Freedom to Read Week 2024

Date

February 18, 2024 00:00 - February 24, 2024 23:59

Location

Across Canada

Details

Website: https://www.freedomtoread.ca

Event Calendar: https://www.freedomtoread.ca/events/

Freedom to Read Week is an annual event that encourages Canadians to think about and reaffirm their commitment to intellectual freedom. As of 2024, Freedom to Read Week entered a new phase led by Library and Archives Canada, the Canadian Urban Library Council, and the Ontario Library Association in partnership with the Book and Periodical Council.

Despite having strong traditions of free expression and free inquiry, Canada also has a long-standing tradition of censorship. Historically, books and magazines have often been quietly removed from libraries and classrooms. Freedom to Read Week was founded in 1984 to challenge the covert nature of censorship, creating a broader awareness of these ongoing challenges to Canadian writing. It also encourages Canadians to actively defend their right to publish, read and write freely and to widen their understanding of the negative effects of censorship, not just on readers but on writers and publishers as well.

Over the years, Freedom to Read Week has become a regular feature of the annual programming of schools, libraries and literary groups across Canada. From student video contests to large public readings of challenged materials, participants have found creative and inspiring ways to show how important freedom of expression is to them.