ALA's Office for Intellectual Freedom (OIF) receives reports from libraries, schools, and the media on attempts to ban books in communities across the country. A challenge is an attempt to remove or restrict materials, based upon the objections of a person or group. A book that it "challenged" is when a group of people get together, make petitions, and try to get a certain book removed from a library of school. The ALA promotes the freedom to choose or the freedom to express one's opinions, even if that opinion might be considered unorthodox or unpopular, and stresses the importance of ensuring the availability of those viewpoints to all who wish to read them.
According to its organizers, this weeklong …
But the peculiar evil of silencing the expression of an opinion is, that it is robbing the human race; posterity as well as the existing generation; those who dissent from the opinion, still more than those who hold it.
Intellectual freedom - the freedom to access information and express ideas, even if the information and ideas might be considered unorthodox or unpopular - provides the foundation for Banned Books Week.
Were an opinion a personal possession of no value except to the owner; if to be obstructed in the enjoyment of it were simply a private injury, it would make some difference whether the injury was inflicted only on a few persons or on many.
by a censor. Peruse the following pages to explore banned and challenged books by topic, genre, time, and audience. The definition of a challenged book is a book that a person or a group of people that desire a book be denied access to the community.
If someone questions or requests that a book be removed, that is called “challenging” a book. A banning is the removal of those materials.
and a challenged book as one that "has been requested to be removed from a library, classroom, etc." A Website of the ALA Office for Intellectual Freedom Related Groups, Organizations, Affiliates & ChaptersALA Upcoming Annual Conferences & Midwinter MeetingsHateful Conduct in Libraries: Supporting Library Workers and PatronsLibraries Respond: Combating Xenophobia and Fake News in light of COVID-19Libraries Respond: Hate Groups and Violence in LibrariesLibraries Respond: Immigrants, Refugees, and Asylum SeekersLibraries Respond: 10 Things Your Library Can Do for 2017 and BeyondLibraries Respond: Services to Incarcerated People and Ex-OffendersLibraries Respond: Services to Poor and Homeless PeopleLibraries Respond: Protecting and Supporting Transgender Staff and Patrons3-D Printing in Libraries: Policies and Best PracticesHateful Conduct in Libraries: Supporting Library Workers and Patrons (OIF) receives reports from libraries, schools, and the media on attempts to ban books in communities across the country.
The ALA condemns censorship and works to ensure free access to information. For more information on ALA's efforts to raise awareness of censorship and promote the freedom to read, please explore United for Libraries (Trustees, Friends, Foundations)Information Technology & Telecommunication ServicesOffice for Diversity, Literacy, and Outreach Services (ODLOS)Office for Human Resource Development and Recruitment (HRDR)Ethnic & Multicultural Information Exchange RT (EMIERT)Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender Round Table (GLBTRT)225 N Michigan Ave, Suite 1300 Chicago, IL 60601 | 1.800.545.2433
The definition of a challenged book is a book that a person or a group of people that desire a book be denied access to the community. What is a Challenged or Banned Book?
No. Due to the commitment of librarians, teachers, parents, students and other concerned citizens, most challenges are unsuccessful and most materials are retained in the school curriculum or library collection.Books usually are challenged with the best intentions—to protect others, frequently children, from difficult ideas and information. We compile lists of challenged books in order to inform the public about censorship efforts that affect libraries and schools. All content ©2010 -
Check Your Shelf Newsletter Challenges do not simply involve a person expressing a point of view; rather, they are an attempt to remove material from the curriculum or library, thereby restricting the access of others. The following were the top three reasons cited for challenging materials as reported to the Office of Intellectual Freedom:As Supreme Court Justice William J. Brennan, Jr., in If there is a bedrock principle underlying the First Amendment, it is that the government may not prohibit the expression of an idea simply because society finds the idea itself offensive or disagreeable.If we are to continue to protect our First Amendment, we would do well to keep in mind these words of Noam Chomsky:If we don't believe in freedom of expression for people we despise, we don't believe in it at all.Or these words of Supreme Court Justice William O. Douglas (" Restriction of free thought and free speech is the most dangerous of all subversions.
We compile lists of challenged books in order to inform the public about censorship efforts that affect libraries and schools. According to the American Library Association (ALA) , a challenge is an attempt to remove or restrict materials, based upon the objections of a person or group.
See Censorship can be subtle, almost imperceptible, as well as blatant and overt, but, nonetheless, harmful. We compile lists of challenged books in order to inform the public about censorship efforts that affect libraries and schools.
A banning is the removal of those materials.