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ALA Banned Books Week: September 18-24

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Anyone who follows the news (and how can you avoid it these days?) knows that the movement to ban books is growing. September 18 – 24 is the 40th annual Banned Books Week. According to the American Library Association’s (ALA) website, Banned Books Week “celebrates the freedom to read and spotlights current and historical attempts to censor books in libraries and schools.” The theme for Banned Books Week 2022 is “Books Unite Us. Censorship Divides Us.” By bringing attention to book challenges happening across the United States, Banned Books Week highlights the harms of censorship.

The ALA’s Top 10 Most Challenged Books of 2021 (available at McGill)

Book challenges occur for numerous reasons but frequent complaints are that a book is sexually explicit, contains offensive language, or is inappropriate for its intended age group. One of the most targeted books of 2021 was Maia Kobabe’s graphic memoir about sexual identity, “Gender Queer.” Most of the recent book challenges target YA books with LGBTQ+ characters, according to the ALA. In their statement on the widespread efforts to censor books in U.S. schools and libraries, they write:

“In recent months, a few organizations have advanced the proposition that the voices of the marginalized have no place on library shelves. To this end they have launched campaigns demanding the censorship of books and resources that mirror the lives of those who are gay, queer, or transgender, or that tell the stories of persons who are Black, Indigenous or persons of color. Falsely claiming that these works are subversive, immoral, or worse, these groups induce elected and non-elected officials to abandon constitutional principles, ignore the rule of law, and disregard individual rights to promote government censorship of library collections. Some of these groups even resort to intimidation and threats to achieve their ends, targeting the safety and livelihoods of library workers, educators, and board members who have dedicated themselves to public service, to informing our communities, and educating our youth. 

ALA strongly condemns these acts of censorship and intimidation.“

“ALA Statement on Book Censorship”, American Library Association, November 29, 2021.

Historically, many books now considered classics were challenged, including school curriculum mainstays such as The Great Gatsby, The Catcher in the Rye, To Kill a Mockingbird and Of Mice and Men. Book bans may seem like a uniquely American problem, but they happen in Canada too. Here is a list compiled by the CBC of 12 Canadian books that have been challenged, and where to find them at McGill. This is why Canadian libraries have their own version of Banned Books Week, the Freedom to Read Week in February.

Black History Month at McGill

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Throughout February, the McGill Community joins many others in celebrating Black History Month.

The 2020 celebrations across the University, city and country encompass many themes. A common thread throughout this year’s themes is exploring the past in order to understand the present and build a better future.

Black History Month aims to celebrate and centre Blackness throughout the history, the present, and the future of McGill and beyond.

McGill’s theme for this year is Rooted, an exploration of the rooted past, present and future of Black history and communities. There are many events happening across campus and in collaboration with organizations across the city of Montreal, where the theme for this year’s 29th edition of Black History Month is “Ici et Maintenant! / Here and Now!” celebrating the voices and activism of young people from the African diaspora.

Poster for Montreal’s “Mois de l’histoire des noirs”, by Lucky Odige

Canada’s Black History Month theme is inspired by the United Nations’ International Decade for People of African Descent. “Canadians of African Descent: Going Forward, Guided by the Past” is represented by the sankofa bird, an important symbol of the African diaspora that represents the need to reflect on the past in order to build a successful future.

Every February, Canadians are invited to participate in Black History Month festivities and events that honour the legacy of Black Canadians, past and present. The 2020 theme for Black History Month is: “Canadians of African Descent: Going forward, guided by the past.” This was inspired by the theme of the United Nations’ International Decade for People of African Descent (2015-2024).

This year’s programming will also honour Toni Morrison in light of her passing on August 5th, 2019. Toni Morrison was an American novelist, essayist, book editor, and college professor. Her first novel, The Bluest Eye, was published in 1970. The critically acclaimed Song of Solomon (1977) brought her national attention and won the National Book Critics Circle Award. In 1988, Morrison won the Pulitzer Prize for Beloved (1987); she gained worldwide recognition when she was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1993. Her contributions to literature and politics

Toni Morrison (February 18, 1931 – August 5, 2019)

The library has created a LibGuide highlighting parts of the collection that support and expand on these themes. This new LibGuide will be a place to find information on all future Redpath Book Displays, from bibliographies to YouTube videos.

In support of the powerful keynote address at McGill’s Black History Month Opening Ceremony, titled “Rooted: Locking Black Hair to Human Rights Activism,” by Professor Wendy Greene of Drexel University, we present a collection of titles exploring the specific experience of Black hair and its ties to culture and identity.

Professor Wendy Greene of Drexel University, delivering her keynote speech at the opening ceremony of Black History Month at McGill

Find books that form the traditional canon of Black literature, as well as new contributions by contemporary Black authors, both American and Canadian. Keep an eye out this March as we add “Dear Black Girls,” by McGill’s Equity Education Advisor, Shanice Nicole (Yarde), to the collection.

Shanice Nicole Yarde, Equity Education Advisor (Anti-Oppression and Anti-Racism), author of upcoming book “Dear Black Girls”

We hope you will enjoy these resources as we celebrate, reflect on and honour Black History at McGill.

A celebration of Indigenous heritage, resistance, love and literature

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On September 20th, Lower Field will play host to the 19th Annual McGill Pow Wow, a full day of traditional dancing and drumming. The Pow Wow is only one of many exciting events happening during Indigenous Awareness Weeks, in its 9th year, which run from September 16th to the 27th. In honour of, and in collaboration with, IAW, the Humanities and Social Sciences library has mounted a book display in the Redpath Library Building. The books on display cover a wide variety of subjects as they present a celebration of Indigenous heritage, resistance, love and literature.

First Nations and Inuit from across Canada are represented, including books by Two-Spirit authors Lindsay Nixon, Arielle Twist and Smokii Sumac, who will be reading from their works on September 18th.

“You Are Enough,” by Smokii Sumac

“Nîtisânak,” by Lindsay Nixon

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sobering reads on topics such as the Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, the legacy of residential schools and ongoing resistance to colonialism are offset by exultant reads honouring Indigenous spirit, resilience and ingénue.

Reclaiming power and place : the final report of the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls.

  • Secret Path, by Gord Downie and Jeff Lemire. “Downie and Lemire have done something brilliant here by bringing the story of Chanie Wenjack and the residential school system to light for the reading public. Secret Path is a brilliant book, which should be held in prominence on any bookshelf. It breeds empathy and creates thought and discussion which, no doubt, will lead to action on improving an injustice to the human condition.”

“Secret Path,” by Gord Downie and Jeff Lemire

  • Surviving Canada: Indigenous Peoples Celebrate 150 Years of Betrayal, edited by Kiera L. Ladner and Myra Tait, is “a collection of elegant, thoughtful, and powerful reflections about Indigenous Peoples’ complicated, and often frustrating, relationship with Canada, and how-even 150 years after Confederation-the fight for recognition of their treaty and Aboriginal rights continues. Through essays, art, and literature, Surviving Canada examines the struggle for Indigenous Peoples to celebrate their cultures and exercise their right to control their own economic development, lands, water, and lives. The Indian Act, Idle No More, and the legacy of residential schools are just a few of the topics covered by a wide range of elders, scholars, artists, and activists. Contributors include Mary Eberts, Buffy Sainte-Marie, and Leroy Little Bear.”

“Surviving Canada: Indigenous Peoples Celebrate 150 Years of Betrayal.”

  • Me Artsy, by Drew Hayden Taylor, “an exploration and deconstruction of the Aboriginal artistic spirit as seen and practiced through various art forms that demonstrate reflections on society through an indigenous perspective, including talents not just limited to those considered strictly traditional in origin, but inclusive of more contemporary forms of cultural expression.”
  • Love Beyond Body, Space and Time, edited by Hope Nicholson, is “an anthology of science fiction and urban fantasy stories starring First Nations and Metis characters with a LGBT and two-spirit theme.”

 

  • Reawakening Our Ancestors’ Lines, by Angela Hovak Johnston, follows “what was at first a personal quest became a project to bring the art of traditional tattooing back to Inuit women across Nunavut, starting with Johnston’s home community of Kugluktuk. Collected in this beautiful book are moving photos and stories from more than two dozen women who participated in Johnston’s project. Together, these women have united to bring to life an ancient tradition, reawakening their ancestors’ lines and sharing this knowledge with future generations.”

“Reawakening our ancestors’ lines : revitalizing Inuit traditional tattooing,” by Angela Hovak Johnston

Check out a book and discover for yourself the breadth and depth of Indigenous knowledge, love, and spirit.

McGill University is located on land which has long served as a site of meeting and exchange amongst Indigenous peoples, including the Haudenosaunee and Anishinabeg nations. McGill honours, recognizes and respects these nations as the traditional stewards of the lands and waters on which we meet today.

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L’Université McGill est sur un emplacement qui a longtemps servi de lieu de rencontre et d’échange entre les peuples autochtones, y compris les nations Haudenosaunee et Anishinabeg. McGill honore, reconnaît et respecte ces nations à titre d’intendant traditionnel des terres et de l’eau sur lesquelles nous nous réunissions aujourd’hui.

 

Learn more about the vibrant community of Kahnawà:ke: http://kahnawaketourism.com/
Learn about the Hochelaga Rock: http://www.historicplaces.ca/en/rep-reg/place-lieu.aspx?id=12017
Do you know how many Nations are in Quebec? http://www.autochtones.gouv.qc.ca/nations/cartes/carte-8×11.pdf