October is finally here, and it is quite the busy month here on Drury’s campus. There are several events that take place annually in the month of October, one of them being Sigma Tau Delta’s Banned Books reading event.

            Something that many people may not be aware of is that the first week of October is banned book week, an awareness campaign that started in 1982 by the American Library Association and Amnesty International. This was due to the increasing rate of books being banned specifically in the United States but internationally as well. 

            For people who do not know, Sigma Tau Delta is an English Honor Society for college students. This society was founded in 1924 and currently serves around 870 chapters. They have about 9000 members across the country and inducts them annually. The organization states that they “promote and foster all aspects of the English discipline and cultural stimulation on college campuses.” 

            Since 2017, approximately 5,906 titles have been impacted by the banning of books in the United States. There have been 1,477 titles affected in 2023 alone. Some states are stricter with the books they allow their younger students to have access to. For example, Florida and Texas have more banned more books than almost any other state in the country. This does not just include fiction books, but this includes textbooks as well. Texas has banned about 801 titles in the 2022-2023 school year, and Florida has banned 1,400 books in the 2022-2023 academic year.

            Drury’s chapter of Sigma Tau Delta holds a reading of several books that have been banned throughout the country this week. This event usually takes place in front of the library and has students volunteer to read passages of books that have been banned. This year the event will take place on Friday, Oct. 6, the event will start at 11 and go to 2p.m. Looking for Alaska by John Green, Between Shades of Grey by Ruta Sepetys, Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan, and even an expert from a Winnie the Pooh book that has been banned and unbanned several times in the past. 

            Events like these are more important now than ever, with the lists of books that younger students have access to dwindling day by day. It is paramount to advocate for banned books for the pursuit of a better education and understanding of diversity and difficult topics. The books being banned aren’t just books like To Kill a Mocking Bird by Harper Lee or The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison, a lot of books that have been recently banned in Florida include children’s books about other ethnic groups and cultures. Raising awareness for this is not only important for older students but for younger ones who are more disproportionally affected by this due public education systems. 

Poster created by Jenna Hall