Wednesday, October 9, 2024

Mendocino County Library Defends the Right to Read During Banned Books Week

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The following is a press release issued by the Mendocino County Library:


The Ukiah Branch of Mendocino County Public Libraries [Picture by Sarah Reith]

Mendocino County Library invites the community to celebrate the freedom to read this  September. Since 1982 Banned Books Week has united librarians, teachers, authors,  publishers, and the community to defend the freedom to read and unfettered access to  information. The right to read is a shared value, and the unprecedented increase in calls to ban  books threatens those rights and freedoms.  

The number of unique titles targeted by challenges in 2023 was 65% higher at 4240 titles than  in 2022 at 2571 titles. Book challenges threaten the American education system and our youth  by depriving them of the ability to see themselves represented in library materials and  educational curriculums. Data proves that when children have access to recreational and  educational materials in which they are represented they are more likely to succeed in school,  thrive in their community, and have more empathy for others. 

“We all have the right to read. Mendocino County’s librarians work hard to maintain a collection  that represents everyone in our communities,” stated County Librarian Mellisa Hannum.  “Reading is critical to exercising our democratic freedoms. Books are also important for teaching kids and teens how to process complex issues, learn about how others see the world, and help them to feel less alone.” 

Banned Books Week is a celebration of our right to read and of open access to educational and  recreational reading materials as well as a reminder of the ongoing challenges faced by  literature and other published works. Banned Books Week gives everyone a chance to reflect  on and raise their voice in support of the importance of free expression and diverse voices in  our libraries, schools, and institutions. 

For more information, please view www.mendolibrary.org or contact the Mendocino County  Library at 234-2873.  

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4 COMMENTS

  1. Book bans become necessary when people are profiting from putting pornography into the children’s literature section.

    The only books the Germans ever burned were the same kind of salacious crap targeting the vulnerable youth.

    The people opposed to the banning of certain books haven’t seen or don’t care what is being pushed onto children lately. Ironically these are the same people that want to sanitize Huck Finn and change the name of Kelseyville. Same people that changed squaw rock to frog woman rock. It’s getting more difficult to protect one’s children from these revisionist pedophilic nut jobs.

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MendoFever Staff
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