Education: The Freedom to Read

Alarmed by the swelling chorus of people who want to ban, brand and burn books, the American Library Association (21,000 members) and the American Book Publishers Council last week issued an eloquent declaration of position.

"The freedom to read," said the declaration, "is essential to our democracy. It is under attack. Private groups and public authorities in various parts of the country are working to remove books from sale, to censor textbooks, to label 'controversial' books, to distribute lists of 'objectionable' books or authors, and to purge libraries.

"These actions apparently rise from a view that our national tradition of free expression is...

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