With the theme “Bangla Books Across the World,” Bangla Kendra has organized a two-day book fair in Bethesda, Maryland, on June 26 and 27, aiming to strengthen literary engagement and cultural connections among Bengali-speaking expatriates.
The fair was inaugurated on Friday evening by Bangladeshi-Swedish writer, feminist, and human rights activist Taslima Nasrin. She formally opened the event by cutting the ribbon and lighting the ceremonial lamp.
In her opening speech, Nasrin said, “In my life, states have changed, geography has changed, and addresses have changed. But wherever I have lived, the Bengali language has remained my only refuge and my only homeland. A state may exile a person, but it cannot separate them from their language.”
She added, “I think in Bengali, dream in Bengali, and protest in Bengali. After spending a decade in Europe, it was the pull of my language that took me to West Bengal. Yet even there, I was not allowed to stay. Still, my struggle continues. I keep writing against fundamentalism and fanaticism, and in favor of women’s rights and freedom of expression. Writing is my breath; writing is my life.”
Expressing concern over the decline in reading habits in the age of technology, Nasrin said mobile screens are replacing book pages, pushing people away from deep reading. She described organizing book fairs abroad as a form of cultural resistance against losing roots and becoming disconnected from language.
Speaking about the younger generation, she emphasized that if Bengali children abroad fail to learn their mother tongue, they risk losing not only a language but also the rich humanistic legacy of literary giants such as , , and .
Calling the initiative of expatriate organizers “historic,” Nasrin said books teach people to question, to stand against injustice, and to resist superstition and authoritarianism.
The fair attracted a large number of Bengali expatriates and book lovers from Maryland, Virginia, and Washington, D.C. According to the organizers, the main goal of the fair is to connect the new generation growing up abroad with Bengali language, literature, and culture.
Alongside book sales, the two-day event also featured author-reader discussions, book introductions, and various cultural programs.
