Some of Vermont’s best-known writers will read from works that have been challenged, banned, or censored at an event Thursday, October 1 sponsored by the American Civil Liberties Union of Vermont to celebrate the First Amendment during Banned Books Week (Sept. 27 – Oct. 3).
An Evening Without: Giving Voice to the Silenced, will take place at 7 p.m. at the St. Albans Historical Society Bliss Room, 9 Church St., St. Albans. The space is accessible, and parking is available. (Admission is by donation.)
Banned Books Week is an annual event sponsored in the fall by the American Library Association and noted nationally. It was first observed in 1982 to celebrate the freedom to choose or the freedom to express one's opinion, even if that opinion might be considered unorthodox or unpopular.
The ACLU-VT’s first “Evening Without” program took place six years ago in Norwich. The event received national attention and was so popular that the ACLU decided to make it an annual event and to hold it in a different Vermont town or city each year. Last year’s program was in Middlebury.
Emcee for "Evening Without" is Allen Gilbert, executive director of the ACLU-VT. Gilbert will put the readings into their historical context, weaving together the story of challenges to -- or bannings of -- the works.
Featured readers are:
Dan Close of Underhill, novelist and poet
Robert Cohen of Middlebury, novelist and essayist
David Dobbs of Montpelier, science author and blogger
Robbie Harold of Montpelier, novelist and poet
Tammy Flanders Hetrick of Fairfield, novelist and short story writer
Major Jackson of South Burlington, poet
Ashley Wolff of Leicester, author and illustrator of children’s picture books
Oct 23, 2024, 10 AM to 1:30 PM
Trunk or Treat at DonaldsonOct 26, 2024, 4 to 5 PM
Group Tuning Session Offered by Tula WellnessOct 28, 2024, 7 to 8 PM