Censorship on Books Speech

Censorship. Who would ever think that novels such as Of Mice and Men, The Catcher in the Rye, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Where's Waldo, and The Lorax would be banned from schools? Well prepare for the future. As of 2008 the Online Book Page Website and the ALA (American Library Association) recorded over 30,000 books that have been the objects of censorship or censorship attempts for grades K-12. 30,000. Its not just a number, it's a rapidly growing movement that will continue unless it is stopped. Most frequently books are challenged or censored based on profanity, violence, sex, homosexuality, witch craft, new age philosophies, portrayals of rebellious children, or racist and sexist language. The Savannah Morning News reported in November of 1999 that a teacher at the Windsor Forest High School required seniors to obtain permission slips before they could read Hamlet, Macbeth, or King Lear. The teacher's school board had pulled the books from class reading lists, citing "adult language" and references to sex and violence. Many students and parents protested the school's board's policy, which also included the outright banning of numerous other books. Novels should not be banned due to language, sexual references, and adult content.

Though many students wouldn't mind if novels were banned, classic pieces of literature are the world's history and history should defiantly not be banned. Shakespeare is a classic example and no stranger to censorship; the Associated Press reported in March of 1996 that Merrimack, NH schools had pulled Shakespeare's Twelfth Night from the curriculum after the school board passed a "prohibition of alternative lifestyle instruction" act. Twelfth Night includes a number of romantic entanglements including a young woman who disguises herself as a boy. Even though the times may have changed history was meant to be taught and enjoyed throughout the world. In Mark Twain's lifetime, his books Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn were excluded from the juvenile sections of the Brooklyn Public library (among other libraries), and banned from the library in Concord, MA, home of Henry Thoreau. In recent years, some high schools have dropped Huckleberry Finn from their reading lists, or have been sued by parents who want the book dropped. In Tempe, Arizona, a parent's lawsuit that attempted to get the local high school to remove the book from a required reading list went as far as a federal appeals court in 1998. (The court's decision in the case, which affirmed Tempe High's right to teach the book, has some interesting comments about education and racial tensions.) The Tempe suit, and other recent incidents, have often been concerned with the use of the "N" word, a word that also got Uncle Tom's Cabin challenged in Waukegan, Illinois. People should understand that they are not directly being insulted or harmed. And it is very important to keep valuable knowledge circulating throughout schools.

What might be the most important pieces of literature in the United States of America have not been read by people graduating from high school and even college. Which is sad scenario to analyze when we are discussing our future. Apparently it is too absurd for school curriculum because certain words or phrases appear in it. In some cases Shakespeare's plays are not taught for similar reasons. The Beacon for Freedom Project, run by the Norwegian Library Association, has an extensive database on censored publications, as well as publications about censorship and freedom of expression. Many organizations are standing strong against these ridiculous censorships. The American Library Association has designated September 29 - October 6 as Banned Books Week. Their motto, free people read freely. The ALA makes it clear by bringing up the first Amendment. CONGRESS SHALL MAKE NO LAW RESPECTING AN ESTABLISHMENT OF RELIGION, OR PROHIBITING THE FREE EXERCISE THEREOF; OR ABRIDGING THE FREEDOM OF SPEECH, OR OF THE PRESS; OR THE RIGHT OF THE PEOPLE PEACEABLY TO ASSEMBLE,