Censorship is a long-argued issue in the United States. The parameters for what warrants limited access to, or complete bans from a particular form of content, varies depending on an individual’s set of values.
Defined as the restriction of words, images or ideas that are deemed inappropriate or largely offensive, censorship in the United States has been often motivated by the desire to limit the average American’s consumption of media that is sexually explicit, violent or “un-American.”
This phenomenon is far from new in the United States, as forms of censorship are dated as far back as 1798 when John Adams made it illegal to critique government leaders without also defending one’s points of criticism in court.
But in today’s day and age, book bans in American classrooms have taken the spot as one of the most common forms of censorship. Not only is it seemingly on the rise in red states, but it begs the question of whether or not some of the act’s largest proponents are trying to shield their children from inappropriate content or shield them from American history altogether.
According to USA Today, successful “book bans” entail the removal of a book from a school’s curriculum or library due to numerous complaints over the book’s content.
The first book ban to take place in the United States occurred over 150 years earlier than John Adam’s law with “New English Canaan,” a 1637 critique of Puritan customs written by English businessman John Morton.
Over the years, titles such as JD Salinger’s “The Catcher in the Rye,” Harper Lee’s “To Kill a Mockingbird” and Alice Walker’s “The Color Purple” have been banned over perceived obscenities. But more recently, the most challenged books are ones that outline American racism or include LGBTQ+ characters, according to Poets, Essayists, Novelists (PEN) America. This leaves books such as Maia Kobabe’s “Gender Queer” and Angie Thomas’s “The Hate U Give” off school shelves.
This trend is certainly on the rise, as there were more than 1,500 book bans in 2021 alone. Yet, many believe that if titles containing these themes continue to be banned, it will decrease the representation that students of color– especially Black students– and students who are part of the LGBTQ+ community would benefit from. Additionally, it could limit their knowledge of topics that are integral to understanding history. In early 2022, a school board in McMinn County, Tennessee voted to ban Art Spiegelman’s “Maus,” a nonfiction graphic novel-style memoir outlining the experiences of Spiegelman’s father, a Holocaust survivor.
There is certainly something to be said with regard to what type of content is appropriate for young audiences to consume, but there is a difference between limiting exposure to explicit content and silencing the voices of historically marginalized groups.
Besides the fact that censorship through the banning of books can be viewed as an infringement of freedom of speech, one must also consider the implications of this act when it specifically targets books that are written to uplift marginalized groups or expose the harsh realities that marginalized groups face.
The fact of the matter is that present-day America, along with American history, is far from perfect. Racism, homophobia, xenophobia and other forms of discrimination continue to disenfranchise a number of people.
When authors choose to write about these topics or their experiences, it informs youth of similar backgrounds that they are not alone.
Therefore, when youth are unable to read these works, it shields them from the harsh truths of their everyday lives– that there is much progress to be made in America before democracy and freedom are universal concepts.
Book bans have the potential to set a dangerous precedent, the precedent being that the truth of America’s history is not as important as the discomfort of a small minority of people.
Fortunately, there are ways to fight against a future in which book bans become the standard. According to the American Library Association, those who oppose censorship by way of book bans can organize Banned Book Weeks at local libraries, write to school principals or even purchase banned books for one’s own personal library.
No matter the route one goes, it is important that the youth have access to varying perspectives through the books that they read.
One can only dream to change the world when they are privy to both the good and the bad that has taken place within it, and this awareness often starts with that one good book.