Join us as we champion Intellectual Freedom during Banned Books Week and at LibLearnX!

Facilitating Campuswide DEIA-Informed Conversations about the Banning of Books

˃ Learning Lab

Learn about the approaches and methods that a group of community college librarians are using to engage faculty, staff, and students in conversations about the ways in which book-banning efforts work to suppress diverse voices and ideas. Discuss ways to explore, with cross-campus participants and from a range of cultural perspectives: the motivations for book challenges; the intellectual freedom and censorship issues around the banning of books; the disparate effects book challenges have on people who face oppression; and the educational value of books that present viewpoints from people who endure marginalization and who may use controversial language, ideas, images, and the like to express themselves.

Get insight into the intentions and experiences of librarians who are organizing and leading these conversations, which vary widely in scope, where some focus on a single writer or on a particular title that's often challenged, while others focus on a specific movement to ban books or on challenged materials within a specific genre of writing. Work with colleagues to brainstorm possible topics and resources for future banned books conversations that continue to center underrecognized voices and that might be facilitated by librarians in a variety of higher education contexts.

Fighting Censorship in a Changing Landscape

˃ Learning Lab

For decades, the ALA Office for Intellectual Freedom has tracked censorship in libraries and schools, which reached an unprecedented all-time high of nearly 1,300 challenge reports in 2022. Challenges are no longer a rare attempt by a single individual to remove a single book. OIF Director Deborah Caldwell-Stone and OIF Assistant Director Eric Stroshane will examine the state of censorship in libraries, including multi-faceted attempts from organized groups using elections (on all levels), mass challenges to school and public library materials, subversion of formal reconsideration processes, and legislation to stifle content and prevent librarians from upholding their policies and doing their jobs. Attendees will be provided with strategies and tools for addressing the most current wave of challenges in our schools and public libraries.

Not Too Young: Intellectual Freedom Programming for Children and Families

˃ Learning Lab

You’ve checked your policies and prepped staff for challenges, but are you still afraid to dive in? Are frequently challenged books reaching your youngest patrons and families? Whether you’re holding back brilliant ideas or jumping in, this practice-focused session will center strategies to engage patrons of all ages in programs that help build tomorrow’s advocates for the freedom to read. 

Hear about one library’s success and setbacks with programs and intergenerational conversations that connect readers of all ages to frequently challenged books. Then, engage in small group planning and reflection to prepare to turn conversations about censorship into opportunities for action in the context of your community. Participants will leave with practical program ideas, promotional plans, and partnership possibilities.