Banned Books Week 2025

October 7th

The Librarians Film Screening

• Location: Varsity Cinema, 1207 25th Street, Des Moines
• Time: 6:30 - 8:00 pm (film), 8:00 - 8:30 pm (discussion)
• Cost: $12 standard ticket; $9 for students (including Drake students) and seniors; $7 for Varsity Cinema members

As part of a city-wide effort to observe “Banned Books Week,” October 5-11 and the impact of book censorship, Drake University’s Cowles Library and the School of Education are proud to partner with the Varsity Cinema to show The Librarians. This documentary highlights the critical role librarians play as frontline defenders of democracy and First Amendment rights. Focusing on efforts like the Krause List in Texas, which targets books on race and LGBTQIA+ topics, the film exposes the growing wave of censorship across the U.S. It draws connections between local book bans and the broader rise of White Christian Nationalism.

Despite harassment, legal threats, and attempts to criminalize their work, librarians stand firm in their fight to protect the freedom to read. One of the librarians featured in the film is Amanda Jones, who is a Louisiana school librarian and passionate anti-censorship advocate whose personal and public stand against book bans has made her a prominent figure in the national debate over intellectual freedom.

Following the film, a small group will share how the issues raised in the movie are being experienced in Iowa with discussion about what communities can do.

 
October 8th

Amanda Jones Fireside Chat

• Location: Parents Hall in Olmsted Center, Drake University
• Time: 7:00 - 8:00 pm
• Cost: Free and open to the public. Free parking passes can be obtained through the Eventbright registration (link below)

Drake University is proud to host activist, author, and librarian Amanda Jones. Her book, That Librarian: Fighting Book Banners in Today’s America, explores the importance of libraries serving a wide range of perspectives and the pushback she and other librarians have faced speaking up for the right to read. The fireside chat will be moderated by current American Library Association president, Sam Helmick. There will be a book signing following the presentation and a range of challenged and censored titles available for purchase from Beaverdale Books.

Presented by Drake’s Cowles Library, the Slay Fund for Social Justice, the Deming Initiative, the Drake School of Education, and the Drake Office of Equity and Inclusion.

Register here, or at QR code on flyer.