During Freedom to Read Week, libraries focus on the issues of free access to reading material and censorship. We know that every institution, every school has a line. Not everybody agrees where that line should be drawn, but the line is there. It is very important that we keep talking about that line, that border where freedom and restriction face off.
As the Freedom to Read Week site says:
Freedom to read can never be taken for granted. Even in Canada, a free country by world standards, books and magazines are banned at the border. Schools and libraries are regularly asked to remove books and magazines from their shelves. Free expression on the Internet is under attack. Few of these stories make headlines, but they affect the right of Canadians to decide for themselves what they choose to read.
Many teenagers feel that they should have access to any material that they want, but ask them if they think that the same privilege should be accorded to a five-year-old. They’ll tell you that there’s lots out there that shouldn’t be available to a five-year-old. For those who believe in the importance of freedom to read, namely librarians, where to draw that line is often a very tough decision.
That’s why Freedom to Read Week is a wonderful time for library personnel to think of where they draw the line, where a school should draw the line, and talk about this with students. There are a number of resources available at the Freedom to Read Week website and a toolkit to download with posters and suggested activities. The toolkit is a great resource for ideas.
Freedom to Read Week is a time to reaffirm our commitment to intellectual freedom in Canada. By talking about these freedoms with students, by creating displays and spearheading activities that are related to intellectual freedom, we model a commitment to democracy and literature that we hope will be continued in Canada by the next generation.
