Often it's for religious or political reasons: An idea, a scene, or a character in the book offends their religion, sense of morality, or political view.
Some folks feel they need to protect children from the cursing, morally offensive behavior, or racially insensitive language in a book. Or they think a book's content is too violent or too sexual. The edgy teen best-seller The Perks of Being a Wallflower Stephen Chbosky has been banned for its descriptions of sexual behavior and alcohol and drug use.
Profanity and an explicit scene featuring oral sex got Looking for Alaska John Green on the banned list. Who's challenging these books? Parents, school board members, individuals, groups -- yet what's considered offensive may depend on the era or specific community.
As the ALA argues, these challenges pose a threat to freedom of speech and choice -- freedoms that Americans hold dear and are worth standing up for. Today's edgy is tomorrow's classic. Original work pushes boundaries in topic, theme, plot, and structure. What's shocking today may be assigned in English class five or 10 years from now if it has true literary merit.
The Great Gatsby is high school staple today, but was shocking when its gin-soaked pages were published in There's more to a book than the swear words in it. Many books have been banned for language that your kid has encountered before or will soon.
Even potty humor like in Captain Underpants has caused people to call for a ban. A character's language may add realism to the story, or it may seem gratuitous or distracting -- your kid can evaluate.
Kids crave relatable books. Banned books often deal with subjects that are realistic, timely, and topical. Young people may find a character going through exactly what they are, which makes it a powerful reading experience and helps the reader sort out thorny issues like grief, divorce, sexual assault, bullying, prejudice, and sexual identity.
The compelling teen rebels story The Outsiders has been banned, yet many middle schoolers cite it as the book that turned them into a reader. Controversial books are a type of virtual reality. Exploring complex topics like sexuality, violence, substance abuse, suicide, and racism through well-drawn characters lets kids contemplate morality and vast aspects of the human condition, build empathy for people unlike themselves, and possibly discover a mirror of their own experience. Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry is an eye-opening story of an African American family facing racism in s Mississippi, yet it's been banned for having racial slurs.
They'll kick off a conversation. What did people find so disturbing in a book that they wanted to ban it, and to what extent was it a product of its time or did it defy social norms of its era? For example, Harry Potter was banned by people who felt it promoted magic. Reading a challenged book is a learning experience and can help your kids define their own values and opinions of its content. Parents' Ultimate Guide to Support our work!
Sometimes its reach tends toward the absurd:. We recently worked on a case in Paterson, NJ where a public library wished to grant its staff the authority to tell patrons not to play video games.
Deftly avoiding the video games conundrum, the library instead opted to increase the reach of its filter for users aged 12 and younger. Filtering can create as many problems as it solves, as the report states in its conclusion:. From Good Magazine. George has won awards and inspired students. It was not banned for its literary value, but for its progressive content.
There are children in classrooms who identify with George; they have the right to read literature where they see themselves represented. These books have characters who represent minority groups in society and go against the gender and sexuality norms in America. Books are banned because they are viewed as obscene, pornographic, or encourage sexuality in children. Written by sex-educator Cory Silverberg, this inclusive sex-education book was challenged because it will encourage students to either have sex or ask questions about sex ALA, Not wanting children to ask questions about sex stifles their natural curiosity.
Sex is a Funny Word helps children explore their feelings about growing up. Topics of consent, boundaries, gender identity, crushes, and safety are discussed. All of these topics are natural and normal human experiences which some children may experience during elementary school. The characters represent different cultural backgrounds, gender identities, and sexual orientations in a sensitive way; children from all walks of life can identify with a character in this text Popova, Written in an engaging comic strip style, Sex is a Funny Word helps young readers explore part of their human nature that is still largely taboo in our culture.
A sex-education book from a reputable sex educator can be helpful to children as they begin to develop. If children do not have a reputable source to get information from, they could go looking for information elsewhere and be misinformed. Another common reason books are banned is because they contain characters who challenge authority or are free thinkers. A novel showcasing free thinkers is valuable to society, especially a democracy, because it encourages readers to be free thinkers.
Free thinkers will be less susceptible to propaganda and manipulation and make sound judgements when voting. Censoring books showcasing characters who challenge authority is damaging to a democratic society. Little Bill series by Bill Crosby was the ninth most challenged book of because of criminal sexual allegations against the author ALA Individuals believe that because of the actions of the author, the literature should not be red.
The MeToo movement has brought to light several allegations against Alexie for sexual harassment. Reading books by these authors can lead to conversations about their behavior and caring adults can communicate with children that what the author did was not right. Censorship can occur on a spectrum and have many forms. Removing a book from a library, school booklist, bookstore etc. Soft censorship occurs when schools or teachers ask guests not to mention specific books.
Parents controlling what children are reading is also a form of censorship.
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