For Banned Book Week (Sept. 22-28), the Banned Wagon is making nine stops across the country in communities impacted by book banning. It’s coming to Milwaukee Central Library on Sept. 24 to hand out free copies of banned books.
“We want to raise awareness within the community about book bans,” said Library Director Joan Johnson. “We want more people to know that there is a very active minority of people who are working hard to take away people’s freedom to read and learn freely.”
The Banned Wagon is an collaborative effort between Penguin Random House, Unite Against Book Bans, First Book and Little Free Library to fight against censorship.
Some of the books the Banned Wagon will hand out include The Handmaids Tale by Margaret Atwood, The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton, The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison, children’s book Hair Love by Matthew A. Cherry and illustrated by Vashti Harrison, and more.
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“No one has the right to tell people what they can or cannot have access to,” Johnson said.
Beyond books, there will also be workshops hosted by Writers for Democratic Action, a live panel discussion with local professors and librarians, and a banned book scavenger hunt for children. Food trucks will also be nearby along 9th Street.
Find the Banned Wagon parked on 9th Street from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
