If we don’t fight the perils of censorship, we can’t win
Every year, the PTA sponsors a book fair at our middle school. Lately they haven’t been pleased with the selections they’ve received from the book-fair company. Although I’m the school librarian, I’m never included in the selection process. But when the books arrive, the PTA insists that I identify the titles that could cause trouble in the community. I feel like I’m being asked to be a censor. What should I do?
Unfortunately, this is an all too familiar story. Since many PTA members aren’t familiar with most middle school titles, they usually opt to take the book-fair company’s preselected package rather than making their own selections from the company’s catalog—and that’s never a good idea. If the PTA is asking you to identify potentially troublesome titles, they are indeed asking you to be a censor. What can you do? I’d recommend that you arrange a conference with the PTA’s board; explain that you know the books and your students’ reading interests, and you’d like the opportunity to select titles for the book fair. This puts you in the role of a book selector, rather than a book censor. Also, request that the book fair become a regular part of your library’s program.
Once you’ve developed a partnership with the PTA, I’d suggest that you interview various book-fair companies to see which one best suits your school’s needs. Some questions that you might ask include: How does your company select its titles? Do you accept special requests for titles that aren’t in your catalog? Do all of the books come without reading-level stickers or other prejudicial labels? Will our school only receive the titles we’ve ordered? It’s important to inquire about a company’s selection practices. That way you can avoid those that “pre-censor” books by not offering certain titles to your school.
Just when I thought The Chocolate War was finally safe, a group of parents is trying to remove it from my son’s middle school library. My son tells me that all of his friends are reading the books’ “objectionable” passages and laughing at them. What should I tell him?
Every generation has a book or several books that get passed around the classroom with marked passages. There’s something about the “forbidden” that causes readers to take notice. I would make this a teachable moment and explain the importance of reading the entire novel. You might even invite your son’s friends to a book discussion about The Chocolate War. Ask them if their view of the “objectionable” passages changes by the end of the novel. Explain to them that taking passages or words out of context is a tactic that censors often use. You might even relate specific examples like the “mating scene” in A Day No Pigs Would Die by Robert Newton Peck. If they read that novel, they’ll see why this scene is essential to the story.
A friend asked me to recommend a book for her 11-year-old daughter. When I suggested Olive’s Ocean, she told me she didn’t want her daughter to read it because the novel was challenged for its sexually explicit content and offensive language. I immediately recommended something else, but later on, I was angry at myself for not explaining the perils of censorship to her.
You chose a book that’s popular with many 11-year-old girls. You did the right thing by offering another recommendation, but I would find a convenient time to discuss this matter with your friend. The issue goes beyond just this one title. Your friend needs to understand the danger of labeling a book “offensive” without reading it. You might also explain that her daughter will likely read the book because others are reading it. The best approach that your friend can take is to read the book and discuss it with her daughter. She may not listen to you, but at least you tried to explain. There’s always the chance that she will love the book. The censorship war has to be fought one battle at a time. Sometimes we win, and sometimes we lose. But we can never win if we don’t fight.