Banned Books Week Events
Tune in throughout Banned Books Week for a series of (mostly) free online events featuring authors, librarians, and activists working to fight censorship! Check out some highlights below.
Policy as an Advocacy Tool: Tips for Booksellers, Librarians, and Community Advocates
Presented by Unite Against Book Bans
October 6, 2025 • 3:00 p.m. CT
Policy can be powerful tool when fighting censorship in bookstores, libraries, and other places communities rely on to access information. Join experts in building and implementing policies for bookstores and for libraries, and learn how community advocates can use policy in their work. Attendees will walk away with more knowledge about the qualities of good information access policies, resources for developing policies, and how librarians, bookstore owners, and community members can work together to protect the freedom to read. Moderated by Library Futures.
Unscripted: A Night Against Censorship, Featuring George Takei
Brooklyn Public Library welcomes George Takei to Central Library's Grand Lobby for a conversation about the transformative power of books and the dangerous trend of censorship. The event is free and open to the public.
A pioneering author, actor and activist, George Takei is the honorary chair of Banned Books Week 2025. This annual nationwide event highlights the value of open access to information and the freedom to seek and express ideas from all points of view.
Following Mr. Takei’s conversation with librarian and poet Adeeba Rana, special guests and the public will be invited to the stage to share their own stories about books which inspired them; their experiences with censorship; and the importance of the First Amendment.
Special Guests Include:
- ALA President Sam Helmick
- Philomena Polefrone, associate director of American Booksellers for Free Expression
- Playwright Kate Hamill
- Broadway Actress Valerie Wright
- Actor and Grammy Nominee Austin Ku
- Jonathan Friedman, Syms Managing Director, U.S. Free Expression Programs at PEN America
Librarians Supporting Each Other to Confront Book Bans
Presented by the ALA Office for Intellectual Freedom
October 7, 2025 • 12:00 – 1:00 p.m. CT
With support and training through two American Library Association (ALA) programs, Law for Librarians, and Library Helplines, librarians around the country are supporting, training, and networking with colleagues to push back against censorship attempts. Join ALA members and staff from the ALA Office for Intellectual Freedom for a conversation about these new avenues for challenge support, the impact they’ve had in many communities, and resources you can tap into for support.
Storytelling for Advocacy
Presented by Unite Against Book Bans and Everyday Advocacy
October 7, 2025 • 4:00 - 5:00 PM CT
This workshop focuses on ways we can use storytelling to proactively advocate for the use of diverse books in schools and libraries, centering on the alliances we can create with both colleague teachers and community members. Drawing upon the work of the Everyday Advocacy movement, participants will learn how storytelling can be used to change the public narrative. Adapted from the work of Marshall Ganz, participants will learn ways to use the story of self, us, and now to shift the public narrative surrounding diverse books and their inclusion in schools and library.
A Fight for Our Rights: Youth Fighting Book Bans
Presented by the Banned Books Week Coalition • Featuring Banned Books Week 2025 Youth Honorary Chair Iris Mogul
October 8, 2025 • 3:00 PM CT
A group that has shown up without fail in the fight against censorship is one that is most impacted by book bans: young people. Find inspiration – and ideas for your own advocacy – from the students on the front lines with Banned Books Week Youth Honorary Chair Iris Mogul and leading youth advocates from around the country as they converse about what banned books mean to them, how censorship disrupts their lives, and what they are doing to keep books in schools, libraries, and the hands of students like themselves.
Read On: Tools to Help You Prepare for and Respond to Book Challenges
Presented by the ALA Office for Intellectual Freedom and Booklist
October 9, 2025 • 1:00 PM CT (session times vary)
According to data released by the American Library Association, there were 821 attempts to censor library books and materials in 2024 with a majority of these attempts originating from organized movements. Coupled with funding cuts, library workers are under tremendous pressure and in need of professional resources to help combat book challenges. Join ALA’s Office for Intellectual Freedom and Booklist on Thursday, October 9 for a free Banned Books Week workshop that will offer expert advice for library professionals about how to prepare for and respond to book challenges. Sponsored by Penguin Random House Library Marketing.
Session info:
Be Prepared! (50 minutes) Session Time: 2 p.m. ET / 1 p.m. CT / 11 a.m. PT
Learn about how you can prepare your staff and institution for challenges through training, policies, and information.
You’ve Received a Challenge, Now What? (50 minutes) Session Time: 3 p.m. ET / 2 p.m. CT / 12 p.m. PT
Joyce McIntosh, Program Officer for ALA’s Office for Intellectual Freedom, will walk attendees through next steps after a book challenge is received.
Author Panel (50 minutes) Session Time: 4 p.m. ET / 3 p.m. CT / 1 p.m. PT
Join us for a roundtable where authors will discuss their personal experiences with their titles being challenged or banned; how censorship affects creativity; the negative effects book censorship has on young readers; and how libraries and educators can work with authors, illustrators, and creators to continue to combat censorship and promote free reading. Authors: Jarrett Dapier, Ashley Hope Pérez, Kelly Yang.
Eleanor Roosevelt Banned Book Awards 2025
Sponsored by the Freedom to Read Foundation
October 11, 2025 • 7:00 PM ET | Bardavon 1869 Opera House, Poughkeepsie, NY
Celebrate a group of authors whose voices have been banned, who have faced character defamation and threats of violence, but who have stood strong and proud. Also celebrate the teachers, librarians, students, community activists, lawyers, and others who are out there fighting – from the classroom to the courtroom.
Let Freedom Read Day
On October 11, 2025, we’re asking everyone to take at least one action to help defend books from censorship and to stand up for the library staff, educators, writers, publishers, and booksellers who make them available!
Show us how you’re taking action on social media by using the hashtags #LetFreedomReadDay and #BannedBooksWeek!
