Amanda Jones

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Kathryn and Traveis Photography

A close-up of Amanda Jones.

Amanda Jones

The number of attempted book bans in school and public libraries reached a 20-year high in 2022, and it’s only getting worse. During the first half of 2024, the nonprofit organization PEN American reported more than 4,000 instances of book banning — mostly targeting stories by and about BIPOC and LGBTQ+ individuals. Enter a warrior like Amanda Jones, a longtime educator and past president of the Louisiana Association of School Librarians, who arrives in Madison during Banned Books Week 2024. Her engaging new book That Librarian: The Fight Against Book Banning in America, is part memoir/part manifesto; it recounts her harrowing experiences advocating for inclusivity and the freedom to read while also offering a blueprint for advocating in our own communities. Read Bill Lueders' review here. Jones will discuss the book at this Wisconsin Book Festival event.

media release: This event is part of Banned Books Week 2024 and presented in partnership with Beyond the Page

Part memoir, part manifesto, the inspiring story of a Louisiana librarian advocating for inclusivity on the front lines of our vicious culture wars.

One of the things small town librarian Amanda Jones values most about books is how they can affirm a young person's sense of self. So in 2022, when she caught wind of a local public hearing that would discuss “book content,” she knew what was at stake. Schools and libraries nationwide have been bombarded by demands for books with LGTBQ+ references, discussions of racism, and more to be purged from the shelves. Amanda would be damned if her community were to ban stories representing minority groups. She spoke out that night at the meeting. Days later, she woke up to a nightmare that is still ongoing.

Amanda Jones has been called a groomer, a pedo, and a porn-pusher; she has faced death threats and attacks from strangers and friends alike. Her decision to support a collection of books with diverse perspectives made her a target for extremists using book banning campaigns-funded by dark money organizations and advanced by hard right politicians-in a crusade to make America more white, straight, and "Christian." But Amanda Jones wouldn't give up without a fight: she sued her harassers for defamation and urged others to join her in the resistance.

Mapping the book banning crisis occurring all across the nation, That Librarian: The Fight Against Book Banning in America draws the battle lines in the war against equity and inclusion, calling book lovers everywhere to rise in defense of our readers.

Celebrate the freedom to read in the Dane County public libraries! Find the full list of events here