University of Richmond Library Will Observe Banned Books Week to Celebrate Freedom to Read
September 19, 2005
Boatwright Library at University of Richmond will join the American Library Association (ALA) in celebrating the freedom to read with 2005 Banned Books Week.
The university will hold a read out Sept. 27, featuring continuous reading from books on the ALA’s list of Banned and Challenged Books. The event will be held on the Boatwright patio from 9 a.m.–1 p.m. The rain location for all patio events is the game room in Tyler Haynes Commons.
“Students and faculty members will celebrate the First Amendment by reading aloud from books that other people would like to forbid them to read,” said Jim Rettig, university librarian.
Rodney Smolla, dean of the law school and national authority on the First Amendment, will speak from 1– 2 p.m. on the controversies surrounding James Joyce’s “Ulysses.” State Senator H. Russell Potts, Jr., 27th District, will speak from 2–3 p.m. His remarks will be followed by a question-and-answer period. Both speeches will be held on the Boatwright patio.
Screening of “Fahrenheit 451” will take place in Adams Auditorium in Boatwright from 4–6 p.m.
Thousands of libraries and bookstores will sponsor events and exhibits during the week of Sept. 24–Oct. 1, speaking out against attempts to censor books. Observed since 1982, the annual event reminds Americans not to take the freedom to read for granted.
Banned Books Week is sponsored by the American Booksellers Association, the American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression, the ALA, the Association of American Publishers, the American Society of Journalists and Authors and the National Association of College Stores. It is endorsed by the Library of Congress Center for the Book.
To sign up for a 15-minute reading slot, choose from the ALA’s list of Challenged and Banned Books, http://tinyurl.com/4qka4, and contact Kirsten Stank at kstank@richmond.edu or extension 8454.