The last week of every September is officially Banned Books Week throughout the U.S., thanks to the American Library Association. In this panel discussion to be held at So and So Books, 2024 N.C. Piedmont Laureate Steven Petrow will lead a discussion about the threat books bans pose to freedom and democracy and more granularly to young people, LGBTQ+ individuals, librarians, and other marginalized people. Our focus is on the right to choose and the right to read.

Where: So and So Books ,719 N. Person Street, Raleigh, N.C.

When:   September 24, 2024 at 6:30 pm

Participants:

Steven Petrow (moderator) is the 2024 N.C. Piedmont Laureate, a columnist for The Washington Post, and the author of the just published book, The Joy You Make. His TED Talk, “3 Ways to Practice Civility,” has been viewed nearly 2 million times.

Belle Boggs is the author of The Gulf: A Novel; The Art of Waiting; and Mattaponi Queen: Stories. The Art of Waiting. She is an associate professor of English at North Carolina State University, where she also directs the MFA program in creative writing.

Jaki Shelton Green, ninth Poet Laureate of North Carolina is the first African American and third woman to be appointed as the North Carolina Poet Laureate.

Ed Southern has been the executive director of the North Carolina Writers’ Network, one of the largest writers’ organizations of its kind in the country, since 2008 In 2015 he won the Fortner Award for service to the literary arts in North Carolina.

Scott Summers is a librarian and educator serving as the Assistant Director of the Media and Education Technology Resource Center in the College of Education at NC State University. He was recognized as one of the “people shaping the future of libraries” as a 2024 Library Journal Mover and Shaker.

Worth Parker is a retired United States Marine turned writer. He lives in Wilmington, NC with his wife and daughter. He Has written for The New York Times, Garden and Gun Magazine, The Bitter Southerner, among other publications.

The Piedmont Laureate program is co-sponsored by the City of Raleigh Arts Commission, Durham Arts Council, Orange County Arts Commission, and United Arts Council of Raleigh & Wake County. Its primary goal is to promote awareness and heighten appreciation for excellence in the literary arts in the Piedmont region of North Carolina. The program is dedicated to building a literary bridge for residents to come together and celebrate the art of writing, enriching the lives of all our citizens.