"There will come a time when we will love humanity, when we will gain the courage to fight for an equitable society for our beloved humanity..."
—Ibram X. Kendi & Jason Reynolds, Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You.

The importance of banned books lies in their power to challenge us... make us uncomfortable, require us to be brave, even force us to grapple with complex and controversial ideas. Banned books often deal with issues of social justice, race and gender, identity, violations to human rights and violence—these are precisely the conversations that our society most needs to have. Moreover, we find a direct correlation to avoiding such topics and a more direct decline into a deleterious disorder. Quickly abandoning our compassion and becoming cutthroat. We unconsciously make a regular habit of blaming the other guy, when the only thing stopping us from taking accountability is our own inherent fear. I promise you can identify it too—just listen to yourself talk the next time you speak ill of others. And don't look around right now because I'm talking to you.

Read Banned Books With Bravery. Embrace the Discomfort of Growth. Or Point Fingers and Petition for Censorship like a Certified, Contemptible, Chicken S*** Coward.

By exploring these "dangerous" ideas, perspectives and schools of thought; we foster the critical thinking and intellectual curiosity essential for preparing future generations to engage with the world's complexities rather than shielding them from its realities.

Banned books are not a threat to our values; they are the rod and the lesson—the embodiment of freedom. Freedom of thought, freedom of expression and freedom to evolve. To become better, as we all must do. The Freedom and Liberty that underpins a healthy democracy and a convalescing collective.

“Without Freedom of Thought, there can be no such thing as Wisdom; and no such thing as public liberty, without Freedom of Speech.”
—Benjamin Franklin, Printed in The New England Courant, July 9, 1722, Letter from Silence Dogood (alias of Benjamin Franklin who was Banned from having his work published by the local print press. The print press owned by his brother).