Barack and Michelle Obama Thank Librarians for Protecting the Freedom to Read

Former President Barack Obama is known for being a reader, releasing highly anticipated annual lists of his favourite books of the year. Today, helium posted a missive thanking librarians for defending the state to work and inviting citizens to articulation the combat against publication bans. The missive begins,

“In immoderate democracy, the escaped speech of ideas is an important portion of making definite that citizens are informed, engaged and consciousness similar their perspectives matter.

It’s truthful important, successful fact, that present successful America, the First Amendment of our Constitution states that state begins with our capableness to stock and entree ideas — even, and possibly especially, the ones we disagree with.

More often than not, idiosyncratic decides to constitute those ideas down successful a book.”

He goes connected to notation writers who person shaped the idiosyncratic helium is and however helium views the world, including Mark Twain and Toni Morrison.

Today, immoderate of the books that shaped my beingness — and the lives of truthful galore others — are being challenged by radical who disagree with definite ideas oregon perspectives. It’s nary coincidence that these “banned books” are often written by oregon diagnostic radical of color, indigenous people, and members of the LGBTQ+ assemblage — though determination person besides been unfortunate instances successful which books by blimpish authors oregon books containing “triggering” words oregon scenes person been targets for removal. Either way, the impulse seems to beryllium to silence, alternatively than engage, rebut, larn from oregon question to recognize views that don’t acceptable our own.

He and Michelle convey librarians for warring connected the “front lines” of the combat surrounding the state to work and includes a nexus to the American Library Association’s Unite Against Book Bans campaign to enactment librarians and support the state to read.