Sexuality. Religion. Racism. Language. Violence. Politics. Fear. Occult. These are just some of the reasons why libraries and school systems across America have been pressured to ban or restrict books from patrons, usually children.
Yesterday, 30 September 2012, marked the first day of the 30th Annual Banned Books Week. This week long celebration is all about the books that some people did not want you or your children to read over the years. The national book community, including organizations like the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund and the American Library Association, encourage everyone to take a look at these banned books and embrace literary freedom.
One of the cool new events happening is a Virtual Read-Out. People are encouraged to submit videos to Banned Books Week all about their favorite banned or challenged book. They describe the book, why it was challenged, and read a brief excerpt of the controversial text.
One of the best videos so far comes from Bookmans, a small chain of independent bookstores in Arizona. A group of employees and customers are shot in black and white, processing boxes of banned books. One by one, they read one sentence from a series of challenged and banned books.
Chills. This is the kind of video meant to be shared.
So what kind of books wind up being challenged or banned in America? Any and every kind you can imagine. The most challenged list from 2011 includes The Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins (including at least one citation for "occult," which is so far off base I don't know whether to laugh or cry), the ttyl series by Lauren Myracle (including a religious viewpoint citation), and My Mom's Having A Baby! A Kid's Month-by-Month Guide to Pregnancy by Dori Hillestad Butler (cited for being a book about pregnancy that actually teaches sex education in an accessible way for young children).
These lists are not inclusive. There were 326 documented incidents of challenged books in 2011. I know for a fact there are more.
One of the schools I worked in had a big blow-out because a summer reading list included The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie. Despite following in the grand tradition of To Kill a Mockingbird and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn as being a book that confronts racism head on to teach tolerance, some students used the book's anti-Native American slurs to start bullying the Native American students in the school. One thing led to another and the next thing you know, the teachers were in a battle with a local tribe's chief over a novel that the first parent to notice the behavior didn't want banned.
That makes at least 327 cases in 2011. I can't be the only one with a similar story to share.
South Park, in mocking Seth MacFarlane's writing style, made a poignant point about the creation and spread of literature. "Either everything is okay to write about, or nothing is."
Banned Books Week is not a question of quality or even content. It is a statement on the viability of literature. What gives one person the moral authority to prevent other people from experiencing a book? It's one thing to take an active role in your child's reading. It's quite another to decide that it is your duty to prevent everyone else from reading a book because you personally object to the material.
Celebrate Banned Books Week. Go through the extensive archives at the ALA (for traditional books) and CBLDF (for graphic novels/comics) websites and find something to read this week.
Share your thoughts on Banned Books Week below. I'm revisiting Watchmen right now, myself. Love that book. Shame people object to so many things that it's frequently challenged.