A fancy new library has opened on the Minecraft block to commemorate the World Day Against Cyber Censorship on March 12. It is called The Uncensored Library. Not an elaborate sculpture made for a coffee table book, The Uncensored Library is a real It's a virtual library within Minecraft. The trick is, Minecraft is not blocked in the same countries.

This is a fascinating loophole. Just jump into the game, load up "The Uncensored Library" server, and peruse a bunch of blocked books and republished articles from social media and news organizations in five countries.

The library has a room for each country, decorated with sculptures and statues symbolizing each country's censorship campaign. The Mexican room is lined with books surrounding a small cemetery in the center. Tombstones depict independent journalists who were murdered for covering sensitive political stories or investigating organized crime groups such as drug cartels. Because Saudi Arabia does not recognize independent journalism, in the center of its wing is a single cage, symbolizing journalists who were likely arrested and tortured for criticizing the government.

It is not the most comfortable library, but it inevitably is.

The project is the work of Reporters Without Borders, an organization dedicated to ensuring proper press freedom worldwide, and Blockworks, a collective of artists and designers whose business is creating elaborate scenes in Minecraft.

To browse the library yourself, you will need version 1.14.4 of the Java version of Minecraft. Once installed, simply open the multiplayer menu and enter "visit.uncensoredlibrary.com" as the server IP. You can also download a copy of the library and host it locally or explore it alone.

According to the website, Minecraft's largest audience is also the project's primary target. It says, "Young people in particular are forced to grow up in a system where their opinions are heavily manipulated by government disinformation campaigns.

Even if 14-year-old Minecraft youtubers are not particularly interested in reading or supporting important activism (I was only interested in skateboarding and hamburgers when I was 14), good ideas may be planted as a result. Besides, it can only be a good thing to keep disseminating good journalism. Except, of course, for repressive leaders vying for absolute control of the message.

The only major concern is that it does not say whether "The Uncensored Library" is an ongoing project or exists as a static statement.