I had the honor of speaking to teens from a host of schools recently about the nationwide explosion of book bans and why, despite this, their work as young writers matters more than ever. I’m deeply grateful to my high school friend Lauren for inviting me, and I’m equally grateful to the engaged, thoughtful, passionate teen writers who know what’s happening and know they’re being supported by people who care deeply about their First Amendment Rights.

This video was recorded at Joliet Central High School (IL) April 15, 2023. I share it here for anyone to share as appropriate, especially with young writers who may be feeling defeated, silenced, and stuck right now.

Note: at one point in the presentation I talk about there being 4,000 unique titles banned. This is misspeaking–it’s 4,000 books, not unique titles–but I would not be shocked if it is 4,000, given quiet/soft/self censorship.