Contact: Sarah Nicholas

STARKVILLE, Miss.—The Mississippi State University College of Arts and Sciences’ Institute for the Humanities this month hosts an expert panel discussing censorship in school and public libraries and the current attempts to ban books or restrict services.

Presented April 20 at 3:30 p.m., the panel will be streamed live on Facebook at www.facebook.com/msu.humanities.institute. The public is invited to participate by posting questions or responses in the comments section, which will be incorporated into the ongoing conversation.

“I am so looking forward to speaking with these librarians about their respective communities and professions,” said Julia Osman, director for the Institute for the Humanities and an associate professor of history. “The library is the heartbeat of our communities and our schools, and I have so many questions for our panelists on how the current political climate affects how our libraries function and what services and information they can provide. I’d like them to talk about why books get banned, and why these books should be available. We forget that some of our favorite children’s books, such as ‘Wizard of Oz,’ were once banned. I am hoping that this event will speak to people beyond Starkville, and invite us all to contemplate the important role of libraries in our daily lives.”

Panelists include:

—DeeDee Baldwin, assistant professor and history librarian, MSU’s Mitchell Memorial Library.

—Rachel Cannady, education and online learning librarian, University of Texas at San Antonio, who previously worked at MSU and initiated “banned book” week in Fall 2014.

—Phillip Carter, director, Starkville Oktibbeha County Public Library System; president, Mississippi Library Association; and Southern region representative for the Association for Small and Rural Libraries board of directors.

—Itaska “Tassie” Rosamond, media specialist, Starkville Oktibbeha County Public School District.

For additional questions about the event, contact Osman at humanities@msstate.edu.

Part of MSU’s College of Arts and Sciences, the Institute for the Humanities promotes research, scholarship and creative performances in the humanistic disciplines and raises their visibility, both within Mississippi State University and the wider community.

 For more details about the College of Arts and Sciences or the Institute for the Humanities, visit www.cas.msstate.edu or www.ih.msstate.edu.

MSU is Mississippi’s leading university, available online at www.msstate.edu.