TL;DR
- George Takei named honorary chair of Banned Books Week (Oct. 5–11).
- He recalls growing up silenced in WWII internment and as a closeted gay teen.
- Campaign highlights censored titles like Gender Queer and The Bluest Eye.
- Takei urges the fight against censorship to protect self-discovery.
- Youth activist Iris Mogul joins as honorary youth chair.
George Takei Battles Book Bans
George Takei isn’t just boldly going where no one has gone before — he’s boldly going straight for America’s book banners. The 88-year-old Star Trek legend, actor, and unapologetic activist has been tapped as the honorary chair of Banned Books Week, running October 5–11, in a nationwide stand against censorship.
Libraries and bookstores across the country will spotlight titles that have been targeted and censored, from Maia Kobabe’s queer graphic memoir Gender Queer to Toni Morrison’s The Bluest Eye. And with Takei leading the charge, expect the message to beam through loud and clear: silencing voices is out, diversity is in.
“I Hungered for Understanding”
Takei didn’t mince words in describing his own history with silencing. “I remember all too well the lack of access to books and media that I needed growing up,” he said. “First as a child in a barbed-wire prison camp, then as a gay young man in the closet, I felt confused and hungry for understanding about myself and the world around me.”
Those words carry the weight of his past — from surviving internment during World War II to finding his footing as a gay man in an unforgiving era. His plea is simple but powerful: “Please stand with me in opposing censorship, so that we all can find ourselves — and each other — in books.”
A Battle Over Identity
Book bans aren’t just about paper and ink. They’re about whose stories get told and whose voices get erased. LGBTQ authors and stories about queer lives have been among the most frequent targets of censorship, as seen in the attacks on Gender Queer, a groundbreaking exploration of identity.
For queer teens in small towns or anyone feeling isolated, finding themselves in the pages of a book can be a lifeline. Stripping that away isn’t just censorship — it’s cruelty. Takei’s leadership of Banned Books Week sends a clear message that these voices matter, and that silencing them is an assault on equality.
Passing the Torch
Joining Takei is youth honorary chair Iris Mogul, a freshman at UC Santa Cruz who has already been raising hell against bans for years. Her presence signals a generational front: elders like Takei reminding the world of the scars of censorship, and young voices like Mogul proving the fight isn’t fading anytime soon.
Why It Matters for the LGBTQ Community
For LGBTQ readers, the stakes couldn’t be higher. Access to literature that reflects queer identities can be a saving grace. From offering a roadmap to self-acceptance to normalizing diverse experiences, banned books often provide the representation missing in classrooms and families. When these books disappear from shelves, it isolates queer kids further — making them feel invisible.
Takei’s stance isn’t just about books. It’s about dignity. About saying queer stories belong in the open, not shoved into the closet. And it’s about ensuring that libraries remain sanctuaries for discovery, not battlegrounds of erasure.
So yes, George Takei is once again commanding the bridge. But this time, instead of steering the Enterprise, he’s steering the cultural conversation. And in the fight against censorship, that might just be the boldest mission yet.