Join LeVar Burton and add your name to the Artists Against Book Bans letter now!

John,

Did you see the email from LeVar Burton last week asking you to add your name to the Artists Against Book Bans letter? He has joined with more than 150+ artists, creators, entertainers, and activists—including Margaret Atwood, Raquel Willis, Mark Ruffalo, Ariana Grande, Billy Porter, Natasha Lyonne, and more—to condemn book bans. The letter is already getting noticed, with features in publications like The Hollywood Reporter, The Guardian, and The Root.^1,2,3 And we need your help to keep up the momentum.

These artists and activists are joining forces with MoveOn because they know that the shocking wave of banned books won’t stop there. It’s part of the conservative playbook to censor creative speech and scapegoat marginalized communities—particularly Black, Indigenous, Latinx, AAPI, and LGBTQ+ voices—in order to limit what we can collectively produce, write, generate, read, listen to, and consume.

Politicians banning books are afraid because reading expands our ability to understand the world around us. Books archive our history, provide context for our present, and help us imagine brighter possibilities for ourselves and our collective future. We refuse to be silent as a few immoral, opportunistic politicians work to strip away our freedom to read. Add your name and join LeVar Burton and more than 42,000 MoveOn members who are speaking out against book bans.

Together, we can fight back. Sign the letter, which we’ll feature at every stop of the MoveOn Banned Bookmobile in October, and then send it to three friends and family members asking them to do the same.

Thanks for all you do.

–Aliya, Mohammad, Kenia, Mana, and the rest of the team

P.S. See LeVar’s email below for more background on the Artists Against Book Bans letter.

Sources:

1. "Ariana Grande, Guillermo del Toro, Padma Lakshmi and More Sign Open Letter Denouncing Book Bans and Their 'Chilling Effect' (Exclusive)," The Hollywood Reporter, September 19, 2023
https://act.moveon.org/go/180267?t=7&akid=363141%2E40999114%2EsoIhq4

2. "'Chilling': Ariana Grande, Amanda Gorman and others sign letter against book bans," The Guardian, September 19, 2023
https://act.moveon.org/go/180379?t=9&akid=363141%2E40999114%2EsoIhq4

3. "Actors, Activists Join LeVar Burton in the Fight Against Book Bans," The Root, September 20, 2023
https://act.moveon.org/go/180380?t=11&akid=363141%2E40999114%2EsoIhq4

Join me, LeVar Burton, and nearly 175 artists, celebrities, and creative leaders. Add your name to this open letter demanding governors and state legislators stop book bans!

Dear MoveOn member,

My name is LeVar Burton. You may recognize me as the host of the show "Reading Rainbow," as well as from "Roots," "Star Trek: The Next Generation," and a lifetime of bringing stories to life. As a lifetime literacy advocate, I've spent over 20 years inspiring people of all ages to discover their love of reading.

Now, 40 years after "Reading Rainbow" first aired, book bans and censorship of the arts are on the rise. Authors whose work was featured on "Reading Rainbow"—like Eve Bunting, Mary Hoffman, and Patricia Polacco—have had their books challenged or removed from schools.^4,5,6 It is embarrassing that the authors our country once celebrated, we are now censoring. And we know that a vast majority of Americans support the freedom to read, to learn, and to get lost in a good book.

I'm partnering with MoveOn to launch a campaign with creative leaders to bring heightened awareness to this dangerous form of censorship and exclusion. As artists, we've banded together, because a threat to one form of art is a threat to us all. Nearly 175 authors, actors, musicians, directors, songwriters, and other notable influencers signed an open letter denouncing the rising wave of book bans across the country. And now we'd love for you to join us by adding your name too.

Throughout my career, I have inspired people of all ages to see themselves in literature, fall in love with reading, and imagine possibilities for themselves and their futures. I still meet people today who share how being exposed to books with different points of view, books about challenging topics, and books by authors from a range of backgrounds helped them develop empathy, critical thinking, and a love for their community.

Will you join me in pushing back against book bans by adding your name to this open letter? We'll tell all elected officials to reject book bans, and we'll demand that they support funding for diverse stories to be featured in our libraries, taught in our schools, and celebrated in all our communities.

As the son of an English teacher, I was exposed to the written word from an early age. It was only fitting that I carried my love for reading into my life’s work. I am a proud literacy advocate, and I must say that I am disturbed by the recent uptick in challenges, restrictions, and bans of books related to gender, sexuality, race, and history.

My son and daughter grew up with access to diverse stories that reflected their lived experiences, history, and dreams. And so did the millions of children, teachers, and parents who tuned in to "Reading Rainbow." Librarians and teachers across the country have done amazing work bringing thoughtful, diverse, important, engaging books to their shelves and their classrooms. Now I'm afraid current and future generations won’t be so lucky. And I'm worried for teachers and librarians who feel like they can't do the job they love.

There are steps you can take right now to resist censorship. MoveOn members across the country are launching petitions, talking to their elected officials, supporting teachers and librarians, and even supporting the Banned Bookmobile that's traveling the country. Even on your own, you can keep reading the books they ban. You can get involved in your local libraries and school boards. And you can sign the open letter to join these prominent artists across the country who are speaking out against book bans.

Thank you for reading and resisting.

–LeVar Burton

Sources:

4. "These 176 books were banned in Duval County, Florida," PEN America, December 6, 2022
https://act.moveon.org/go/177836?t=18&akid=363141%2E40999114%2EsoIhq4

5. "Central York School District book ban inspires banned book giveaway," FOX43, September 30, 2021
https://act.moveon.org/go/177837?t=20&akid=363141%2E40999114%2EsoIhq4

6. "Reading Rainbow Complete Book List," Know Tea, August 22, 2018
https://act.moveon.org/go/177838?t=22&akid=363141%2E40999114%2EsoIhq4

You're receiving this petition because we thought it might interest you. It was created on MoveOn.org, where anyone can start their own online petitions. You can start your own petition here.

Want to support MoveOn's work? Book bans have skyrocketed thanks to right-wing state laws which have forced teachers to remove books from their classrooms. In response, MoveOn is launching a “Banned Bookmobile,” filling it with books that the far right has banned, and driving it around to hand out those books, for free, in highly trafficked areas that will attract media attention. To keep the Banned Bookmobile up and running into 2024, we need your help.

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