![]() ![]() “I’m a lifer at the library,” said Gomes. This summer marks 24 years of working at the Brooklyn Public Library. His mother, concerned about his after-school activities, requested that he volunteer at the Sunset Park Library in his neighborhood. His family emigrated from the Cape Verde Islands when he was a child. Reporter The initiative called Books Unbanned will allow anyone ages 13 to 21 to get a free eCard that will give them access to the library’s virtual collection of 350,000 eBooks and 200,000 audiobooks. But one library system has announced a program to challenge the tide of book bannings. Gomes, who holds a psychology degree from CCNY, started working at the library when he was 15. A recent survey from Pen America found that more than a thousand titles have been banned from various school districts since July, books like 'The Bluest Eye' by Toni Morrison and the memoir Genderqueer by Maia Kobabe. Also, the Librarians of Tomorrow project has teens shadowing librarians and learning the workings of a library. Today’s Teens Tomorrow’s Techies, which has 80 teens each year, help seniors with computer classes and conducts tech workshops with teens. “They came up with the hashtag #BooksUnbanned to help young people share their stories on social media when they applied for a card, and that became the project’s official name,” said Gomes.Īt BPL, he heads two internship programs. They have formed Intellectual Freedom Teen Council, a zoom group that meets one to two times a month with teens from New York and around the country to discuss social justice. The teens in Books Unbanned are diversity advocates. Then we would look at the story and give them a digital library card. “They would write stories to BPL and tell us about their experiences. “The teens would reach out to us and tell their experiences ranging from whether their English teacher told them they are not going to read that book in class or that they are unable to go to the library and take the book out,” said Gomes. Teens who identified as that cannot get books to learn about themselves.”īooks Unbanned welcomes all teens. Specifically, they target people of color, Jewish, and LGBTQ+. Their classroom and the public library are not letting them check out books they are interested in reading. “The teens are the ones that are dealing with this crisis. They don’t see that type of representation, and there’s limited material because of this awful banning across the country. “Black teens want to see more Black authors who write about them. “Teens are looking for representation,” he told Our Time Press. As a Black librarian, he is sensitive to the needs of Black teen readers. Scott Simon gets an update from Nick Higgins, chief librarian of the Brooklyn Public Library, on the Books Unbanned initiative. Jackson Gomes, Young Adult Internship Coordinator at Brooklyn Public Library, is part of a team of five librarians that launched Books Unbanned. However, most cards have been issued to teens in Texas, Florida, California, Pennsylvania, and North Carolina. BPL is proud to celebrate Seattle Public Librarys Books Unbanned as a crucial partner in defending and expanding the freedom to read. Since launching in April 2022, more than 6,000 teens have applied for the card from all 50 states. This virtual program allows nationwide young adults ages 13 to 21 to apply for a free eCard from BPL, unlocking access to the library’s extensive collection of half a million eBooks and audiobooks. The Brooklyn Public Library (BPL) has launched Books Unbanned to reach out to teens living in banned-book communities. Still, this story has been on the top banned books list every year since it was published in 2017.įor Black teens living in communities around the US where books about racism and LGBTQA+ issues are banned from libraries and schools, “The Hate U Give” is the top requested book. Even if you feel all alone, you have that book to read, to know that someone else is out there.“The Hate U Give,” a young adult novel by Angie Thomas that tells the story of a Black teen who witnesses a police shooting and killing of her unarmed best friend, is a best-selling novel and award-winning movie. It’s something you can go back to, even when no one knows about your situation. ![]() “Our age group goes through traumatic experiences, and having books is like having a support system. “It made me realize that most parents want to protect their children - and that’s OK - but it’s not OK to stop someone from learning,” she continued. It’s strange to have a system to take away something that you love or care for.” When I learned that those books were being challenged, it really upset me. “Those are heavily challenged books throughout the nation because The Handmaid’s Tale talks about a very realistic dystopia that could happen in the future, and Speak, on the other hand, talks about sexual abuse and trauma. “I really love The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood and Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson,” Raisa shared. 34 Books That Make LGBTQ+ Teens Feel Seen. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |