Protect your freedom by valuing the ability of people to create and explore ideas freely.

William Pynchon, a merchant and the founder of the present day city of Springfield, Massachusetts, wrote The Meritorious Price of Our Redemption, Justification, Etc. in 1650, when he argued against some of the leading Puritan doctrine of his day.  The General Court of Massachusetts ordered the book suppressed and for all copies to be burned publicly.  Pynchon retracted some of his written statements, but eventually he was forced to return to England.

Banned Book Week | September 30−October 6, 2012

Banned Books Week (BBW) is an annual event celebrating the freedom to read and the importance of the First Amendment.  Held during the last week of September, Banned Books Week highlights the benefits of free and open access to information while drawing attention to the harms of censorship by spotlighting actual or attempted bannings of books across the United States.

Intellectual freedom—the freedom to access information and express ideas, even if the information and ideas might be considered unorthodox or unpopular—provides the foundation for Banned Books Week.  BBW stresses the importance of ensuring the availability of unorthodox or unpopular viewpoints for all who wish to read and access them.