Read without restriction this Banned Books Week [column]

In 1962, Judge Samuel Epstein of the Superior Court of Cook County, Illinois, ruled that Henry Miller's novel, "Tropic of Cancer," was not obscene.

Epstein wrote: "Let the tastes of the readers determine what they may or may not read; let each reader be his own censor; but let not the government or the courts dictate the reading matter of a free people."

During Banned Books Week — which starts today — we should reflect on the ideas espoused by Judge Epstein in his ruling.

In order to understand what Banned Books Week seeks to address, there first must be a common understanding of what is meant by "book bans."

The nonprofit organization PEN America defines a school book ban as "any action taken against a book based on its content and as a result of parent or community challenges, administrative decisions, or in response to direct or threatened action by lawmakers or other governmental officials, that leads to a previously accessible book being either completely removed from availability to students, or where access to a book is restricted or diminished."

The American Library Association utilizes similar language in offering examples of censorship in school libraries:

— "Requiring a parent/guardian's signature to check out material within the student's regular school library."

— "Creating guidelines to restrict materials based on the age, reading level, or grade of the student."

— "School administration or community members removing materials from the library without following established reconsideration policy/procedure."

As a result of ongoing attacks on literature, both PEN America and the American Library Association report that more than 4,000 unique book titles were challenged or banned from school and public libraries in 2023. To put that number in perspective, during the two decades prior to 2021, the average number of unique titles targeted per year was 273, according to the American Library Association.

Books with LGBTQ+ content drew the most challenges.

Some people argue that while these books may have been removed from school libraries, they were not truly banned because they are still available in public libraries. But the reality is that in 2023, public libraries also became a focus of would-be censors. According to the American Library Association, public libraries saw a 92% increase in the number of titles targeted for censorship last year.

We saw the impact of censorship efforts in Lancaster County, where a planned Drag Queen Story Hour at Lancaster Public Library in March drew bomb threats, after Republican county commissioners drummed up outrage against it. In the aftermath of that controversy and the story hour's cancellation, local municipal boards — among them, the East Hempfield Township Board of Supervisors — voted to withhold contributions to Lancaster Public Library. (The good news: Tony Award-winning actor and Ronks native Jonathan Groff headlined a "Pride and Pages" gala Sept. 14 to benefit the library and Lancaster Pride. And Olympic skater Johnny Weir emerged as a champion of the Quarryville Library Center, after it lost funding from two municipalities because it provides access to LGBTQ+ content.)

Authoritarians seek to control what stories and books exist in their communities. These ongoing attempts to censor books continue to target historically marginalized communities. This bibliophobia (fear of books) is an irrational attempt to limit our understanding of our society, communities, community residents and neighbors. What is the end goal? Is it to eliminate libraries altogether or, in some Orwellian twist, to establish a "Ministry of Truth" that allows only authoritarian stories and ideals?

Despite the demands some make for liberty, their words and actions indicate that it is liberty for some, not for all.

The theme for this Banned Books Week is "Freed Between the Lines." The theme is rooted in the fundamental concept of intellectual freedom, the right to access information from all points of view, without restriction, and, as a result, to form our own opinions and ideas and question the world around us.

We must not succumb to ideophobia (the fear of ideas). Instead, we should seek to embrace stories that challenge our own perceptions, that inspire us to question our ideals — either to reaffirm our personal beliefs or, potentially, to broaden our understanding of the world in which we live. If we truly believe in the ideals of democracy and liberty, then we must be willing, as Judge Epstein wrote, to read as a free people — to learn, grow, empathize and celebrate our collective freedom.

Matthew Good is the 2024 recipient of the John Phillip Immroth Memorial Award from the Intellectual Freedom Round Table of the American Library Association. He is a librarian at Ursinus College and serves as the librarian for the Educators' Institute for Human Rights. He is a member of the American Library Association and Pennsylvania School Library Association. He was formerly a librarian in the Donegal School District.