The 30th anniversary of Banned Books Week, which will be held Sept. 30-Oct. 6, is just a few days away! As we gear up for this exciting week — celebrated with local read-out events and online videos from people around the world that proclaim their freedom to read — we are excited to feature our first video that is part of the “50 State Salute to Banned Books Week.”

The 50 State Salute forms the core of ALA’s participation in the Banned Books Virtual Read-Out this year, and consists of videos from each state proclaiming how a particular community — be it a local library or bookstore, school library, library association, etc. —  celebrates Banned Books Week and the freedom to read. For more information about how your community can participate, check out our page on the 50 State Salute. Please note that the deadline for video submission is Friday, September 28, 2012.

We begin the 50 State Salute with a video from the Alabama Library Association, in partnership with the Gadsden Public Library in Gadsden, AL, and will continue to feature videos throughout this week and next. Enjoy!