Celebrating Banned Books Week 2021
By Victoria Fortune
On Sunday, September 26, the American Library Association’s annual Banned Books Week officially begins. This year’s theme is “Books Unite Us. Censorship Divides Us.” The weeklong lineup includes virtual discussions with a number of authors of banned books, including graphic novelist Gene Luen Yang, National Book Award finalist Laurie Halse Anderson and award-winning author of queer and progressive middle grade fiction Alex Gino. New York Times Bestselling novelist Jason Reynolds will serve as honorary chair and also participate in a discussion with viewers.
While book banning brings to mind totalitarian regimes like Nazi Germany, the Soviet Union, and today’s North Korea, censorship has a long history in America as well, dating back to colonial days when religious texts challenging harsh Puritan restrictions were banned. During World War I (the same era when the KKK was on the rise) the burning of textbooks was considered a patriotic act to protect against tyranny. A rash of book banning in the early eighties led to a Supreme Court ruling that school officials can’t ban books in libraries solely because of their content. This case affirmed that First Amendment rights apply for people of all ages. A number of organizations came together in 1982 to start Banned Books Week, both to highlight the fact that literature was being banned, and to celebrate the freedom to read.
Although book banning has been persistent throughout American history, this year has seen a surge of efforts across the country to censor books in schools, which is not surprising in the wake of widespread BLM protests and the Me Too movement. According to Sophie Whitehead, in a recent article on the history of book censorship, “whilst the methods for banning books have changed, the reasons for banning books remain the same – shutting out marginalised voices for fear of a change in social order.”
The first discussion of Banned Books Week, which focused on censorship efforts in Leander, Texas, took place on Thursday, September 23, but is still available to view on the organization’s Facebook page. It was an insightful discussion among graphic novelist Gene Luen Yang, and Texas educator Alexis Huddleston and parent Stephani Bercu, who resisted efforts to censor books at the high school in Leander. Almost all the books that were banned there were by or about people of color, or addressed LGBTQ+ issues or sexual assault. None of the books were ones that students are required to read; they are included on book club lists that students can choose from. Any parent is free to limit what their own child can read, so this is about limiting choices for others.
As Huddleston pointed out, removing a diverse array of stories eliminates possibilities for all students to see themselves represented. “I’ve never gotten to read a story about me in school before.” one of Huddleston’s students said about a book that was subsequently banned from the list. Censorship also eliminates mainstream kids’ opportunity to see the perspectives of others, which has been shown in studies to increase empathy and tolerance.
In York, PA, where a long list of books about race were pulled from schools, including children’s books about Rosa Parks and Martin Luther King, Jr, the president of the school board said they were considered “too activist in nature, and may lean more toward indoctrination rather than age-appropriate academic content.” After the list was widely publicized, an outcry forced the board to reinstate the books, demonstrating the importance of bringing attention to censorship.
In North Carolina the legislature passed a bill to regulate the teaching of certain concepts around race often inaccurately associated with Critical Race Theory. Thankfully, the governor vetoed the bill. Bolstered by a similar bill that was signed into law in Tennessee, a group with the Orwellian name Moms for Liberty, is pushing to severely limit children’s liberty to choose what they read. The group’s extensive list of books they want banned from schools includes one about Johnny Appleseed because it is “sad and dark;” another that describes how sea horses mate was deemed “too sexy” for elementary school children; and a middle-grade novel set during the Civil War was deemed inappropriate because it portrayed white people (probably slave owners) as “bad” or “evil.”
As Whitehead points out, “all book banning revolves around fear of change.” Parents want to “protect” their children from exposure to ideas they themselves find uncomfortable or threatening. However, as Gene Luen Yang pointed out in Thursday’s discussion, book banning is particularly futile and counterproductive in this day and age, when kids with access to a computer or smart phone can explore anything on the internet. “When you ban a book, you are not banning a topic from entering into a student’s head. . . What you’re doing is you’re banning a nuanced discussion of the topic. You’re banning the version that somebody slaved over for years,” having thought deeply and deliberately about how to present the issue in context. “You’re not banning the version that someone typed up and posted in five minutes,” often with little thought beyond attracting attention.
In many cases, those calling to ban books have not actually read them. They have heard from others or seen on social media that a book is controversial, and they fixate on a brief excerpt that seems salacious when taken out of context. Bercu noted that in Texas, the process for banning a book requires that the petitioner read the book and submit a written explanation of why it is objectionable. Consequently, many of the most vocal parents who come to school board meetings to raise a stink about a book never follow through. They have no intention of actually reading the book.
Yuen pointed out that graphic novels are a particular target for censorship, in part because it is very easy to flip through them quickly and find an image that may seem offensive when taken out of context. He said he understands how some readers could take offense to his satirical rendering of a character who manifests all the stereotypes of Asian Americans that plagued him as child. They miss his point, but writers have no control over how readers interpret their work. This is why books that deal with complex issues are best read in a community, such as a classroom, where they are the starting point for deeper discussion. “We need to read stories deeply. It is critical for our survival,” Yuen said. To deny young people the stories they seek to navigate their own survival is cruel and a violation of their First Amendment rights.
Censorship is rampant across the country, and students, teachers and parents are taking a stand against it. “It’s exhausting,” Huddleston said. “You have to find your community of people who can work together and support each other.” Huddleston and Bercu made the following suggestions for those grappling with book bans in their community:
• Find out the rules and policies of your district and hold officials’ feet to the fire to follow them.
• Volunteer--get involved with curriculum review in your district.
• Go to school board meetings and voice your opinion.
• Pay attention to school board elections and vote for those who support students’ First Amendment rights.
• Buy and read banned books!
Visit NCAC to find more resources for fighting censorship.
Photo credit: Illustration 164999501 © Gigisomplak | Dreamstime.com
