Activities and Actions

Banned Books Week begins on Sunday, October 5 and ends on October 11.

Members of the Racial Justice Committee, together with the rest of the UCG Justice League, invite everyone to read a banned book in honor and support of Banned Books Week. Opening each Book Résumé via this link will lead to lots of great information about each of the ten books, authors, and the awards earned:

Top 10 Most Challenged Books of 2024 | Banned Books or type into browser: https://www.ala.org/bbooks/frequentlychallengedbooks/top10

 

We encourage folks to join us in the following relevant opportunities:

  • Join one of our Small Groups – Young Adults are welcome, too!
  • View Banned Together, an excellent, inspiring film which documents three courageous young activists as they fight bans and censorship in and beyond their local high school. Banned Together is available (free) on both Prime Video and YouTube.
  • Pick up some of the informational sheets Racial Justice members will share during Banned Book Week. Our state leads the country in the number of books banned in public schools. We will provide data regarding books banned in Florida, lists of banned books relevant to Climate Justice and care of the environment, lists of banned classics, and lists of the ten books banned most frequently in the United States within the year of 2024.
  • Open the link within the paragraph below; read the article, sign the petition, write the letter!

Please note: As a new school year begins, we believe a current posting found on the Florida Freedom to Read Project website to be especially important and timely. For the what/why details of the hearings that led to the removal of 55 titles in Hillsborough County, as well as the indications that fear-based “soft censorship” will escalate in districts within Florida (and beyond), read: Addressing State Actions in Hillsborough Schools – Florida Freedom to Read Project. At the bottom of the article are details explaining what we may do in response. A sample letter, supportive considerations, and a petition are included.

 

With gratitude,

The members of the Racial Justice Committee

Please be sure to see our separate article about Banned Books Week.