CBC Report: “Book-Ban Attempts are Rising in Canada. But So Are The Number of Librarians and Authors Willing to Fight Them”

From the CBC:

As Canada marks the 40th anniversary of Freedom to Read Week — first founded amid an uproar against Ontario high school seniors studying Margaret Laurence’s novel The Diviners — authors, teachers and librarians are highlighting the importance of students’ access to different perspectives in their school libraries and the need for schools to have (and stick to) clear policies when navigating book challenges. 

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Over the past few years, calls to remove books from school reading lists and library shelves have been on the rise in the U.S., most notably in states like Florida and Texas. Experts say they’re also on an upswing here in Canada. 

According to Canadian librarians, recent challenges primarily involve opposition to books that deal with sexuality, 2SLGBTQ+ themes or gender diversity. 

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Wendy Burch Jones relishes matching “the right book with the right reader at the right time,” curating a collection that reflects students’ identities and inspiring a joy for reading. Burch Jones is a teacher-librarian — an educator with additional qualifications in literacy and librarianship — in Toronto. 

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“If a parent chooses not to read that book to their child, that is absolutely 100 per cent their choice. [But] I am not going to restrict any other child from having access to that book,” said Burch Jones, who added that books considered for school libraries follow selection criteria set by the respective school board.

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Filed under: Libraries, News, School Libraries