The Cause
Fighting for the Freedom to Read
Stop Book Bans supports PEN America and highlights the mission of The Mercantile Library of Cincinnati.
Beneficiary
PEN America
Defending free expression worldwide
PEN America stands at the intersection of literature and human rights, working to protect open expression in the United States and worldwide. For over a century, PEN has defended writers, journalists, and artists facing censorship, imprisonment, and persecution.
PEN America's Books Are for Everyone campaign tracks every book ban in the United States, documents the patterns and organizations behind them, and fights back — in courts, in legislatures, and in communities across the country.
Art of Speaking Out: Stop Book Bans is proud to support PEN America and this critical work.
10,000+
book bans documented since 2021
Exhibition Host
The Mercantile Library of Cincinnati
A literary landmark since 1835
Founded in 1835, the Mercantile Library of Cincinnati is one of America's oldest subscription libraries — a living literary landmark that has served readers, writers, and thinkers for nearly two centuries.
The Mercantile Library is committed to open access to ideas and to fostering literary culture in Cincinnati and beyond. It is a gathering place for readers, writers, and anyone who believes in the power of books.
Hosting Stop Book Bans at the Mercantile Library is itself a statement: that books belong in libraries, that libraries belong in communities, and that neither should ever be silenced.
Location
414 Walnut Street, Suite 1100
Cincinnati, OH 45202
Exhibition venue for Stop Book Bans, October 2026
Come See the Show
The best way to support this work is to attend the exhibition, spread the word, and engage with the art.