These individuals are fighting to make the widest possible range of viewpoints, opinions, and ideas available. And in the face of recent bans on books, their work is both more challenging and more important than ever.
Books have always shaped how I view the world. Reading about people whose lives were very different from mine showed me how to step into someone else’s shoes. And the simple act of writing helped me develop my own identity—all of which would prove vital as a citizen, as a community organizer, and as president.
Today, some of the books that shaped my life—and the lives of so many others—are being challenged by people who disagree with certain ideas or perspectives. It’s no coincidence that these “banned books'' are often written by or feature people of color, Indigenous people, and members of the LGBTQ+ community.
The impulse seems to be to silence, rather than engage, rebut, learn from or seek to understand views that don’t fit our own.
I believe deeply that the free, robust exchange of ideas is a core part of American democracy, and it’s one of the reasons why I enjoy sharing the wide range of books that have had a profound effect on me.
