Why Should We Ban Books?

Why should we ban books?

Read the article on Medium: https://medium.com/@thewearyeducator/why-should-we-ban-books-7f0a695b2fad

Books are a powerful tool for education, enlightenment, and entertainment. However, throughout history, there have been countless attempts to ban certain books, whether for political, religious, or cultural reasons. What do we gain from banning books? How does it benefit society?

Books provide students with diverse perspectives, challenging ideas, and critical thinking skills. When books are banned, students are denied access to valuable resources that can broaden their horizons and enhance their learning experience. According to a survey conducted by the American Library Association, between 2000 and 2009, there were over 5,000 challenges to books in schools and libraries across the United States, which resulted in the removal of over 2,000 books from shelves.

The ALA posts the top 100 most banned books. I looked over the list and was surprised at a few. As a child of the 80s, I remember having little oversight of the books I checked out. I am sure I read things ahead of my maturity level and potentially inappropriate for my age. However, now that I am an educator, I consider all the books I have in my classroom.

I teach 7th grade in South Central Los Angeles. One of the challenges in teaching there is the students are often over-exposed to television and media. They know more than they should at their age but are insulated and naive. They only know their area and the people who look like them. It is challenging to get them to read. However, I can get them to read books with people who look like them. I can get them interested in reading books that tell stories they understand.

But, back to the list. Look at the books on this list. Many of these books have characters who look like my students. These are the books that speak to my students. These are the books with topics they understand.

Some of those include:

Captain Underpants (series) by Dav Pilkey

The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison

Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

Bone (series) by Jeff Smith

Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult

Scary Stories (series) by Alvin Schwartz

A Brave New World by Aldous Huxley

Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck

The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood

The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain

A Child Called “It” by Dave Pelzer

Beloved by Toni Morrison

Goosebumps (series) by R.L. Stine

The Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger

The Color Purple by Alice Walker

The Giver by Lois Lowry

Anne Frank: Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank

Bless Me, Ultima by Rudolfo Anaya

1984 by George Orwell

Awakening by Kate Chopin

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou

So Far from the Bamboo Grove by Yoko Kawashima Watkins

The Color of Earth (series) by Tong-Hwa Kim

Year of Wonders by Geraldine Brooks

You can find the entire list here.

So why should we ban books? Kids absolutely love reading books they think are contraband. This year we read “The Giver,” by Lois Lowry. If you don’t know the story, it’s about a young boy named Jonas living in a Utopia. Well, he thinks he’s living in a Utopia. Jonas is selected to begin his career as “The Reciever of Memory.” His job is to learn all about the world’s history and the memories of its people. Jonas’s people decided to give up many things like, color, emotions, and freedom of choice to live in a Utopia. My students complained the entire year about reading, but once I explained why people challenge the book and sometimes ban it, my students were intrigued. It led to a great discussion about information, knowledge, and power. My students love the book. Several of my students went on to read other dystopian fiction books.

When I showed them the list of banned books, we discussed why some were on the list, and they had a lot of questions. They didn’t understand why books about slavery get challenged. Many of my students are Black, and for my students, slavery is part of their history. My students could not understand why some Americans did not want to learn about their history.

I chose education because knowledge and information are the most important things we can have as a society. When I teach a book, I always walk students through the book. We discuss ideas. We talk about things that may be difficult to understand or process. I do not feed them ideas or expose them to ideas without explanation. Instead, I offer them the information and let them draw their own conclusions.

So why should we ban books? What do we gain from banning books? How does it benefit society? The short answer is we shouldn’t. Not unless you want a more divided America. There will eventually be anger and potential backlash. Historically this is true. Gen Alpha is not like generations of the past. They are more technologically savvy than politicians. They understand how to use VPNs. It doesn’t matter if you block websites or remove books from the shelves. They are listening and watching, and when they grow up, they will make changes. In the meantime, teachers like me will continue providing information and access and using this as a teaching opportunity.

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