BRTC
LIBRARY NEWS
Volume 3, Number 1, October 2009
From the desk of Anne Simpson, Library Director
Banned Books Week: Celebrating the Freedom to Read
Banned Books
Week is September 26 through October 3, 2009
Banned Books Week is an annual event that celebrates the freedom to read and the importance of the First Amendment. Held during the last week of September, Banned Books Week highlights the benefits of free and open access to information while drawing attention to the harms of censorship by spotlighting actual or attempted book bannings across the United States. Although we enjoy an increasing quantity and availability of information and reading material, we must remain vigilant to ensure that access to this material is preserved.
Sex, profanity, and racism remain the primary categories of objections, and most occur in schools and school libraries. Frequently, challenges are motivated by the desire to protect children. While the intent is commendable, this method of protection contains hazards far greater than exposure to the evil against which it is leveled. Individuals may restrict what they themselves or their children read, but they must not call on governmental or public agencies to prevent others from reading or seeing this material.
Intellectual freedom is the freedom to access information and express ideas, even if the information and ideas might be considered unorthodox or unpopular. This freedom provides the foundation for Banned Books Week. In addition, Banned Books Week stresses the importance of ensuring the availability of unorthodox or unpopular viewpoints for all who wish to read and access them.
The books featured during Banned
Books Week have been targets of attempted bannings. While some books were banned
or restricted, in a majority of cases the books were not banned, all thanks to
the efforts of librarians, teachers, booksellers, and members of the community
to retain the books in the library collections. Imagine how many more books
might be challenged (and possibly banned or restricted) if librarians, teachers,
and booksellers across the nation did not use Banned Books Week each year to
teach the importance of our First Amendment rights and the power of literature
to draw attention to the danger that exists when restraints are imposed on the
availability of information in a free society.
Banned Books Week is sponsored by the American Library Association, the American Booksellers Association, the American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression, the American Society of Journalists and Authors, the Association of American Publishers, and the National Association of College Stores. It is endorsed by the Center for the Book in the Library of Congress.
A list of the ten most frequently challenged books of 2008 is at the bottom of this newsletter.
Library Displays
The library has two displays this month. The bulletin board has a display about Banned Books Week. A list of banned and challenged books is available in the library. A copy of the First Amendment is also displayed. The display case features a collection of salt cellars.
Salt Cellars
A collection of salt cellars is on exhibit in the display case in the library. A salt cellar is a small vessel made of glass, silver, pewter, or porcelain used to hold salt. The exterior surfaces of a salt cellar are frequently decorated with birds, lemons, or other designs. It is still possible to find salt cellars today, but they are not used as part of the table setting.
Salt cellars were used through the 1940s, but were gradually replaced with salt shakers. Salt cellars were used by wealthy families from the middle ages until World War II. The tiny bowl, along with a very small spoon, was passed around the table. These dishes were part of an earlier time when tables were cluttered with an assortment of specialized fish forks, bone plates, and knife rests.
Salt was a precious commodity in ancient times. Roman legionaries were often paid in salt (which is the origin of the word, salary). The Greeks traded salt for slaves. During the Middle Ages, salt was kept on the table in elaborate metal or glass dishes as a status symbol. The social status of a guest was measured by judging the distance at which the person sat from the master's large salt cellar placed near the middle of a long table. In the most recent past, salt was still very costly and precious. For example, before refrigeration salt was the main ingredient for preserving food.
This collection is on loan to the BRTC library from Janet and Jon Crabbe. Jon's mother began collecting the salt cellars in the 1950s. Many were purchased in foreign countries since the Crabbes lived abroad for many years. Jon and Janet inherited the collection.
Top Ten Most Frequently Challenged Books of 2008
1. And Tango Makes Three by
Justin Richardson and Peter Parnell
Reasons:
anti-ethnic, anti-family, homosexuality, religious viewpoint, and unsuited to
age group
2. His Dark Materials (trilogy) by Philip Pullman
Reasons: political viewpoint,
religious viewpoint, and violence
3. TTYL; TTFN; L8R, G8R (series) by Lauren
Myracle
Reasons: offensive language, sexually
explicit, and unsuited to age group
4. Scary Stories (series) by Alvin
Schwartz
Reasons: occult/satanism, religious
viewpoint, and violence
5. Bless Me, Ultima by Rudolfo Anaya
Reasons: occult/satanism, offensive
language, religious viewpoint, sexually explicit,
and violence
6. The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen
Chbosky
Reasons: drugs, homosexuality,
nudity, offensive language, sexually explicit, suicide,
and unsuited to age group
7. Gossip Girl (series) by Cecily von Ziegesar
Reasons: offensive language, sexually
explicit, and unsuited to age group
8. Uncle Bobby's Wedding by Sarah S. Brannen
Reasons: homosexuality and unsuited
to age group
9. The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
Reasons: offensive language, sexually
explicit, and unsuited to age group
10. Flashcards of My Life by Charise Mericle Harper
Reasons: sexually
explicit and unsuited to age group
To access the library’s homepage use the online catalog or
databases at
http://library.blackrivertech.edu!
If you are having problems accessing the online catalog,
contact or come by the library and we will be happy to explain how to use the
catalog both in the library and from your computer at home.
Your library card is your BRTC student ID. Students are
allowed to check out five books at one time. The library also has videos and
DVDs that can be viewed in the study rooms on campus.