FTRF Announces 2022 Banned Books Week Grant Recipients

Chicago, IL
August 16, 2022

Freedom to Read Foundation Announces Grant Recipients for Projects Reflecting the theme: Books Unite Us: Censorship Divides Us

The Freedom to Read Foundation has awarded six organizations $1000 each to support activities that raise awareness of intellectual freedom and censorship issues during the annual Banned Books Week celebration (September 18 - 24, 2022). The organizations were asked to design initiatives that showed imagination and creativity around the theme, “Books Unite Us: Censorship Divides Us.”

The 2022 recipients include:

Athens-Clarke County Library – Athens, GA
Staff at Athens-Clarke County Library will take inspiration from their permanent exhibit “Imagination Squared: Pathways to Resilience” to stand up to the challenges that are getting closer and closer to all communities. The exhibit features nearly 2,000 5”x 5” block squares that were decorated by community members on the theme “What Resilience Means to You.” The squares span an entire wall and make a significant impact on library visitors. Participants in their Banned Books Week program will decorate a 5” x 5” canvas board using the theme “Books Unite Us.” The event will be aimed at all ages with one program for teens and one for the community. Each event will begin with an overview of Banned Book Week, the importance of intellectual freedom, and the harm that comes from book banning. An art instructor at the University of Georgia who is also the founder of Imagination Squared, will speak about resilience and how art helps build connections. 

Friends of the Chesapeake Public Library – Chesapeake, VA
Chesapeake Public Library (CPL) wants to fight back against the division that comes with attempts at censorship. To raise awareness, staff are making banned books the focus of their third annual Black Ink festival, an all-day festival that celebrates local authors of color. During this year's festival, they will offer writing workshops, poetry slams, panel discussions on the importance of diversity in the publishing industry, a tent giving away free copies of banned books and a keynote speech from Chesapeake's own Kwame Alexander. Kwame has had several books banned, including New York Times best-seller "The Undefeated". During his speech, he will speak to all the ways that books unite us. Black Ink is for all-ages. With the ongoing book challenges in their local school district, this year's festival will target local middle and high school students— especially those who are underserved. The program will highlight their growing partnership with administrators and teachers at Chesapeake Public Schools.

Kean University, Common Read Program -  Sayre, PA
Kean University’s Common Read Program will include students, faculty, and administrators from General Education, Psychology, English, Speech Language Pathology, ESL, Communications, and others as they join to read one common book. The Common Read Program champions the idea that a single book can join a diverse community together, expanding critical thinking habits for the institution at large. After a multi-step selection process, the 2022 common read book chosen is one the ALA’s top-ten most challenged books of 2021: LGBTQ+ activist George M. Johnson’s memoir-manifesto All Boys Aren’t Blue. Kean University will welcome Johnson to campus on October 11, 2022, National Coming Out Day. As Johnson is a member of Alpha Phi Alpha, the Common Read program is working alongside Greek life to engage fraternities and sororities as part of the welcoming ceremony. After a meet & greet and book signing, Johnson will engage in a short reading followed by a student-led Q&A. Afterwards, they will celebrate Johnson’s visit with a gallery reception at the University Human Rights Institute. 

Mary Lou Johnson Hardin County Library - Kenton, OH
Staff of Mary Lou Johnson Hardin County Library will host a program “Books Unite Us- Expanding Our Cultural Horizons” including a “world fair” of stations where patrons will learn about banned books in diverse cultures and societies. Each station will detail a culture/society and why they banned specific books. Attendees will receive a “passport” to have stamped as they complete their trip around the world. The program will include an in-person opportunity at the beginning of Banned Books Week, as well as a digital version for those who cannot attend. The online program will include daily updates from each culture/system and ask for online participation- rewarding participants with virtual items such as free printables, digital resources, and physical prizes/items that can be mailed. The heart behind this program is to encourage participants to broaden their knowledge of other cultures and belief systems. Staff hope that participants will be able to see banned books in a different perspective- and learn more about other cultures and systems. 

Medina County District Library  - Medina, OH
The Medina County District Library (MCDL) is collaborating with Medina County Juvenile Detention Center (JDC), Access the Arts, and all 6 District Library locations to provide programming to children and teens ages 10-18 from Medina County, Ohio focused on “Books Unite Us: Censorship Divides Us” through artistic mediums including painting, poetry, and music. Because staff felt the celebration of the Freedom to Read needs more than a single week, their timeline began in July 2022 and runs through March 2023. 

"Students from all over the county, including students from our juvenile detention center, united to contribute to our community mural which depicts their artistic interpretation of the concept of censorship while displaying a love of books and reading" said Suzie Muniak, Assistant Director of Medina County District Library.

Finished and recorded projects will reflect the uniqueness of the youth of Medina County, and the  collaborative effort made to create a work of art promoting their freedom to read.

Sidney Silverman Library at Bergen Community College - Paramus, NJ
Staff at the Sidney Silverman Library at Bergen Community College hope their program will demonstrate why talking about and learning from challenged or banned books creates empathy, unity and understanding by highlighting shared experiences. Using the Readers’ Theater reading fluency strategy, a selection of readings from banned books will be turned into scripts which will be read by students and faculty before a live audience in the Student Center and/or an Outdoor Classroom. Events will be supported by a series of posters which will be placed across the campus and will highlight the selected books explaining the reason for the challenge or ban as well as relevant quotes from scholars and writers. Volunteer students, faculty and staff will select various challenged children’s books and read aloud to students at the College’s Child Development Center and a display of banned or challenged books will be created in the Sidney Silverman Library. The celebration will culminate in a student trip to New York City to see a production of “The Kite Runner” on Broadway.

To learn more about past recipients and their projects and consider applying in the future, visit the Freedom to Read Foundation online at www.ftrf.org or Judith F. Krug Memorial Fund .  Contact Joyce McIntosh at jmcintosh@ala.org with questions.