<div>My name is Karie Fugett. I’m a military widow, the author of the memoir Alive Day, a mother, and a southerner. I was born and raised here, and I know firsthand how dangerous it can be when young people are denied access to information. Ignorance results in harm—harming others, harming the planet, and harming ourselves. As a kid, the adults in my life didn’t want me exposed to certain information, and I did and believed things out of ignorance that were so harmful to others. It wasn’t until I got to college that I experienced the kind of awakening that only comes from being exposed to stories and truths told from perspectives beyond my own. That experience changed my life. It made me a better human, and that experience fuels the work I’m doing now.
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<div>I’m in the process of converting a rusty old 1940 Ford pickup into <em>The Banned Wagon</em>—a traveling bookstore dedicated to putting banned and challenged books back into the hands of the people who need them the most. Here in the South, where there is a war on knowledge and book bans are spreading faster than anywhere else, this feels urgent. Every American deserves the chance to learn and grow into empathetic, thoughtful citizens. And that begins with access to voices, stories, and histories that expand their understanding of the world and the people in it, especially in today’s polarized political climate.
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<div>But <em>The Banned Wagon</em> isn’t just about selling books. I have a background in teaching writing to high school and college students, and I plan to use that experience to turn the truck into a hub for workshops and events, where we’ll dig into the truth behind banned books, talk about why they’re being challenged, and show people they aren’t as scary as some want them to believe.  
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<div>This project is bigger than me or this little, old truck. It’s a rebellion against the war on knowledge, right in the heart of the South where it’s needed the most. It’s a rebellion against censorship. Against ignorance. Against apathy. And against the erasure of voices and histories.
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<div>To restore this old truck, stock it with banned books, and keep it on the road, however, it’s going to take a community. That’s where you come in. By supporting this project, you’re helping fuel a movement to keep important stories alive in a place that desperately needs them. I believe reading diverse stories is essential if we want to move toward a kinder, more peaceful world. Banning books is simply moving in the wrong direction as a species, and this is my small way of fighting back.
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<div>My dream? A little truck full of banned books, rolling through The South, spreading truth, freedom, and hope—one story at a time. I would be humbled and so so grateful if you’d be a part of it.
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