Yesterday boasted perfect weather for running all over the UCLA campus. That's just what three teams of chapter members did
in honor of Banned Books Week. Teams were comprised of a blend of first and second year students competing for Banned Books swag and bragging rights.
The purpose of this event was threefold. First, the chapter announced its mentor/mentee pairings, a program designed to support
first year students within the department by pairing them with second year students with similar career aspirations. Chapter members had a chance to bond while completing tasks such as dressing as Captain Underpants in the student store, sanitizing hands at the student health center, and locating or reading aloud from banned books in campus libraries and book stores.
A second planned outcome was familiarizing first year students with essential buildings on campus. For instance, teams were asked to visit our sister department in Moore Hall and get a graduate student from the Department of Education to let them write "I read banned books" on their hand.
A final benefit of this scavenger hunt was introducing students to ALA's annual Banned Books Week. Each clue in
the scavenger hunt was tied to a "Banned Fact" in order to increase awareness of censorship and commitment to intellectual freedom.
Teams scored points by texting photo messages of each accomplished task to headquarters. This tech savvy approach ensured that the campus facilities would remain clean and organized and guaranteed some amusing photo keepsakes of the event!
The three teams were neck and neck throughout the two-hour competition. All three teams completed the 13 clues successfully. The final winner, Team Awesome, won by a mere two points acquired through bonus points assigned for creativity!
If you missed this incredible event, have no fear - we'll be hosting thrilling mentor/mentee social events every other month throughout the year!
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3 comments:
i am seriously impressed with the 2010-2011 ALA crew! this sounds like it was an awesome event, and i really wish that i could have participated. sweet job yall, good luck in the twen-lev!!
If you want to read a banned book, read the last book banned in the USA, namely, Fanny Hill, last banned in 1963.
No books have been banned in the USA for about a half a century. See "National Hogwash Week."
Thomas Sowell says Banned Books Week is “the kind of shameless propaganda that has become commonplace in false charges of ‘censorship’ or ‘book banning’ has apparently now been institutionalized with a week of its own.” He calls it “National Hogwash Week.”
Former ALA Councilor Jessamyn West said, "It also highlights the thing we know about Banned Books Week that we don't talk about much — the bulk of these books are challenged by parents for being age-inappropriate for children. While I think this is still a formidable thing for librarians to deal with, it's totally different from people trying to block a book from being sold at all." See "Banned Books Week is Next Week."
And then there's Judith Krug herself who created BBW:
"Marking 25 Years of Banned Books Week," by Judith Krug, Curriculum Review, 46:1, Sep. 2006. "On rare occasion, we have situations where a piece of material is not what it appears to be on the surface and the material is totally inappropriate for a school library. In that case, yes, it is appropriate to remove materials. If it doesn't fit your material selection policy, get it out of there."
Lastly, remember the ALA does not oppose book burning when doing so would interfere with its political interests. Go see what Judith Krug said about Cuban librarians: "American Library Association Shamed," by Nat Hentoff.
This was so much fun! Such a great way for first and second years to bond and learn about banned books! UCLA ALA Student Chapter rocks.
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