(This is a guest post by Lauren Lee, Sigma Tau Delta co-president, Hastings College.)
Former United States Poet Laureate Billy Collins kicked off our annual Sigma Tau Delta and Perkins Library Banned Books Reading at Hastings College (Hastings, NE) with his poem about censorship, “Rain.” Collins also shared a personal encounter with censorship. As a melodramatic high school student, Collins published a poem in his school newspaper which stated that life was so miserable people should just start euthanizing babies. Collins’ Swift-inspired poem upset the administration to such a degree that any student who left the school with a copy of that paper containing Collins’ poem was threatened with expulsion.
The reading, our contribution to the American Library Association’s Banned Books Week, was hosted over the noon hour on the front steps of the college library, and included a homemade soup luncheon and door prizes of controversial books and films. After Collins read, the floor was opened to all in attendance. Students and faculty were given the opportunity to read passages from their favorite banned or challenged books and share the reason people have requested bans on the books. Selections included Matilda by Roald Dahl, The Lorax by Dr. Seuss, and The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger, among others. The event was a huge success, with over 70 people in attendance. (photos by Abi Burrows)
