The Most Banned Books in the U.S. Are Not New Books: Book Censorship News, July 7, 2023

10 months ago 107

Kelly is simply a erstwhile librarian and a long-time blogger astatine STACKED. She's the editor/author of (DON'T) CALL ME CRAZY: 33 VOICES START THE CONVERSATION ABOUT MENTAL HEALTH and the editor/author of HERE WE ARE: FEMINISM FOR THE REAL WORLD. Her adjacent book, BODY TALK, volition people successful Fall 2020. Follow her connected Instagram @heykellyjensen.

View All posts by Kelly Jensen

Books by and astir radical of color, queer people, and those surviving astatine the intersections of those identities person accrued successful work since the founding of We Need Diverse Books successful July 2014. This was a watershed year, successful that it came with accrued demands for amended practice successful books, particularly successful YA. Things are inactive obscurity adjacent parity with what the U.S. colonisation looks like, but for the purposes of this post, what’s important to cognize is determination are much books by and astir BIPOC and queer radical successful YA than ever before.

Today’s teens, who were calved betwixt 2004 and 2010, are importantly much divers than successful erstwhile generations. One-quarter of teens place arsenic LGBTQ+ — and that’s the 25% who openly place that mode — portion lone fractional of today’s teens place arsenic white, non-Hispanic. One successful 4 of today’s teens are Hispanic, 14% are Black, 6% are Asian, and 5% are bi- oregon multi-racial. Nearly 1/4 of Generation Z are the children of immigrants and 66% unrecorded successful a household with joined parents. All of that information comes from PEW Research.

Despite maturation successful diverseness some successful publishing and successful young people, it is funny to spot that the astir banned and challenged books successful the USA mean a work day equal to today’s teenagers. These books, galore classics of course, are not modern depictions of concerns oregon realities of today’s teens; bully lit endures, truthful this isn’t a condemnation of that. Instead, it’s a infinitesimal to intermission and recognize that the process of getting books banned is long, requires wide entree to books, and has a wealthiness of accusation astir erstwhile challenges and bans upon which publication censorship advocates tin draw.

Utilizing the astir caller information from some PEN America and the American Library Association (ALA), I’ve noted the work dates for each rubric successful the apical 10 astir banned and challenged books. In 1 instance, a YA publication was published successful the UK earlier the U.S., truthful I’ve utilized the U.S. day to support everything consistent. You tin walk clip looking astatine PEN and ALA’s introductions to recognize wherefore the titles disagree somewhat betwixt the organizations.

Let’s instrumentality a look.

PEN America’s Most Banned Books, arsenic of April 2023

Gender Queer, published 2019

Flamer, published 2020

Tricks, published 2009

Handmaid’s Tale Graphic Novel, published 2019

Crank, published 2004

Sold, published 2006

Push, published 1996

A Court of Mist and Fury, published 2020

This Book Is Gay, 2015

The Bluest Eye, published 1970

Milk and Honey, published 2014

Average Publication Date: 2008 | Average Age: 15

Median Publication Date: 2014 | Median Age: 9

American Library Association’s Most Challenged Books, April 2023

Gender Queer, published 2019

All Boys Aren’t Blue, published 2020

The Bluest Eye, published 1970

Flamer, published 2020

Looking for Alaska, published 2005

The Perks of Being a Wallflower, published 1999

Lawn Boy, published 2018

The Absolutely True Diary of a Part Time Indian, published 2007

Out of Darkness, published 2015

A Court of Mist and Fury, published 2020

Crank, published 2004

Me and Earl and the Dying Girl, published 2012

This Book is Gay, published 2015

Average Publication Date: 2010 | Average age: 13

Median Publication Date: 2015 | Average age: 8

Don’t instrumentality this accusation arsenic thing different than what it is: a look astatine immoderate absorbing dates and data. It is not reflective of the thousands of books being banned close now, crossed the country, and it is surely not reflective of the hundreds oregon thousands of books not being purchased oregon being softly removed from shelves done silent/quiet censorship. But it is simply a reminder that these astir banned books are but a conception of the books seeing publication banning ire and indeed, that conception is not arsenic caller arsenic you mightiness deliberation it is.

Banning books astatine the existent complaint takes a batch of enactment — and it is inactive enactment if it’s simply plagiarizing different publication banners. These radical person been playing the agelong game since the commencement of the ’00s, and they’ll proceed to ram their christofascist docket forward.

Book Censorship News: July 7, 2023

Thanks to this week’s time for fascists to propulsion their full selves into different activities, publication censorship quality is lighter than usual. Don’t expect this to continue.

Moreover, this roundup features much paywalled stories than ever before. The media, by putting quality astir publication bans down a paywall, are complicit successful their continuation. If your assemblage does not cognize what’s happening and cannot entree accusation astir it, you permission wide unfastened the doorway for it to proceed since determination is nary accountability being held. If idiosyncratic looks for quality and can’t entree it astatine your site, they’ll find it astatine a escaped fake quality site.

A instrumentality limiting entree to “sexually explicit” materials successful schools and libraries has passed successful Louisiana. This is the authorities wherever the Attorney General has acceptable up a snitch line, manufacturing a motivation panic astir books, educators, and librarians. Several books are present nether occurrence successful Douglas County Public Library (CO). This is the territory wherein the motivation situation actors claimed danger implicit resistance queens and Pride. The decisions connected the books volition hap sometime successful August. The “they’re banning each of these books truthful now let’s prohibition the Bible” attack continues to infuriate maine (CO). Dayton Memorial Library (WA) whitethorn adjacent soon for respective reasons, including the information some citizens are huffy astir the books disposable successful the library. Not the archetypal tiny Washington authorities nationalist room wherever this is happening. I broke the paywall for you. How Moms for Liberty is grooming its members to rotation the media. “When a antheral interrupted performer and writer Lindz Amer’s Rainbow Storytime connected June 14 astatine the Wilmette Public Library [IL], attendees drowned retired his disapproval with joyful song, according to Amer and room officials.” This is 1 of your feel good(ish) stories for the week. I americium paywalled, but 10 of 14 books being challenged successful Santa Rosa County Schools (FL) person been removed successful the archetypal circular of reviews for the 65 books that their Moms for Liberty section person complained about. This is different paywalled article, but it is astir however successful Orange County Schools (FL), implicit 150 titles are already connected the cull database for the coming schoolhouse twelvemonth and immoderate are sitting successful purgatory for reappraisal (this is inactive censorship, for what it is worth). The titles are being age-restricted tightly, too. “The classical novels A Room With a View and Madame Bovary and the epic poem “Paradise Lost” — published successful England much than 350 years agone — person been astatine slightest temporarily rejected by Orange County Public Schools for intersexual contented that educators fearfulness runs afoul of a caller Florida law. Novels that successful past years were often taught successful OCPS precocious schoolhouse classes, specified arsenic The Color Purple, Catch-22, Brave New World, and The Kite Runner person been enactment connected the rejected lists, too, arsenic person novels by Toni Morrison and Ayn Rand and popular, turned-into-movies books similar Into the Wild, and The Fault successful Our Stars […] Four plays by William Shakespeare, including “A Midsummer Night’s Dream,” are presently listed arsenic approved for grades 10 done 12 only, arsenic are Truman Capote’s “In Cold Blood” and Tennessee Williams’ “A Streetcar Named Desire,” the lists show.” Klein Independent School District (TX) is considering banning The Bluest Eye. Stellar enactment present from Frank Strong, digging into the coordinated onslaught connected dual-credit courses successful the district. A Katy Independent School District (TX) pupil — who is queer — writes astir how queer kids spell to schoolhouse successful the territory and are losing the conflict to beryllium who they are and spot themselves successful books. The nonfiction is paywalled for me, but it whitethorn not beryllium for you. An absorbing look astatine book bans and the ineligible obligations schools person to their students (via a instrumentality firm). This missive to the exertion is REALLY worthy reading. It talks astir however Saline Public Library (AR) is nether onslaught from right-wing radicals and warns that Garland County volition beryllium next. But this spot is wherever it gets *very* good: “I person a proposition for our section room management: Follow each indispensable protocols erstwhile idiosyncratic comes successful and objects to a book. Fill retired the due paperwork, beryllium polite. Then guardant the accusation including the sanction of the idiosyncratic wanting to person said publication removed, on with the rubric of the publication to The Sentinel-Record. Since this is nationalist accusation and a proceeding implicit the book’s removal volition person to beryllium held, each of the remainder of the taxpaying citizens of Garland County should person a close to cognize that accusation successful beforehand truthful they mightiness attend, inquire questions, and dependable their ain opinions. From the newspaper’s standpoint, each Sunday divorces, marriages, civilian cases, transgression cases, gathering permits, etc; are listed. These attempts astatine publication removal should beryllium also, arsenic they are nationalist information. This would springiness the nationalist ample beforehand clip to be if they deemed it warranted.” Hernando County Schools (FL) removed a publication connected sex identity from 1 of the simple schools. What happens erstwhile a nationalist room shares its abstraction with a schoolhouse room and present schoolhouse libraries are obligated to region books that bash not comply with “sexually explicit books” laws? This communicative features our ain Tirzah Price and is worthy speechmaking (IA). The abbreviated reply is the nationalist room isn’t removing the books. The communicative of the Samuels Public Library (VA) is not getting capable attention, but present the incoming committee president is pushing backmost against the publication banners claiming that the room is filled with porn for kids. Paywalled, but a genitor successful West Shore, Pennsylvania, complained astir 2 LGBTQ+ books successful Cedar Cliff High School. Now that there’s been an extended hunt for the atrocious books, conjecture what? They were ne'er determination astatine all. A Cocalico School Board subordinate (PA) is upset astir what she believes to beryllium “pornographic” books successful the schoolhouse libraries. She’s not adjacent creative. The books are Blankets and The Handmaid’s Tale Graphic Novel. Discussion of the books volition hap successful August. Old Lyme’s nationalist room has received requests to prohibition 2 enactment acquisition books for teens. In response, the Connecticut assemblage had implicit 400 radical motion a missive successful enactment of the room and its collection. (Paywalled…) Lower Cape May Regional Schools successful New Jersey will not beryllium banning Gender Queer. A teacher successful Portales, New Mexico, was removed from her occupation for teaching The Hate U Give in a 9th people honors class. Why? A mates of students claimed the teacher was anti-white and made them uncomfortable. Here’s a clever caller mode bigots are going to effort to region books from the library: nationalist decency standards clauses successful their metropolis ordinances. This communicative from Murfreesboro, Tennessee, gives the lowdown. “Montgomery County Public Schools [MD] issued a connection Thursday reaffirming its ‘commitment to cultivating an inclusive and welcoming learning environment’ by not allowing parents to opt their children retired of LGBTQ+ storybooks. The connection comes aft months of protests, petitions and a suit from parents arsenic good arsenic nationalist and section organizations requesting an opt-out option.” Good. They don’t notify parents erstwhile a publication has a heterosexual theme, truthful they shouldn’t beryllium doing it successful non-heterosexual-themed books, either. These are not delicate topics. They’re existent life. Those aggravated parents tin conscionable spell homeschool their kids similar they truthful desperately privation to anyway. House of Sky and Breath and House of Earth and Blood, some by writer Sarah J. Maas, are nether occurrence astatine Grangeville Centennial Library (public room successful Idaho) by publication banners. This 1 took complaints close to the metropolis council, bypassing the room itself since the committee was not sympathetic to her situation acting. “In Earl Campbell’s much than 25 years connected the Beaufort County School Board [SC], helium said helium has ne'er seen thing similar Tuesday night, erstwhile a genitor and assemblage subordinate threw 4 bags of chickenhearted provender connected the signifier successful beforehand of wherever committee members were seated. ‘Chicken. Too afraid,’ David Cook said aft walking up to the lectern carrying a achromatic backpack, contents chartless until helium reached successful and flung the still-sealed bags. ‘Matter of fact, your behaviour gives chickenhearted a atrocious name.’ During the nationalist remark conception of the meeting, Cook said wanted to show his ‘opinion of (the committee and the superintendent’s) deficiency of action’ arsenic the territory gradually returns the bulk of the 97 books taken disconnected shelves for reappraisal successful October to libraries.” This is simply a grown-ass big who threw nutrient astatine the schoolhouse board for…following their ain policies successful reviewing astir 100 books. The Leon County School Board (FL) recommends keeping the Billie Jean King children’s biography successful the schoolhouse library. The last determination implicit this 1 volition travel successful the adjacent mates of weeks. This is simply a New York Times piece, truthful your mileage volition alteration connected access, but it’s a heavy dive into the censorship of schoolhouse plays implicit the past year. One of the publication banning leaders successful Elmhurst, Illinois, got upset the section insubstantial has referred to him arsenic “conservative,” claiming they ne'er telephone his rivals progressives. The paper responded…with impervious they have. Keep your receipts, kids, for erstwhile the regressives cry. “A subordinate of the ImagineIF Libraries Board of Trustees [MT] has indicated her tendency to region provisions successful the library’s ‘Fair Treatment’ policy that expressly defy censorship.” Why, you mightiness ask? She was 1 of the proponents down removing Gender Queer from the library, of course. Parents of students successful Chapin High School (SC) are claiming “critical contention theory” was being taught by a teacher and that that teacher needs to beryllium fired. Over the past 2 years, 12 books person been either banned oregon restricted successful Evansville Vanderburgh Schools (IN) and half of them are by Ellen Hopkins. The 2nd portion of that condemnation is wherefore this is each BS: Hopkins’s books person apt been connected those shelves for a decennary oregon more. Why now? The Lebanon Public Library (OR) has been dealing with immoderate challenges from an idiosyncratic spouting the aforesaid nonsense arsenic the remainder of the situation actors, and this 1 decided she doesn’t request to spell done the mean process. She alternatively went consecutive to the metropolis council. Why? Well, erstwhile you excavation into the story, you’ll observe that the complainer was progressive successful a section church, and 1 of the assembly radical was progressive successful that church…