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GUEST OPINION
Welcome to Banned Books Week 2024! Banned Books Week is an annual event that highlights the value of free and open access to information. The event is supported by a coalition of organizations dedicated to free expression, including the Pend Oreille County Library District.
If you stop by for a visit this week at any of our libraries, you’ll find displays and information on books that have been banned or challenged in libraries over the years. You might be surprised that challenges to library materials range from fiction to nonfiction, from youth to adult materials, and originate from both sides of the political aisle. In these sensitive times, it may come as a surprise that we continue to emphasize this topic. However, like most libraries and librarians, we proudly see ourselves as staunch defenders of the First Amendment, and we stand firm in that commitment. Showcasing attempts to censor is but one way we can shine a light on this particular freedom that we enjoy.
The adage goes that a good library contains something to offend everyone. While our goal at the library is to assemble a collection that appeals to all members of our community, not to offend you, we understand that, despite our best efforts, some selections may not resonate. We have items written by conservatives and liberals, items that profess Bigfoot is real and that he’s myth, Amish romances and romances that will make you blush. Within our stacks, you can find some of the most terrible and wonderful items, and they were all put there with purpose. Library staff isn’t here to judge what you take home, only to make sure that you can get what you want or need.
For every book that shows up on the banned or challenged list, there are those who think it should be tossed in the nearest trashcan and those who will tell you that that book changed their life in some profound way. That is one of the beauties of the public library. We serve communities that are rich in experience and full of people of all stripes, and we want to be sure that we provide books that can be loved by even the most unique among us. Thank you, Pend Oreille County, for being a pleasure to serve and for being a community that illustrates that free people really do read freely.
