This week, besides being my birthday week, is also National Banned Books week. It’s a week when we “celebrate” banned books, as a reminder that the rights we hold dear in the United States are easily abridged or outright removed by determined people with agendas.

Looking over any of the lists of banned books, you’ll see more than a few that are confusing, as in “Why was this book banned?” The answer is simple and disturbing: because someone disagrees with something about the book, and doesn’t want anyone else to read it either. This goes against everything we stand for as Americans, and flies in the face of our constitutionally-protected liberties.

A book I wanted to highlight on the banned list is the Lord of the Rings trilogy by J.R.R. Tolkien. Long a favorite among the fandom community, whether or not a person has read any part of it is often considered a benchmark for judging a person’s fannish credibility. So why would these beloved novels be challenged? Religion. They mention magic, which, according to some more aggressive Christian sects, can only come from God. Since these books don’t mention the Christian god specifically, they are clearly blasphemous and promote Satanic influences, and no one should be allowed to read them anywhere, ever.

This is what we – and by “we” I mean librarians, teachers, and anyone who writes fiction for a living, among many others – have to deal with on the regular–religious wackos who can’t fathom anyone believing differently than they do. They feel they have the right to determine what anyone can read, say, or even think, which goes against the religious teachings of every credible religion on the face of the Earth.

But religion isn’t the only vector from which books are attacked. There is, of course, the political factor to take into account as well. “Children shouldn’t be reading these books!” is the classic call to arms among both the religious and the politically conservative. What they really mean is “I don’t want my children thinking things other than what I tell them to think,” which is antithetical to learning, and, of course growing into an adult.

In honor of Banned Book week, I’m going to read a banned book I haven’t read before: The Diary of Anne Frank. Banned by people who, apparently, feel that Nazis unfairly got a bad rap, (I can’t figure out any other reason to ban it) it shows up on Banned Books lists every year in the US. People who argue that it should be banned have a special place reserved for them in hell, and I’ll be happy to keep their seat warm for them.

Go out and specifically read a banned book. Start right now, today. Barnes and Noble has a solid (albeit self-serving) list online, as do many libraries. Check out something you wouldn’t normally read, and give it a chance; not only will you be broadening your mind, you’ll also be helping libraries justify stocking banned books by sheer weight of numbers. Frankly, that’s the only way we’re going to beat the book-banning bumblefucks out there: by standing up for books – whether or not we agree with what’s written in them – and fighting for the human right to read what we choose.