‘Banned Books Week’ Isn’t Actually Interested in Banned Books . . .

By Thomas Spence, president of Regnery Publishing.
The annual ritual known as Banned Books Week rarely involves books that have been banned in any meaningful sense. If the ‘Banned Books Week’ were actually about banned books, conservative writers like Abigail Shrier and Ryan T. Anderson would be on the list. Begun in 1982 and endorsed by such mainstream organizations as the American Library Association and PEN America, this gimmicky promotion caters primarily to those who believe that schoolchildren should have access to anything bound between two covers without the interference of those busybodies we call parents. But this year, for the first time in the 40-year history of Banned Books Week, writers and publishers face the threat of real book-banning. Strangely enough, the sponsors of Banned Books Week have nothing to say about it. The theme this year is “Books Unite Us. Censorship Divides Us.” The Banned Books Week 2021 features a list of titles, almost entirely limited to progressive works. But what about the second part of that theme? When will Banned Books Week pay attention to banned books?.. (Excerpts from the  Wall Street Journal)