"Banned Books Week 2025", Oct. 8 (W) at 3:30pm

[Daniel Lake]

 *The Institute for Ethics in Public Life invites you to join us for * *"Banned
Books Week 2025," on Wednesday, Oct. 8 at 3:30pm (in-person or on Zoom)
with special guests Ms. Sarah Jennette, Head of Library Services at Clinton
Community College, and Dr. Tracie Church Guzzio, Director of the Honors
Program and Professor of English at SUNY* *Plattsburgh,*

Attempts to have books removed from American public and school libraries
are nothing new, but from 2001 to 2020 the number of titles challenged
nation-wide averaged only 273 ("Censorship by the Numbers"
<https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.ala.org/bbooks/censorship-numbers&sa=D&source=calendar&ust=1759504681873232&usg=AOvVaw1H--dE_3ha0Sebu9K0Dmf8>).
In 2021 a surge in efforts to ban books began that peaked at 4240 unique
titles in 2023, a 15-fold increase. Most of the books targeted face (false)
accusations of obscenity, have LGBTQ+ themes or characters, or cover topics
involving race, racism, equity, and social justice.

What is driving this recent surge in book banning activity? How does this
compare to previous waves of book banning, and what impact does it have on
librarians, students, and teachers/faculty at affected institutions? We
will discuss these topics and more in this open discussion of book bans in
observance of Banned Books Week 2025.

About Banned Books Week: "Banned Books Week was launched in 1982 in
response to a sudden surge in the number of challenges to books in
libraries, bookstores, and schools. Held in the last week of September or
first week of October, the annual event highlights the value of free and
open access to information and brings together the entire book community —
librarians, educators, authors, publishers, booksellers, and readers of all
types — in shared support of the freedom to seek and to express ideas. " Banned
Books Week Coalition
<https://www.google.com/url?q=https://bannedbooksweek.org/about/&sa=D&source=calendar&ust=1759504681873232&usg=AOvVaw0YgpLiGWG2NUMycAnzIjaA>

Ms. Sarah Jennette is Head of Library Services and teaches library research
skills at Clinton Community College. She earned her MLS from Simmons
University in Boston, MA in 2014 and graduated from SUNY Plattsburgh with
degrees in History and Gender and Women's Studies in 2010.As a North
Country native, she moved back home to work for CCC in 2018. Her background
in libraries and all things books includes work in special collections and
art museum librarianship, but her work at CCC in the last several years has
focused on connecting with students and her fellow faculty, making sure
everyone feels as welcome as possible in libraries.
Dr. Tracie Church Guzzio is Professor of English and the Director of the
Honors Program at SUNY Plattsburgh.

Please join us in person in the Thomas Moran Seminar Room of the Institute
for Ethics in Public Life (Hawkins 233) or on Zoom (see below).

Topic: "Banned Books Week 2025"
Time: Oct 8, 2025 03:30 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)
Join Zoom Meeting
https://plattsburgh.zoom.us/j/86351512620
<https://www.google.com/url?q=https://plattsburgh.zoom.us/j/86351512620&sa=D&source=calendar&ust=1760016307388841&usg=AOvVaw1vTHnHD2RN76QW-wn5VxWV>

Meeting ID: 863 5151 2620


-- 

*Daniel Lake*

(pronouns: he/him/his)

Professor of Political Science

Director, Institute for Ethics in Public Life

Hawkins 149A

101 Broad Street
<https://maps.google.com/?q=101+Broad+Street+Plattsburgh,+NY+12901&entry=gmail&source=g>

Plattsburgh, NY 12901
<https://maps.google.com/?q=101+Broad+Street+Plattsburgh,+NY+12901&entry=gmail&source=g>

(o) 518-564-5833 <(518)%5645833>

*plattsburgh.edu <http://plattsburgh.edu/>*
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://ls.plattsburgh.edu/pipermail/employee-digest/attachments/20251005/8ff75c27/attachment.htm>
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: Banned Books Week 2025.pdf
Type: application/pdf
Size: 388985 bytes
Desc: not available
URL: <http://ls.plattsburgh.edu/pipermail/employee-digest/attachments/20251005/8ff75c27/attachment.pdf>