Sigma Tau Delta brings awareness to banned books

Sigma Tau Delta held a read-in centered around banned books last Wednesday. Students and faculty alike were encouraged to bring excerpts from their favorite banned books and read them aloud.  

Topics included themes such as anti-war, racism and profanity. The Banned Books is an annual read-in. 

“We’ve been doing this in conjunction with the National Council of Teachers of English,” said Associate Professor of English as well as Co-Sponsor for Sigma Tau Delta Dr. Theresa Johnson. “Every year, NCTE hosts read-ins, and so do we.” 

Oct. 5 through Oct. 11 is Banned Books Week in the United States. Banned Books Week occurs every year in the fall and helps to raise awareness of reading censorship.  

“[Banned Books Week] is to specifically highlight books that have been either challenged or banned in schools or library settings,” said Anna Orlofsky, a lecturer of English and the co-sponsor of Sigma Tau Delta. “It is to spotlight the authors and the texts.  

“[NCTE] will also publish a list of books each year that have been challenged or banned the most over the past 365 days. Alarmingly, those percentages have risen, especially in the past few years. That’s why we have this event every year.” 

The members of this English Honors Society believe that raising awareness for this is needed. 

“We think it’s necessary because Dr. Suess, Shel Silverstein, Harper Lee and so many of the books that we read are banned elsewhere in the United States, and we just wanted to bring awareness to the banned books,” Johnson said. 

Tommy Kay, a senior English major from Monroe, Louisiana, brought two pieces to read for the read-in. One was a poem by Mahmoud Darwish, a Palestinian poet who took a stance against war. The poem is called “Earth Poem.” 

“One of the lines that stuck out to me was 30 years and five wars,’” Kay said. “He’s talking about the land being turned over and over again by occupying forces and even still people singing for their land and for their sorrow.”  

The second poem Kay read was by Shel Silverstein and is called, “How Not To Have To Dry The Dishes.” 

“I love Shel Silverstein,” Kay said. “I felt that, after the roughness of that first poem, just lifting the mood with this fun poem about a kid not wanting to do the dishes.  

“It’s a silly, simple poem, and still, people get upset about it.”  

“Sometimes, when reading the actual lines themselves, people read them and go ‘Wait, why is that bad?’” Orlofsky said. “Explore and investigate the books themselves. It’s a wide variety of stories, both fiction and nonfiction.” 

Sigma Tau Delta has chapters across the country. The organization is open to any English majors or minors. The chapter at Troy University holds monthly read-ins for different topics.  

“We try to highlight a specific topic, issue or group of writers with each one,” Orlofsky said.  

Aside from read-ins, Sigma Tau Delta also has other events throughout the year. The members plan on taking the reading off campus to read to the elderly. They also have pop-up shops for their student-made stickers in order to raise funds. 

To stay updated about Sigma Tau Delta events, follow @troysigmataudelta on Instagram.