studying any events that followed the publication of the book. Teachers and staff members will be creating videos about a banned book that impacted them. The videos will be featured on posters with QR codes throughout the district buildings that students can scan to learn more about the titles and experiences. The videos will also be featured in a Goosechase Online Digital Scavenger hunt. Goosechase offers an online experience that allows for interaction, text, GPS location and image clues. There will be prizes offered for the Goosechase Scavenger Hunt and a display in the library about how censorship is a dead end.
The Banned Books Week grants are offered through the Judith F. Krug Memorial Fund. To see projects from past recipients visit the FTRF Grants webpage. The Freedom to Read Foundation has focused on First Amendment litigation, education, and advocacy since 1969. Visit the Freedom to Read Foundation online (http://ftrf.org) to learn more and become a member. Contact Joyce McIntosh at jmcintosh@ala.org with questions.
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