Banned Books Week: How to Support the Freedom to Read

Here’s what you can do to exercise your freedom to read during #BannedBooksWeek

PEN America recorded nearly 10,000 instances of book bans from July 2021 to the end of the 2023 school year.

37% of the banned books had characters of color or themes of race and racism. 36% had LGBTQ+ characters or themes.

What can we do as individuals to protect the freedom to read in the United States?

• Read stories by marginalized writers and share their work widely. Get your copy of Here & Now: the Girls Write Now 2024 Anthology, published by Dutton with support from Amazon Literary Partnership. Hear directly from young women and gender expansive youth, aged 14-24, as they share stories across a wide range of backgrounds. The poems, stories, essays, and writing in this groundbreaking collection cover topics such as racial justice, LGBTQ+ identities, immigrant narratives, explorations of sexuality, and more.
• Write your story. Share your unique perspective by writing your own work! Get inspired with Girls Write Now on the Art of the Craft: A Guidebook to Collaborative Storytelling (HarperCollins), which contains prompts, stories, tips, and more for writers.
• Register to vote. This election year, research which government positions are on the ballot and what your representatives’ stances are on book bans. Check your voter registration status here.
• Support libraries and writing organizations. By visiting your local library and donating to organizations like Girls Write Now, you can ensure that everyone has equal access to books and information.