The right to read is fundamental to a free and democratic society. #freedomtoreadweek
It’s Freedom to Read Week! 📖 🇨🇦
Free speech protects the listener as much as the speaker, and the reader as much as the writer. A free society depends not just on the ability to publish ideas, but on the public’s ability to access them.
Banning books or filtering them through ideological litmus tests is censorship. Governments and public institutions don’t get to decide which viewpoints Canadians are allowed to encounter.
Age-appropriate access policies can be reasonable, but restricting adults or suppressing ideas because they’re “controversial” undermines the foundation of a free society.
This #FreedomtoReadWeek, we affirm a simple principle: in a free country, we are free to read.
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In recognition of Freedom to Read Week, this list collects some of the titles that have been challenged or damaged in public libraries: bit.ly/4scsGqd
#CalgaryLibrary #FTRW26 #FreedomToReadWeek #FreedomToReadWeek
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When a challenged book is removed, someone else is deciding what you can access, explore, and question. During @freedomtoreadwk, visit our display of recently challenged and banned books; do any of them surprise you?
Visit the link in bio to start browsing.
#FreedomToReadWeek
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Did you know? There have been more than 800 book challenges in Canada in the last five years, with 120 of those coming in 2025.
You have the right to intellectual freedom.
Your Library provides you access.
Learn more about the Library’s commitment to intellectual freedom by visiting our website at: bit.ly/3UtuSL0
#CalgaryLibrary #FTRW26 #FreedomToReadWeek #FreedomToRead
ALT A library interior featuring a "Create Space" sign on a partition. Various books are displayed in the foreground. The background shows shelves filled with books and a small reading area with a green chair and display of books and plants.
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The Library has created a Book Sanctuary to raise awareness around the freedom to read and to share more about your right to access books that have been challenged or banned.
The exhibit be at the Create Space in Central Library for Freedom to Read Week until February 28, with smaller displays around the city at community libraries.
Learn more about the Book Sanctuary by reading our Library News story at: bit.ly/3OWOh7o
#CalgaryLibrary #FTRW26 #FreedomToReadWeek #FreedomToRead
ALT A library interior with wooden ceilings and large windows. In the foreground, there are mobile carts labeled "Book Sanctuary." In the background, there are more shelves with books and information on posters.
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It’s Freedom to Read Week! 📖 🇨🇦
Free speech protects the listener as much as the speaker, and the reader as much as the writer. A free society depends not just on the ability to publish ideas, but on the public’s ability to access them.
Banning books or filtering them through ideological litmus tests is censorship. Governments and public institutions don’t get to decide which viewpoints Canadians are allowed to encounter.
Age-appropriate access policies can be reasonable, but restricting adults or suppressing ideas because they’re “controversial” undermines the foundation of a free society.
This #FreedomtoReadWeek, we affirm a simple principle: in a free country, we are free to read.
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It's #FreedomToReadWeek here in Canada — make sure to read, read, read with your students! Choosing and using texts for your classroom is a key part of all teaching and learning❤️
#profdev #teaching #learning #literacy #reading #FreedomToRead #education #edutwitter
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“The public library’s role is not to tell you what to read. We are here to ensure you have the ability to make the choice that is right for YOU.” - Calgary Public Library CEO, Sarah Meilleur.
It’s Freedom to Read Week! This is an opportunity to celebrate and highlight every individual's right to access information. To learn and consider new ideas and to express your own thoughts, opinions, and feelings.
Learn more about the Library’s commitment to intellectual freedom by visiting our website at: bit.ly/3UtuSL0
#CalgaryLibrary #FTRW26 #FreedomToReadWeek #FreedomToRead
ALT A person sits smiling on a wooden chair, holding a stack of books. There is a large poster in the background on a wall on wooden shelves.
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We stand with libraries across Canada to reaffirm our commitment to intellectual freedom during this year's Freedom to Read Week! 📚💪
Protect your freedom to read by learning how books are being challenged and discover how you can get involved. Learn more by visiting: bit.ly/42NPItZ
#CalgaryLibrary #FTRW26 #FreedomToReadWeek #FreedomToRead
ALT The image is a promotional poster for "Freedom to Read Week" from February 22-28, 2026, displaying a character in a maze of books holding a glowing key. The books are locked with large chains and padlocks, symbolizing restricted access to information.
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Feb 23
Celebrate #FreedomtoReadWeek with artist Kelly McCray. Join #TeamHPL at the Waterdown Branch for a talk on The Tower of Banned Books of the #art installation.
We'll see you this coming Wednesday, February 25, 6:00–7:30pm for this important discussion.
hpl.ca/events
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#FreedomToReadWeek highlights the importance of intellectual freedom and the right to access diverse ideas. OCTs can log in to explore this resource from the Margaret Wilson Library: oct-oeeo.ca/hwdb7w
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Today, in recognition of Freedom to Read Week (February 22 – 28), Calgary Public Library CEO Sarah Meilleur presented Mayor Jeromy Farkas (@JeromyYYC) and Council with two books: the frequently challenged novel "The Giver" by Lois Lowry and "On Book Banning: Or How the New Censorship Consensus Trivializes Art and Undermines Democracy" by Ira Wells.
Read Sarah Meilleur's full remarks here: bit.ly/3OiEYyA
#CalgaryLibrary #FreedomToReadWeek #FTRW26
ALT Photo of two individuals smiling and holding a book.
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12 Dec 2025
Reading is freedom. #FreedomToReadWeek challenges Canadians to protect diverse voices and resist censorship. A powerful campaign reminding publishers, libraries, and readers that access to stories is a right, not a privilege.
#RightToRead #publishers
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Say it with us now:
FREE
PEOPLE
READ
FREELY
#FreedomToReadWeek
#BannedBooksWeek
buffalo-erie-county-public-l…
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Thanks to @quillandquire and @cassandra_d for the interview
#IndustryNews, #FreedomToReadAward, #FreedomToReadWeek, #interview
quillandquire.com/omni/poet-…
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27 Feb 2025
📗✨" 'Freedom to read' is crucial to a healthy society", article by Sonia Bebbington, Chief Librarian and CEO of Ottawa Public Library published in the Ottawa Citizen.
Read the full article 👉ow.ly/ehag50V7YE4 #Freedomtoreadweek #Freedomtoread
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27 Feb 2025
#TBT photo for #FreedomToReadWeek of the Holiday Reading Club at Coronation Park Library in 1957. See more photos at #WpgArchives bit.ly/48MOT5u
ALT Holiday Reading Club at Coronation Park Library in 1957
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27 Feb 2025
While challenges against books are nothing new, LAC’s collection mandate and initiatives such as #FreedomToReadWeek ensure that books remain available to all! Read about it on the LAC Blog – thediscoverblog.com/?p=18083
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ALT Stevie Farthing reading a book and eating a biscuit at Salaberry Co-op Nursery School, Montreal, Quebec
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26 Feb 2025
#FTRWeek
Countries must “recognize the right of the child to rest and leisure, to engage in play and recreational activities appropriate to the age of the child and to participate freely in cultural life and the arts.”
#FreedomToReadWeek
ALT Headline reads, Freedom to Read Week. A ribbon of text loops around a child playing with a toy car with the text reading: Article 31 states that countries must “recognize the right of the child to rest and leisure, to engage in play and recreational activities appropriate to the age of the child and to participate freely in cultural life and the arts.”. An Orange Heart halos behind the child symbolizing Orange Heart Day
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