If you think we're free from censorship . . .
. . . . think again !
If you think the books you read aren't banned . . . you're wrong.
Censors have been trying to ban books with unorthodox or unpopular viewpoints
since at least 387 B.C.E. Not only have censors tried to ban "dirty books,"
but classic authors like William Shakespeare and Mark Twain have come under
attack, as have contemporary writers such as Annie Dillard and Alice Walker.
Even books like dictionaries, travel guides and the Bible have been banned.
If every book that anyone found objectionable were banned, there would be no
books available. At The Booksmith, we think books are a great way to learn about
many issues - things we sometimes have a hard time talking about. Not everyone
will agree on everything, but if we read, reason, and think, books will help
us to a better future.
Books are sometimes banned because of a single word or because the cover suggests
a subject matter offensive to someone, even if that person has not read the
book. (Some do judge a book by its cover.) Censors have also targeted
all works by an author after reading only one. Every year, hundreds of books
are challenged and banned in libraries and schools all over the world. In the
United States, censorship incidents have been documented in every state. Reading
is not just a privilege in this country, it's a right. Let's keep it that way.
If you think there is room for more than one opinion . . . you're right !
A shortlist of books challenged during the last few years *
- I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, by Maya Angelou
--- challenged at the Carrol School in Southlake, Texas, because it was deemed
"pornographic" and full of "gross evils." A parent also
filed a complaint against the book in Caddo, Alabama, charging that the book
contains things that the adolescent mind does not need to be subjected to.
In her book, Angelou describes being raped as a child by her mother's boyfriend.
- The Indian in the Cupboard, by Lynne Reid Banks
--- removed from the Bemidji, Minnesota school district voluntary reading
list and from the school library shelves because it contains subtle stereotypes
inconsistent with district diversity goals.
- Forever, by Judy Blume
--- removed from Mediapolis, Iowa school district libraries because it "does
not promote abstinence and monogamous relationships [and] lacks any aesthetic,
literary or social value." Returned to the shelves a month later but
accessible only to high school students.
- Canterbury Tales, by Geoffrey Chaucer
--- removed from a senior college preparatory literature course at the Eureka,
Illinois High School because some parents thought the sexual content of some
of the tales was not appropriate for the students.
- My Brother Sam is Dead, by James Lincoln Collier and
Christopher Collier
--- a student's grandmother attempted to have this Newbery-Award winning book
removed from a Lakewood, Colorado, elementary school. She cited the book's
language and references to rape, drinking and battlefield violence.
- The Chocolate War, by Robert Cormier
--- was removed from middle school libraries in the Riverside, California,
Unified School District after a district committee decided the book was inappropriate
for seventh and eighth graders to read without class discussion.
- My Teacher is an Alien, by Bruce Coville
--- challenged in the Elizabethtown, Pennslyvania, schools because it demeans
teachers and parents as dumb, and portrays the main character as handling
a problem on her own, rather than relying on the help of others.
- George's Marvelous Medicine, by Roald Dahl
--- challenged at the Stafford County, Virginia schools because the book "posed
a safety threat because the boy in the story warms household items, such as
paint thinner and soap to make a potion."
- Funhouse, by Dean Koontz
--- removed from the South Brunswick Middle School Library in Boiling Spring
Lakes, North Carolina by a patron because the book "contains material
on orgies, rape and lesbianism. There is also blasphemy and the book promotes
domestic violence and alcohol abuse." The book was donated by the Lions
Club in a book drive.
- Bridge to Terabithia, by Katherine Paterson
--- was removed from the curriculum in Pulaski Township, Pennsylvania. Two
parents described the book as profane, disrespectful of adults, and said it
created an elaborate fantasy they felt might lead to confusion about reality.
- A Day No Pigs Would Die, by Robert Newton Peck
--- pulled from the Anderson, South Carolina middle school library because
of the descriptions of two pigs mating, a pig being slaughtered, and a cow
giving birth.
- Catcher in the Rye, by J.D. Salinger
--- has been challenged in schools in Florida, Maine, California, Georgia,
and Tennessee.
- Goosebumps series, by R.L. Stine
--- was described as satanic, violent and disturbing by two parents attempting
to remove the numerous titles in the series from Bay County, Florida, elementary
schools. The school board accepted a review committee's recommendation to
retain the books in school media centers, allow teachers to retain the right
to choose books to read to their classes, and give parents the right to request
alternate assignments.
- The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, by Mark Twain
[Samuel L. Clemens]
--- removed from the required reading lists in East San Jose, Calif. high
schools in response to objections raised by African-American parents. They
said the book's use of racial epithets, including the frequent use of word
"nigger," erodes their children's self esteem and affects their
performance in school. The book was also challenged in the Tempe, Arizona,
Union High School District after a parent requested that all books containing
expressions that could be offensive to minority students be removed from school
reading lists.
- The Color Purple, by Alice Walker
--- retained as an English course reading assignment in the Junction City,
Oregon high school after a challenge to Walker's Pulitzer Prize-winning novel
caused months of controversy. Although an alternative reading assignment was
available, the book was challenged due to "inappropriate language, graphic
sexual scenes, and book's negative portrayal of black men."
*source: American Booksellers
Foundation for Free Expression (ABFFE) and the American Library Association (ALA)
Freedom of speech is the foundation of publishing and bookselling in the United
States. Without the First Amendment, publishers are not free to choose which
books to publish, booksellers are not free to choose which books to order, display
and sell, and readers are not free to decide which books they wish to read.
Without freedom of speech, not only books but the very commerce of ideas would
be stifled.
The battle against those who would remove materials from bookstores, libraries
and schools continues. You can help support freedom of speech by observing this
year's annual Banned Books Week. Through the participation of thousands
of bookstores across the country, Americans can learn about the importance of
free expression and the threats to First Amendment rights that exist in our
country. Banned Books Week draws attention to the danger that exists when restraints
are imposed on the availability of information in a free society. The message
goes beyond the freedom to choose and to express one's opinion; the message
of Banned Books Week is the importance of ensuring the availability of viewpoints,
however unorthodox or unpopular, to those who wish to read them.
Banned Books Week is co-sponsored by the American Booksellers Foundation for
Free Expression, the American Library Association, the Association of American
Publishers, the American Society of Journalists and Authors, and the National
Association of College Stores. As in the past, Banned Books Week is also endorsed
by the Center for the Book of the Library of Congress.
The
Booksmith encourages individuals stay on top of the issues. One excellent source
of information is the American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression page
devoted to free speech
news. There, you can find numerous newsletter articles as well as information
on the annual Banned Books Week. The Booksmith also suggest you visit these
related web sites and newsgroups.
