Banned Books from the Big Chair returns for 2024 ALA Annual Conference & Exhibition

Sage, the American Library Association, the Banned Books Week Coalition, and Unite Against Book Bans are partnering to bring Banned Books from the Big Chair back to the 2024 ALA Annual Conference and Exhibition!

To counter the unparalleled rise in censorship attempts in libraries and schools, Sage and its partners reimagined the banned books video read out with Banned Books from the Big Chair – an opportunity for ALA Annual attendees to share their love for banned books by reading them from a very big chair!

Everyone is invited to the Banned Books from the Big Chair booth in Lobby E of the San Diego Convention Center (near the ALA Connect booth and the main Exhibits entrance), to record videos of themselves reading from their favorite banned book, make a call to action, and be “Freed Between the Lines” together! Join us on Saturday and Sunday during exhibit hours (9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.) to participate in the video readout. You can bring your own copy of a banned book, but ALA’s Office for Intellectual Freedom has graciously lent titles from its own collection for use in the read out.

The Banned Books from the Big Chair videos will be shared on YouTube as a part of Banned Books Week 2024, which takes place September 22-28. The theme of Banned Books Week 2024 is Freed Between the Lines, a reminder that we find ourselves, each other, and freedom in reading. The right to read is a shared value that we can all celebrate, but book bans and other attempts to limit information in libraries and schools threaten our rights and freedoms. Find out more at ala.org/bbooks.

Banned Books from the Big Chair is sponsored by Sage in partnership with ALA, the Banned Books Week Coalition, and Unite Against Book Bans.

About Sage
Sage is a global academic publisher of books, journals, and library resources with a growing range of technologies to enable discovery, access, and engagement. Believing that research and education are critical in shaping society, 24-year-old Sara Miller McCune founded Sage in 1965. Today, we are controlled by a group of trustees charged with maintaining our independence and mission indefinitely.

Our guaranteed independence means we’re free to:

• Do more – supporting an equitable academic future, furthering disciplines that drive social change, and helping social and behavioral science make an impact
• Work together – building lasting relationships, championing diverse perspectives, and co-creating resources to transform teaching and learning
• Think long-term – experimenting, taking risks, and investing in new ideas

About Banned Books Week Coalition
The Banned Books Week Coalition is an international alliance of diverse organizations joined by a commitment to increase awareness about censorship attempts and to encourage the defense of the freedom to read. The Coalition seeks to engage various communities and inspire participation in Banned Books Week through education, advocacy, and the creation of programming about the problem of book censorship. BannedBooksWeek.org

About Unite Against Book Bans
Unite Against Book Bans is a national initiative launched by the ALA in April 2022 to empower readers everywhere to stand together in the fight against censorship. With more than two hundred partner organizations and tens of thousands of individual supporters, the campaign connects, equips, and mobilizes the public to advocate in their communities for the right to read and to defeat attempts at every level of government to censor reading material. Learn more and join the campaign at uniteagainstbookbans.org/take-action/.