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Celebrate National Library Week: Libraries Lead

This week East Central Regional Library joins libraries nationwide in celebrating the many ways libraries lead their communities through the services, programs, and expertise they offer.

April 8-14 is National Library Week, an annual celebration of the life-changing work of libraries. Libraries aren’t just places to borrow books or study—they’re also creative and engaging community centers where people can collaborate and develop their skills and passions.

East Central Regional Library advocates for widespread access to crucial services and lifelong learning in our communities. Libraries level the playing field for patrons who seek information and access to technologies to improve their quality of life.

Today, the State of America’s Libraries Report 2018 was released, an annual summary of library trends that outlines statistics and issues affecting all types of libraries.

The report includes the Top Ten Most Challenged Books of 2017.  The American Library Association’s Office for Intellectual Freedom (OIF) reported 354 challenges to library, school, and university materials and services in 2017; overall in 2017, 416 books were challenged.

Are you interested in reading these challenged and banned books? You may request all of these titles in the East Central Regional catalog.

East Central Regional Library has made a commitment to the free flow of thought, ideas, and expression.  The library does not restrict access to materials and resists censorship. Instead, we look to provide materials that challenge the status quo.

In this, we recognize that items that are in-demand or popular with some users might make others in the community unhappy.   We do not determine which materials are appropriate for which citizens.  Each individual is responsible for which materials are used. Learn more about East Central Regional Library’s Collection Policy.


Additional information regarding why books were challenged is available on the OIF’s Banned and Challenged Books page.

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