LeVar Burton has organized over 150 artists, musicians, creators, and performers to sign an open letter condemning book banning and its impact on artistic freedom. The United States has recently been hit with an unprecedented rise in book bans and challenges, primarily spearheaded by far-right parents and politicians. Unfortunately, many politicians have already succeeded in passing legislation in states like Mississippi, Florida, and Iowa that allow dozens of books to be banned from school districts if they contain any content related to sex, sexual identity, or sex education.
Of course, the books being banned aren’t sexually explicit or dangerous. Instead, book banners most frequently target titles that deal with topics such as gender, sexuality, and race, or that come from authors or feature characters who are BIPOC or belong to the LGBTQ+ community. The goal is to silence marginalized communities and censor anything that doesn’t meet the far-right agenda or support their homophobic, transphobic, and racist viewpoints. Their efforts have resulted in children being unable to access books and materials they need, and has put unnecessary strain on countless school districts, publishers, libraries, and book vendors.
Additionally, writers are being silenced and forced to fight censorship and constant attacks on their work as fear grows about which art forms will be targeted next. As a result, many writers and creators are coming together to speak out against book banning.
LeVar Burton leads initiative to combat book banning
Actor, TV host, and author LeVar Burton, best known for his role as Geordi La Forge in the Star Trek franchise, has collaborated with MoveOn to organize over 150 writers, creators, and musicians to sign an open letter against book banning. The letter has received a total of 35,123 signatures as of the writing of this article. It has nabbed signatures from countless activists and celebrities, including Judy Blume, Ariana Grande, Guillermo del Toro, Amanda Gorman, Mark Ruffalo, and Margaret Atwood.
The letter condemns book banning and the threat it poses to artistic freedom. It notes that book banning goes directly against free speech, and the government is overstepping its authority by attempting to “dictate what people can produce, write, generate, read, listen to, or consume.” The letter also expresses the fear that book banning is just the beginning and that censorship will soon extend to all forms of art and entertainment. This is why all these creators are joining to push back against the threat to art that book banning poses. The letter ends with a call to action, encouraging everyone, including those at the local level, to fight back against bans. It concludes, “There is power in artistic freedom, and we refuse to allow draconian politicians to take that from us.”
It’s not surprising that Burton is spearheading this effort. For 23 years, he served as the host and producer of Reading Rainbow, during which he worked tirelessly to keep the show alive and inspire a love of reading in children. He is also an author, having published the novel Aftermath and two children’s books. Burton also runs a podcast called LeVar Burton Reads, devoted to sharing and highlighting short fiction with listeners. One can only imagine devoting oneself to instilling a love of reading in children and adults, just to witness children’s books being under attack as adults advocate taking away books and resources from the most vulnerable young readers.
Burton’s letter raises awareness that book banning isn’t a fight that pertains only to authors. Creativity and freedom as a whole are under attack. If these book banners continue succeeding in passing draconian laws that censor and regulate everything we produce and access, we’re looking at a very bleak future for all forms of art and entertainment. Whether authors, musicians, performers, or locals, everyone must join the fight against book banning to preserve artistic freedom.
(featured image: Paul Archuleta, Getty Images)
