NIU is gearing up for the annual Banned Books Week.

The theme of this year’s week, which runs from Sept. 26 to Oct. 3, is “Censorship: Old Sins in New Worlds” and stresses every American’s First Amendment right to “the freedom to read.”

The University Bookstore, working through the National Association of College Stores, an affiliate of Banned Books Week, has set up a window display for the observance. In addition, the bookstore has a table inside the store, displaying all the “banned books” which they carry, along with histories of each book’s banning.

The selection includes books from the classics, such as Mark Twain’s “Huckleberry Finn” and F. Scott Fitzgerald’s “The Great Gatsby,” to contemporary works like Stephen King’s “It” and Martin Handford’s “Where’s Waldo.”

“We’re just trying to draw attention to the fact that this is happening,” said Diane Schlosser, a bookstore employee.

“It’s an educational thing,” said Mitch Kielb, student center bookstore director.

Kielb added that the banned books tend to catch the attention of people, who then will read them to find out why they’ve been banned.

“It’s an event to get people interested in reading,” Kielb said.

Founders Memorial Library will not be displaying anything for this year’s observance, although they have done so occasionally in the past.

“We’re not trying to knock the idea,” said Byron Anderson, assistant professor of University Libraries. “There are some years we do things, but not every year.”

Instead, the library will be setting up a display for the month of October which integrates “the freedom to read” with the quinquennial celebration of Christopher Columbus’ discovering America, he said.

Anderson, who has studied the life of censorship in America for some time, argued that book banning should not be allowed to continue.

“Each of us has a line,” he said. “Certain ideas cross that line—no matter who you are—but you have to allow for dissenting opinions.”

“When somebody censors, they are in effect saying, ‘I don’t believe this is appropriate material for you.’ They aren’t going to let you participate in the decision,” added Anderson.