This is the 30th anniversary of Banned Books Week in the USA! Banned Books Week Buttons for Sale The Iowa City Public Library is offering 2012 Banned Books Week buttons for sale from Sept. 25 through Oct. 26. Vintage buttons from past years are also for sale at the Circulation Desk for $1 each. A [...]

Coinciding with Banned Books Week (Sept. 30 – Oct.6), the Intellectual Freedom Festival at the Iowa City Public Library is an annual event that affirms everyone’s right to freedom of thought and expression. All programs are free and open to the public. 2012 Carol Spaziani Intellectual Freedom Festival Events Thursday, September 27, 2012 7:00 p.m. [...]

Banned Books Week Buttons for Sale The Iowa City Public Library is offering the 2011 Banned Books Week buttons for sale through October 14. Vintage buttons from past years are also for sale at the Circulation Desk for $1 each. Free lists of frequently challenged books will also be available as part of a Library [...]

The Carol Spaziani Intellectual Freedom Festival 2011 kicks off Sept. 16, continues during Banned Books Week from Sept. 24 to Oct. 1, and includes events through Oct. 11 at ICPL. The Intellectual Freedom Festival is an annual event at ICPL that affirms everyone’s right to freedom of thought and expression. All programs are free and [...]

Ben Stone says what we’re witnessing in our government today is a profound misunderstanding of the role of individual liberty in our society. “Many people seem to think individual liberty means they don’t have to be bothered with their fellow human beings, that having this means you can disregard the social contract and insist on [...]

Craig Thompson – Author Visit Prairie Lights Books and the Iowa City Public Library will co-sponsor a visit from one of the most critically-acclaimed cartoonists of his generation, Craig Thompson. He will be reading from his new graphic novel, “Habibi.” Sprawling across an epic landscape of deserts, harems, and modern industrial clutter, “Habibi” tells the [...]

In 1995, the Iowa City Public Library established the annual Carol Spaziani Intellectual Freedom Festival to honor Carol’s 26-year career at ICPL and life-long commitment to the freedom of ideas. Spaziani (shown left) believes that the public library’s role is to be a resource and a forum for an individual’s pursuit and expression of diverse [...]

This week’s headlines at a glance. Also available on our Facebook page by clicking here. UI grad student makes drug drop-off possible By Kathryn Stinson The Daily Iowan September 25, 2009 Source: www.dailyiowan.com Excerpt: ECO-Iowa City members pushed for the event, hoping to provide the city’s residents with an opportunity to learn about the harmful [...]

Yearly List of Challenged and/or Banned Books This brochure lists books challenged, restricted, removed, or banned in 2008-2009 as reported in the Newsletter on Intellectual Freedom. Click on the link below to download a PDF. Books Challenged and/or Banned – 2008-2009 Teen Read-In: Banned Books Week 7-8 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 1, Teen Area @ ICPL [...]

What is Intellectual Freedom? Intellectual Freedom is a basic human right, defined by Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in 1948. The American Library Association affirms Intellectual Freedom as a basis for our democratic system and recognizes the important role libraries play in Intellectual Freedom [...]