Banned Books and American Culture

Description

OLLI at WVU and the WVU Committee for Retired Faculty will present Banned Books and American Culture, by Beth Jane Toren, WVU Interdisciplinary, Cultural, and Film Studies Librarian, on Wednesday, September 6, at 2:30 p.m. on Zoom.

Sharing perspectives from parents, educators, authors, protestors, young readers, and judges, all illustrated with archival quotes, case citations, and photographs, Toren will place book banning in a historical context and reflect on current events. The 1974 Kanawha County West Virginia Textbook Controversy has a significant role as we approach the 50th anniversary. As a 1974 elementary school student who experienced the controversy first-hand, Toren presents the anniversary as an opportunity to reflect and seek peaceful and cooperative resolutions to current school and public library controversies.

In 1974, Beth Toren was a 10-year-old student in South Charleston, West Virginia, and remembers empty bookshelves where her favorite reading books were the day before. She is now an academic librarian with 30+ years’ experience who researches book banning in American history and culture and views current events in that perspective. She sees the 50th anniversary of the Kanawha County Textbook Controversy as an opportunity to reflect and move toward peaceful and cooperative resolutions to current school and public library controversies.

This virtual presentation is free and open to the public. Register at https://bit.ly/47BvVOk to receive the Zoom link on the morning of the event.