Censorship Is Here

Banned books are always an issue and I wrote a blog post about this in October of last year for Banned Books Week but I’ve been motivated recently to delve into this topic more and share why I think it is such a problem, why it is happening, and what we can do about it.

I know this is a controversial topic, but it is not something I can stay silent about nor is it something that people can be ignorant of. In the last 10 years, book banning has gotten more prolific, intensely aggressive, and now frightening. The logic behind banned books has often been that people believe they should have control over what others, especially children, read. There’s nothing inherently wrong with wanting children to read appropriately for their age group or maturity level. But it becomes an enormous problem when people try to impose their own choices and beliefs on others.

Towards the end of last year, I saw one of the most gut wrenching documentaries I have ever seen, called The Librarians. It first premiered at the Sundance Film Festival last year and has since had showings across the US and Canada, and even in Europe. It focuses on the book banning and censorship taking place in states like Florida and Texas and includes interviews with multiple librarians, several of whom have lost their jobs because they fought against censorship. The film also explores the Moms For Liberty organization, which is often the driving force behind some of the choices people, school boards, and politicians make. I had the opportunity to see it in an audience that included a lot of librarians and teachers. Sometimes when there was a fact or situation that I was completely appalled by, some of the other viewers were not even fazed by it or said they had experienced something similar.

This film reminded me that banned book banning is truly just censorship. It is the attempt to restrict what information people have access to, an attempt to force one's beliefs on other people, and an attempt to claim moral superiority. And it’s not just an attempt at this point. There is a list of more than 100 books that Texas school superintendents have approved to be removed from libraries.There are school districts in Florida where organizations like Moms Of Liberty are financially motivating people to run for school boards in order to further their own agenda. In a gut wrenching scene, a young man who is gay returns to his childhood school district to plead with the school board to maintain their libraries, all while his mother, who is one of the fiercest advocates for book banning and censorship, is in the same room.

I cannot recommend this documentary enough, with the fair warning that it might wreck you emotionally. You can see on the official film instagram where the upcoming screenings are and it is also available to stream on PBS.

We are on the precipice of an absolutely devastating and destructive time in terms of censorship. Book banning doesn’t even properly define what is happening. People, politicians, churches, and groups, are actively restricting information. There are parts so reminiscent of World War II that it is almost paralyzing. There are even books that have been written about this danger: George Orwell’s 1984, Lois Lowry’s The Giver, and more.

The very first amendment of the US Constitution serves to protect free speech, safeguard people’s access to information, and prohibit the government from censorship. And yet, we are in the midst of a censorship crisis.

There is currently a bill in front of The House Of Representatives, HR 7661, also known as the Stop The Sexualization Of Children Act, that will forever change education and be a devastating blow to the First Amendment. Part of what is so appalling and yet somehow darkly humorous is the lack of common sense. The bill proposes not to use state or governmental funds “to develop, implement, facilitate, host, or promote any program or activity for, or to provide or promote literature or other materials to children under the age of 18 that includes sexually oriented material.” Every single person looking at this bill has gone through puberty so I have no idea what sort of delusions they’re under. At the risk of being crass, there’s absolutely no way that anyone over 12 has not had sexual urges, questions, experiences, and more. Aren’t we better off providing younger people more resources and education so they can make safe and informed decisions than pretending these things don’t happen? I certainly think so. I urge all of you to look into this bill, read about it, reflect on it, and come to understand the danger that it poses. And maybe even send your representatives a little note.

I have always believed that we can learn difficult, confusing, powerful, and complex emotions through literature. We can see and better understand people who are different from us, we can explore worlds which we will never set foot in and we can find community in sharing and learning together. If we allow censorship to continue, we will lose a lot of these opportunities.

I sometimes struggle to articulate my emotions, thoughts, and concerns about this topic. Partially because they invoke such visceral reactions. But I do know this - we are already on a very slippery slope, getting slicker by the minute, and something that will take a significant amount of time, advocacy, and perhaps even pain, to come back from.

We cannot stay silent, we cannot sit by and let it happen, and we cannot forget that the future of our country, literacy, our children, and more, are at stake.