Silent Censorship: Inmate Book Bans and Their Effects
By Jane Laurey
In recent years, book bans have become an all too familiar aspect of literary life. However, a far less-publicized part of censorship is the impact of book bans on prison inmates.
For many incarcerated individuals, books serve as one of their only connections to the outside world. Books provide them with a way to learn about the current state of the world, from culture to politics, that they are unable to engage in while incarcerated. Book banning is actually more prevalent in prisons than in schools, as Prison Banned Books Week has stated that “Single state prison systems censor more books than all state schools and libraries combined.”
Prison Banned Books Week is an initiative to extend access to literature to incarcerated individuals. The organization aims to encourage libraries to expand their catalogs to prisons and jails, providing prisoners with access to books through carceral tablets, which are tablets utilized in prisons and jails for connection to the outside world. This mission was recently successful in San Francisco, as the San Francisco Public Library expanded its catalog to local jails.
The Prison Banned Books Week event took place this year from September 15-21, but you can still participate in the organization’s mission throughout the year. The organization encourages you to contact your federal representatives or write a letter to the editor expressing your support for increased literature access for incarcerated persons. More information and resources are available at prisonbannedbooksweek.org.