We tend to think of alcohol when we remember banned commodities of the 1920s, but many books suffered the same fate, including literary masterpieces such as James Joyce's Ulysses (1922) and D. H. Lawrence's Lady Chatterley's Lover (1928). In our present moment, a network of activists and politicians seeks to ban the teaching of certain texts and topics and pull books from libraries. What similarities and differences do we see between these two moments? How do contemporary efforts to ban books speak to this past? What connections can we draw between texts challenged then and now? 

Thought on Tap is a public engagement series that brings together diverse panelists from the University of Nevada, Reno, and the larger Nevada community for important conversations around timely topics. Thought on Tap is brought to you by Core Humanities, the College of Liberal Arts, and Laughing Planet.