Banned books hotline launches in Tennessee

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — It’s been over a month since Brendon Donoho officially launched his own library for Rutherford County’s banned books.

“We’ve done several checkouts and gotten books back and gotten things kind of streamed lined which has been awesome,” he said.

And as books continue to be challenged and removed from library shelves across Tennessee others are working on ways to keep them accessible to all.

“We had a request come in,” said Dr. Susan Groenke. “So we got a young person who requested Steven Chbosky’s Perks of Being a Wallflower.”

Groenke is the Director of the Center for Children’s and Young Adult Literature at the University of Tennessee Knoxville. After getting inspiration from author Ashley Hope Perez, she decided to partner with booksellers and organizations to launch a banned books hotline.

“Book banning is hurting us in lots of ways,” said Groenke. “It’s hurting the teaching profession. It hurts young people who go to young adult literature to find themselves.”

Groenke has set up a form for students across the State of Tennessee to complete where they can request a free copy of a banned young adult book.

“I believe its truly lifesaving…to have access to those resources,” said Dr. Miriam Davis.

Davis is the co-director of the Children’s Diversity and Justice Library which is part of this partnership. She believes this will be a resource for teens across the state. “You know having these things out front for people… it’s critical.”

Donoho is all for the hotline. “I love it,” he said. “I think it’s a great idea.”

He’s glad more resources are out there to make sure these books are available for everyone here in Tennessee.

“It’s so important not to just bring this information to people who need it, but make it that easy and that accessible,” he said.

Groenke said she plans to travel across the state in January, visiting independent bookstores and sellers to see if they’ll be a part of the hotline.

If you are a young adult who is interested in requesting a copy of a free banned book you can do so HERE.

For more information about the hotline or if you would like to contact Groenke you can send an email to righttoreadya@gmail.com.