Over the years, many works of literature have been subject to censorship and were designated as contested or even outright banned. Many of these books have been returned to their former standing over the years, but a recent event held at NC State sought to highlight many of these stories.

On Sept. 25, NCSU Libraries and University Theatre came together to once again hold the event Banned Books Onstage. Held as a part of National Banned Books Week, the event involved students coming onstage to read out a selection from a banned book. Many students and staff have participated in the Banned Books Onstage event throughout the eight years that the event has been held.

“Since I’ve been here for all eight years that the program has existed, I have so many favorites,” Marian Fragola, the director of Program Planning and Outreach at NCSU Libraries, said. “But the one that made me cry was the student performance of ‘The Lorax.’”

Mia Self, the assistant director of University Theatre, spoke about several of her favorite books presented at the event.

“I have presented with Banned Books Onstage,” Self said. “I read from ‘TTYL’ by Lauren Myracle and ‘Rainbow Boys’ by Alex Sanchez. The book that really hit me in the gut this year is ‘The Hate U Give’ by Angie Thomas. I’m even more excited about Minming Hsu’s look at ‘Persepolis’ by Marjane Satrapi and Hannah LaCava’s selections from ‘The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian’ written by Sherman Alexie.”

Banned Books Onstage has affected many students throughout campus, and many have participated due to the impact that this event provides. Many students and staff have shared why they believe Banned Books Onstage is a significant event.

“My favorite part of Banned Books is learning about all the books that changed students’ lives in some way,” Self said. “They learned they were not alone, other people thought like them, struggled with the same issues, and identified in the same ways. I appreciate the commitment NC State students have to tell the story of why we need to preserve access to these materials.”

Hannah LaCava, a fourth-year studying English, performed at the event.

“I knew that it was an experience I’ve seen and I wanted to share the opportunity to get people’s stories heard,” LaCava said.

Griffin James, a third-year studying English, also spoke at the event.

“It’s an event I saw my sophomore year and I wanted to share with others,” James said. “I was also interested in Banned Books Onstage in order to combat the oppression of groups of people such as the LGBTQ community.”

The performers at Banned Books Onstage each had their own reasons for choosing their specific pieces to read.

“I chose ‘The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian’ because I was really drawn by the writing, and that he was a boy that has a disability and was a part of a marginalized community,” LaCava said. “I also liked the fact that he spoke in a way that people could understand.”

The meaning of Banned Books Onstage was also explicated on throughout the event. For example, before the performance of each literary piece, the reason why the specific book was banned was mentioned. Some of which included sexual content, religious views and offensive language.

“I love to read and there are so many great books that have been banned or challenged,” Self said. “The ‘Captain Underpants’ series seems to always be on the American Library Association banned and challenged lists because the cartoons use ‘offensive’ language and encourage disrespectful behavior. What readers miss is the opportunity to talk about choice in behavior, accountability, responsibility and why it’s funny to see people behaving badly.”

The event helped many students combat not only the censorship of books, but the censorship of minority communities as well.

“My favorite part of Banned Books Onstage was being exposed to new literature and because books have a truth to them that many are too afraid to say out loud,” James said. “I also like how we are exposing ourselves to these books.”

Banned Books Onstage is a part of a running series of events hosted by University Theater known as the Open Door Series. The next event in this series will be a presentation of “In the Blood” by Suzan-Lori Parks, to be held from Oct. 17 to Oct. 21.