Borrowed and Banned

Series produced by Brooklyn Public Library

Caption: Borrowed and Banned logo, Credit: John Snowden
Image by: John Snowden 
Borrowed and Banned logo 

BPL's new podcast series Borrowed and Banned tells the story of America's ideological war with its bookshelves. In seven episodes, we'll talk with students on the frontlines, librarians and teachers whose livelihoods are endangered when they speak up, and writers whose books have become political battleground.

BPL's new podcast series Borrowed and Banned tells the story of America's ideological war with its bookshelves. In seven episodes, we'll talk with students on the frontlines, librarians and teachers whose livelihoods are endangered when they speak up, and writers whose books have become political battleground.


10 Pieces

Order by: Newest First | Oldest First
The Challenge
From: Brooklyn Public Library
Series: Borrowed and Banned
Piece image
Student activists in York, Pennsylvania organized a silent protest when hundreds of books were banned from their classrooms, paving the way for las...

  • Added: Dec 13, 2023
  • Length: 28:10
On the Frontlines
From: Brooklyn Public Library
Series: Borrowed and Banned
Piece image
Library workers often risk their livelihoods when they speak out against censorship, spurring community members to pick up the fight for intellectu...

Bought by WORT


  • Added: Dec 13, 2023
  • Length: 25:35
  • Purchases: 1
An Interview with Maia Kobabe
From: Brooklyn Public Library
Series: Borrowed and Banned
Piece image
Maia Kobabe's debut memoir, Gender Queer, was the most frequently banned book in 2021 and 2022. We talked with Maia about what it's like to be on t...

  • Added: Nov 30, 2023
  • Length: 17:55
Beloved Blues
From: Brooklyn Public Library
Series: Borrowed and Banned
Caption: Borrowed and Banned logo, Credit: John Snowden
Despite being one of the most frequently banned authors, Toni Morrison’s work has inspired countless others to tell stories outside the mainstream....

  • Added: Nov 30, 2023
  • Length: 23:18
An Interview with George M. Johnson
From: Brooklyn Public Library
Series: Borrowed and Banned
Caption: Borrowed and Banned logo, Credit: John Snowden
George M. Johnson talks about their debut Young Adult memoir All Boys Aren't Blue, the support of their family, their love of Toni Morrison, and th...

  • Added: Nov 30, 2023
  • Length: 15:31
Battle of the Classics
From: Brooklyn Public Library
Series: Borrowed and Banned
Piece image
Banning of so-called “classics” grabs public attention, but books like To Kill a Mockingbird and 1984 don't need your defense. It's the more recent...

  • Added: Nov 08, 2023
  • Length: 19:25
An Interview with Mike Curato
From: Brooklyn Public Library
Series: Borrowed and Banned
Caption: Borrowed and Banned logo, Credit: John Snowden
Mike Curato talks about his award-winning graphic novel Flamer, his writing practice, and how it feels to have his story vaulted into national head...

  • Added: Nov 02, 2023
  • Length: 16:39
Of Parents and School Boards
From: Brooklyn Public Library
Series: Borrowed and Banned
Piece image
Over the past few years, school board races have become more heated and more political — and books have become the center of that political storm. ...

  • Added: Oct 25, 2023
  • Length: 26:32
Seen and Obscene
From: Brooklyn Public Library
Series: Borrowed and Banned
Piece image
The birth of obscenity laws in the 1870s provides a cautionary tale for the present moment, when far-right conservatives incorrectly label books “s...

Bought by WCAI / WNAN Cape & Islands, Mass.


  • Added: Oct 25, 2023
  • Length: 26:15
  • Purchases: 1
All for a Library Card
From: Brooklyn Public Library
Series: Borrowed and Banned
Caption: Borrowed and Banned logo, Credit: John Snowden
When a high school teacher in Norman, Oklahoma shared a QR code with her students that would grant them access to BPL’s digital collection, she too...

Bought by WCAI / WNAN Cape & Islands, Mass.


  • Added: Sep 29, 2023
  • Length: 25:47
  • Purchases: 1