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Government censorship causes negative effects
Negative effect of government censorship
Banning books with negative opinions
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Banning Books
Are authors and readers rights infringed on when books are banned? Numerous books like To Kill a Mocking Bird, have been banned from schools because of profanity or controversial opinions such as religion or sex however, it is against the first amendment to ban the books based on the language and should be based on age group or parental permission to read the book. Many books placed on the banned book list have a lesson to be taught but the lesson is lost if the book is banned. Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mocking Bird has been placed on the banned books list but should be read in schools because it is against the first amendment to ban and also shows the importance of moral education and seeing the good in evil times.
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court cases fighting the banning of books that were won because of our first amendment rights as stated “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment or religion, on prohibiting the free exercise thereof: or abridging the freedom of speech, or the press: or the right of the people peacefully to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.” (The First 10 Amendments to the Constitution) By following this, everyone has the right to read and write what they peacefully chose. In the Case vs. Unified School District trial the book Annie was banned because it contain a teenage lesbian couple. The school district testified that the book was unsuitable for children and had no educational purposes meanwhile, the federal court found that “The school board violated the students’ First Amendment rights. The court found that the school board actually objected to the book’s premise and ideology and overturned the book’s removal.” (Lisberg) In this instance the school district was infringing on the student’s rights over a controversial opinion dealing nothing with education but a revealing topic. In the next case a school district worked to ban the Harry Potter series citing, “The books include witchcraft and the occult and also encourage disobedience and disrespect for authority.” (Lisberg) Again a controversial topic leads to an unconstitutional ban that was over turned because the district disagreed with the books content and had a different opinion. As shown in these cases, books cannot be banned based on an opinion or belief because the first amendment rights are conflicted. The classic read To Kill a Mocking Bird was banned for its “Profanity, offensive racial themes and depictions.” (Banned/Challenged Books from the Radcliffe Publishing Course) Understanding that the book is not suitable for all ages, it should not be banned for older students who can handle the use of profanity.
The main characters in To Kill a Mocking Bird Scout and Jem, learn true morals from their father Atticus Finch. Atticus is a lawyer who puts his life on the line to defend Tom Robinson whom was wrongly accused of rape because of his color and location at the time. Scout and Jem see the good in their father trying his best in amidst an evil time. Overlooking the profanity and racial themes, To Kill a Mocking Bird teaches the reader about strong morals and finding the good in trying times therefore, should remain off the banned books list. Unfortunately, in certain works the message is hidden in the profanity and offends people to the point of boycotting class until a book is removed from the curriculum. In Suzanne Pitner’s article she explains the main reason for the large banned book list proclaiming, “Usually the intentions is to protect people especially children, from controversial ideas or opinions.” (Pitner) Parents who are uncomfortable with their child seeing racial terms and sexual references are for the banning of numerous books but unfortunately work to ban the books for a majority not just their child. If a parent does not agree with the book they should be given the choice to hide it for their child not
everybody. All things considered, many books should no longer be banned following the first amendment freedom of speech rights. In the example of the popular To Kill a Mocking Bird there is moral lesson being taught atop of the entertaining plot and loveable characters. If it is fit with the right age group it, is a fantastic book. Parents should determine if a book is suitable for their own child, and along with the school district decide to ban a book based on opinion. By law, it is your right to peacefully read and write what you wish.
Mark Twain once said, "Censorship is telling a man he can't have a steak just because a baby can't chew it.” However, some of his books, such as Huckleberry Finn, were often banned for irrational reasons. Like Huckleberry Finn and many other books, To Kill a Mockingbird (TKaM) has also been unreasonably banned in many places. I firmly believe that TKaM, like any other book, should not be banned because it is a timeless classic that teaches positive morals and contains many important lessons. TKaM is a very skillful book that explores many significant themes.
To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee is a heartbreaking, timeless novel that examines stereotyping and its consequences. The novel shadows Atticus Finch, a small-town lawyer, as he defends a black man, Tom Robinson, who is accused of raping a white woman in racist Maycomb, Alabama. Frequently, To Kill a Mockingbird has been banned for use in many schools because of the racial content in it. In the novel, racial tension and slurs are used frequently. Although the novel does contain these things, To Kill a Mockingbird should definitely be taught in schools because it represents accurately what it was like before blacks received their civil right, it teaches valuable life lessons, and it shows how novels like To Kill a Mockingbird helped the civil rights movement.
The practice of the censorship of books in schools has been prevalent due to the explicit content of them. Parents have been complaining to schools about books that count as required reading because they disapprove with the points made in the book. If a book consists of offensive or sexually explicit material, then parents would challenge the schools about them in order to prevent their children from reading them. Censorship in general has been an intensely debated issue because it is considered an infringement to the First Amendment of the United States Constitution while others argue it is used to conceal inappropriate things (Aliprandini and Sprague). The banning of books in school curriculum has also been debated since parents see certain books as inappropriate while others argue that banning them hinders student learning. Against the censorship of books in schools, Fenice Boyd and Nancy Bailey, authors of Journal of Adolescent and Adult Literacy, believe that banning books creates a barrier between students and intellectual development (Boyd and Bailey, 655). Banning books from schools and removing them from the curriculum prevents students from exploring different ideas and developing creativity and critical thinking skills.
Think of it like this, a book is like a piece of art, without certain details how will the art be portrayed? If the author did not include things such as racial slurs how will you be able to understand important parts of the book such as when the character Dill was crying during the court case on page 226. A specific piece of evidence showing this detail would be when Dill said: “I know all that Scout. It was the way he said it made me sick, plain sick.” From using details explained above you are able to fully understand why this character would have felt that certain way. Also included in the article To Kill A Mockingbird removed from Virginia schools for racist language It states in the text that, “ The NCAC slammed the action in a post on its Kids Right To Read website, writing: “By avoiding discussion of controversial issues such as racism, schools do a great disservice to their students.” This is able to prove my point that it would be depriving the students of learning about our history of racism not to allow them to read this
By forbidding the reading of certain books, the first amendment rights of every American citizen are violated. The first amendment of the U.S. Constitution clearly states that all citizens have freedom of speech as well as freedom of press (Book Banning 1). By banning a book and making it so that no one can read it, the government is keeping the author from expressing their thoughts and opinions through press. The freedom of choice is also violated due to the inability of reading that particular book as an option. Not only the first amendment rights are violated, but also the academic freedom and diversity of thought guaranteed and protected by the constitution (Teachers 1). History will show that Americans do not take the violation of their rights lightly, and are more than likely to protest. Sometimes, in more extreme cases, they will rebel.
Banning a book takes a person’s rights away that have already banned guaranteed by the First Amendment. Congress can not make any laws that interfere with an individual’s rights. The First Amendment “protects an individual’s
Countries worldwide actively call for the banning of books that are found to be politically inconvenient, religiously awkward, or embarrassing in one form or another. But for writers like Russia's Vasily Grossman, a book's ban means far more than just a dip in sales. In 1961, he pleaded with the Soviet censors, "I am physically free, but the book to which I have dedicated my life is in jail." (Merkelson). A book represents an idea, thus limiting access to a book is banning the representation of an idea. The banning of books in American schools should not be allowed, because banning books will prevent students from learning the reason for the controversy and alternate viewpoints they can come to on their own.
Kids love freedom. They thrive on it. It’s a part of growing up. The older and more responsible you are the more freedoms you will get. Parents at a variety of schools are restricting the one freedom of children that they should always have. The freedom to chose a book. A number of schools have banned the classic, award winning book “To Kill a Mockingbird” by Harper Lee. This book is about a little girl who’s father is defending an African American man in court in the south during the 1930’s. Sounds harmless? Many don’t think so! “To Kill A Mockingbird” should not be be banned because it tells an important fictional story about America's past.
Banning Books “It’s not just the books under fire now that worry me. It is the books that will never be written, the books that will never be read. And all due to the fear of censorship. As always, young readers will be the real losers” (Blume 1999). Judy Blume can not explain the problem of book censorship any clearer.
Book banning is a prime target for censorship. Censorship in print media, notably book banning, occurs across homes, schools, stores, and other facilities daily. Censorship in the schools is the most widespread and exposed place for book banning. Do administrators and school boards have the right to ban books? Are we taking away the rights of children to read? In case of Island Trees Schools District V. Pico in New York, the Supreme Court gave the school board broad discretion to frame curriculum and teach civic and moral values. This case resulted in the school board removing ten books from the school library for being "anti-american, anti-christian, anti-semitic, and just plain filthy." Another case involving book banning was Hazelwood School District V. Kuhlmeier. In this case the Supreme Court again gave school officials the broad discretion to control curriculum. This time the court left open the question if this affects the school libraries. In Olathe, Kansas, the district's superintendent made the decision to remove all copies of Nancy Gardner's Annie On My Mind because of it imposing views for gay actions. This standpoint resulted in a public book burning by a homophobic community group. At Hempfield High School in Western Penn...
Banning books from public schools and public libraries is wrong. It’s irrational to have a parent or school board member’s opinion determine what a school district should be reading. Books including and not limited to, The Scarlet Letter, The Great Gatsby, To Kill a Mockingbird, The Lord of the Flies, and Animal Farm all have one thing in common. They have all at one time or another been subject to banishment. These literary classics have been around for a long time and proved to be vital to the education of many, especially children and adolescents. These novels teach values and educate children about world affairs that can not come from an everyday experience. These controversial novels encompass the materials that ultimately boost our educational wealth. Banning books infringe
The first amendment of the U.S. Constitution states, “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, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances (Buchanan).” With the banning and the challenging of books all over the U.S. I believe that our first amendment is being jeopardized. We should be allowed to read whatever we want to read it is our right according to the first amendment in the U.S. Constitution with freedom of speech.
“The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn the more places you’ll go.”-Dr. Seuss. What Dr. Seuss’s statement is telling us is that books have given us knowledge about ideas, life, and the world. One of the greatest inventions of mankind is a book. A book is a set of printed sheets that are put together fill with information that people read about. Books have been around with us since ages from generations to generations. It is all around the world with different cultures and languages, books have given people the joy of story, information, and knowledge. Everyone should have the right to read whatever book they are seem interested. Well, it is not the case; there are some people out there trying to challenge books from being ban. It is ridiculous that books are being taken away from readers. Today, books are still currently being challenged or banned. This type of doing is censorship. This is a problem that people need to look at and think about. Books are in school, library, in our homes yet they are too much for the people. Why are books so sensitive for readers to be challenged? There are two set of sides to this issue, one side are the people that wants to remove the books and challenged them to be ban, the other side are the one that oppose the banning of books, allowing to read whatever they want. Which side is right? This leads to the question as to why books are currently being challenged or banned. How does banning books relate to censorship and what are some solutions that can solve the problem of banning books?
The subject of censorship is a very controversial one, especially the banning of books. Many people believe they must protect themselves and others from the "evils" of many classic books and works of art because they can be deemed "indecent" in one way or another. Many believe that this is absurd and censorship in its current form is a violation of our First Amendment right to free speech. Personally, I align myself with the latter, however I do feel there are occasions where censorship is justifiable.
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee has been challenged/banned countless times since it’s original publication in 1960. The reasoning people could have behind banning it is that they feel that the racism, language and subject matter in the book is offensive, inappropriate, immoral and that it encourages and condones such things. To Kill a Mockingbird takes place in Maycomb, a small town in Alabama, during the depression from 1935-1937, and is told from the perspective of a little girl named Scout. In the book Scout’s father Atticus teaches her and her brother Jem many valuable lessons. The things Atticus teaches Scout and Jem are things we all need to know. To Kill a Mockingbird is an inspirational book that teaches valuable moral values, and should not be banned.