Censorship means not being able to express an idea. When people think of threats, they automatically jump to the extreme of bad guys with guns and other weapons, threatening to hurt someone. But what about books?
Surprisingly, books pose a threat to the majority of people in regard to content. Books, and truly any type of media, should not be censored because that is hindering ideas, blatantly stating their ideas are not good enough for society. Hence, Banned Books Week.
Banned Books Week occurs every year at the end of September; this year, Sept. 22-28. It was created by the American Library Association to celebrate the freedom to read while drawing attention to the harms of censorship. So what exactly constitutes a book to be banned?
First and foremost, it comes back to challengers, or the people who want to restrict books based on their content. The first group that comes to mind is parents.
Parents only want the best for their children and would prefer they not read about something derogatory. Parents are 32% of challengers to specific books. The group higher than that are patrons at 33%. When people are funding something, say a private school, they want to have a say in what their children — and other children — are reading.
Books are typically banned for content. When thinking about risque content, most jump to sex, drugs, and rock and roll. But, there is the other side of the spectrum. For instance, the Junie B. Jones series is on the banned books list provided by the American Library Association because of her poor grammar and attitude. Mind you, the series is about a kindergartener trying to understand and figure out the world.
There are more ridiculous examples like those, but there is also the flip side, which is sex and drugs. The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald, is a banned book that many will understand, regarding its promotion of murder, drugs, sex and acquiring a fortune through shady circumstances.
But there is something that is also at the end of that spectrum that does not come up much regarding books: race. The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas was banned for its profanity, drug use, sexual references but more interestingly, its commentary regarding relations between African-Americans and cops.
Censorship is truly horrific. Some may say it has to do with how “soft” and over-sensitive our generation is becoming. They are correct. Books such as Junie B. Jones should not be banned because a kindergartener cannot spell. More seriously, The Hate U Give should not be banned because it is primarily talking about a topic that is a great issue in today’s society.
For this week, and for the rest of their lives, people need to pick up a book that has been banned or challenged, and ask themselves why was this book banned. Nine out of ten times, they will find it challenged the status quo and encouraged people to think from a perspective other than their own. Although Banned Books Week is coming to a close, I encourage everyone to pick up a banned book and push against the idea of censorship.
Iana Fields is a freshman studying english creative writing at Ohio University. Please note that the views and opinions of the columnists do not reflect those of The Post. Want to talk to Iana? Tweet her @FieldsIana.
