What does Fahrenheit 451, How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accent and In the Time of the Butterflies have in common? At one point in time they were banned, they are also Secondary English teacher Elizabeth Pujols favourite banned books. Ms Pujols spoke to Lucy B and told her about Banned Book Week at ICSU. "It is a week set aside by the American Library Association and other organizations to raise awareness about books that have been challenged or banned across America," she said.
"The movement has now gone beyond America to many places across the world. During this week, librarians, educators, and other people raise awareness by creating posters, protesting, or contacting organizations that have banned or challenged books."
From September 21 to 24 ICSU celebrated the freedom to read.
"I would like students to know that their voices and opinions matter," Ms Pujols said. "Reading is a gift and the freedom to choose what to read is a right that belongs to every child." While Ms Pujols cautions that discretion should be kept in mind regarding age-appropriate reading material, student choice is still the most important. "By learning about Banned Books Week, I hope students will be more aware about their rights as learners and readers as well as read more challenged and banned books," she said. To celebrate the Banned Books Week, the ICSU library prepared several books which have been banned in several countries.
"Most of the time, the reasons for the ban are quite sexist and racist," Ms Pujols said.
Sources have reported that children's classic The Wizard of Oz was banned from all public libraries in the city of Chicago as the main protagonist was a female.
Ms Pujols said that most people don't even realise that books have been banned. She hopes to raise awareness and generate conversations about the motives behind the book bans so that all voices are equally heard and considered.
For more information visit https://www.ala.org/news/press-releases/2022/09/ala-releases-preliminary-data-2022-book-bans.