.png)
“Over the years, I’ve tried to get anatomy, physiology, or women’s health books, but they are denied for the exact reason I need them… sexually explicit images! We can’t see pictures of our own body parts? If they could punish us for looking at our own bodies, they would.”
Kwaneta, former nurse who is currently incarcerated
About the Project
Incarcerated women face a persistent problem: limited access to medical information. Basic anatomical drawings are often labeled as obscene or pornographic. In honor of Prison Banned Books Week, the Prison Library Project teamed up with a group of women’s health advocates to provide a comprehensive medical resource that challenges the status quo. “Contrabanned” is designed to be sent to incarcerated women nationwide. It’s an easy-to-read guide covering the basics of women’s health, with the hope that prisons will embrace the book and share it with women who request medical information.
But how do you get a banned book into a prison?
Through a creative partnership with an incarcerated nurse, volunteers achieved the impossible. Over the course of three months, they discreetly mailed the book, page by page, into the prison. Once all the pages had arrived, our contact on the inside carefully stitched them together using dental floss, creating a complete guide to women’s health. This resource, now passed among inmates, challenges the restrictions that have long kept vital medical information out of reach.
​
Please note: The Prison Library Project (PLP) proudly supports the Contrabanned Project in raising awareness during Prison Banned Book Week. While we are committed to sharing this resource freely, we adhere to all state and federal prison guidelines and can only send copies to institutions that approve the content.
About
Prison Banned Book Week
Prison Banned Book Week is a crucial part of the broader movement to protect the freedom to read, highlighting the unique and often overlooked censorship faced by incarcerated individuals. While Banned Books Week, celebrated annually in the United States since 1982, brings attention to the censorship of books in schools and libraries, Prison Banned Book Week focuses specifically on the challenges of ensuring that prisoners have access to literature—a battle that dates back several decades.
