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Trump replaces Waltz as national security adviser, Rubio takes role for now; Poll: AZ Latino voters 'discouraged' after Trump's first 100 days; AR pre-K suffers from funding gap; Judge bars deportations of Venezuelans from South TX under Alien Enemies Act; Coalition wants to end 'forced labor' in MN prisons.

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National Security Advisor Mike Waltz is leaving that job to become UN ambassador, bipartisan Arizona poll finds Latino voters dissatisfied by Trump's first 100 days, and Florida mass deportations frighten community members.

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Rural students who face hurdles going to college are getting noticed, Native Alaskans may want to live off the land but obstacles like climate change loom large, and the Cherokee language is being preserved by kids in North Carolina.

Banned Book Week: Celebrating the Right to Read in Ohio

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Wednesday, September 24, 2014   

COLUMBUS, Ohio - Some libraries, schools and bookstores in Ohio are challenging censorship by promoting books that have been banned or challenged. It's Banned Books Week, an effort that began in 1982 by the American Library Association to draw attention to efforts to remove or restrict access to books.

Doug Evans, executive director of the Ohio Library Council, said it's important to take the time to highlight the value of free and open access to information.

"The freedom-to-read effort celebrates the idea of diversity in literature," he said, "and the diverse perspectives people have and the access to the information they believe is appropriate for themselves. "

The right to read is as basic as the right to free speech, Evans said, and no matter how unpopular or unorthodox, all ideas should be allowed regardless of the opinions of the government or anyone else. Thanks to the hard work of many librarians, teachers and others, he said, most book challenges are unsuccessful and most materials are retained in the school curriculum or library collection.

Book bans have been going on for centuries, and while one would think times have changed, Evans said there still are attempts to restrict access to literature or ideas.

"(The) year 2000, Captain Underpants, a children's book, was attempted to be banned from a library," he said. "There was even an attempt to ban a book that was written completely in phone texting format because it was grammatically incorrect."

According to the Office of Intellectual Freedom, the most common reasons cited for challenging materials are that they are considered sexually explicit, contain offensive language, or unsuited for any age group. The American Library Association has lists of books that have been challenged or banned online at ala.org.


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