Banned books and the effect on our generation

By Al Rivers ‘25

How many books do you think have been banned from libraries in the US? If you didn't know, to put it into context, more than 273 titles were challenged or banned in 2020 alone. Some famous books that have been banned are Carrie by Steven King, Animal Farm by George Orwell and  Invisible man by Ralph Elison. One that even surprised us, and might intrigue you, is the Fellowship of the Ring, by J R R Tolkien, which was a banned book. 

Banning books as we know it isn't a new thing, and we see it in the news frequently since books have begun getting challenged more in libraries and are causing more controversy. It is a massive debate, seeing as banning books affects our first amendments. Some important classic books that have grown to be a part of the prohibited books show that these views can change across time. For example, a famous challenged book is To Kill a Mockingbird, one of Derek's favorites, the person we are interviewing. Books can be challenged for small things, like being uncomfortable, for example, a book about penguins that shows same-sex marriage. It depends a lot on the challenger's view. If a book is obscene or meets the requirements of being physically inappropriate, it can be taken even if it isn't considered obscene since it shows a minority.

"I think that the country feels pretty polarized right now and that this is one outlet, for like in Texas, for someone to gain political points." Derek King states. He adds that banning books in our time of politics is more seen as a power move and a way to show their values. For example, if they do not like queer relationships, they can show that by putting together a list of banned books, that highlight their hatred for a minority. It creates an unfavorable environment for minorities and can create lots of political pressure in Institutes and Schools. 

"These books that are being challenged, that are not actually obscene, there just being charged with being obscene. Because they depict queer relationships or talk about black life matters movements."  Challenged books can also be historical documents that need to be seen, even if negative scenes are depicted. It's also essential to have this dialogue open, so there is a way to challenge and have accountability and transparency, but withholding books from the public can mute voices that should be heard. Most of the time being minorities. As Derek King says, "Most of the time, books that are challenged don't need to be." 

The process of banning a book begins with someone expressing concern about the content in a book. Once this happens, the individual's unease starts with issuing the challenge (usually a parent or librarian). A challenge is "an attempt to remove or restrict materials, based upon the objections of a person or group. Once a book is challenged at a school, a group of normally board members or school officials look over it and decide if it should or shouldn't be banned. In countries, the governments decide whether books are banned or not. 

Dan Woytek is the middle school librarian at Catlin Gabel. "The middle school library has books that have been challenged and banned in other schools around the country. The criteria for our books go through a written collection development policy which gives librarians guidelines on how to select books to purchase." Woytek states. Dan's number one value is to sustain "intellectual freedom". It feels one of the best ways to do this is to expose students to all types of books. However, there are restrictions to this. More intense books that we see in the upper school library are not put in the middle school library because of the maturity levels of the students. We believe this to be fair because exposing 11-year-old students to graphic content is problematic. 

According to the NCAC (National Collation Against Censorship), "books about lived experiences of racism or of growing up LGBTQIA+ and experiencing bias and discrimination experience more hate." This is terrible because books being banned takes away the ability to either connect or learn about topics that can otherwise be restricted or looked down upon in some places. "George" by Alex Gino is a book about a "transgender fourth-grader who increasingly learns to be herself and to tell others about her secret," says Common Sense Media. This book is banned in many libraries because of its LGBTQIA+. This is why Catlin, from this standpoint, is an excellent school because each student can have access to these books and learn about different cultures. 

A link for people who want to learn more: 

https://www.powells.com/featured/banned-books-week-2021-blue-room