Banned Book Week celebrates free thinkers, open information

MILLERTON— Launched in 1982, Banned Book Week (BBW) draws national attention to the dangers of censorship, while highlighting the value of free and open access to information, according to the American Library Association (ALA).

While BBW is typically celebrated during the last week of September, the NorthEast-Millerton Library (NEML) welcomed readers early to peruse its stacks of banned books.

The library put out a display of adult, teen and children’s books that were banned over time. Each display has a synopsis of where and why the book was banned.

A booklet listing 2015-16 banned books, some of which have faced legal challenges, was also available.

Starting a conversation

More than 11,300 books have been legally challenged since 1982, according to ALA. Most of those books have been challenged or banned because of concerns that they’re either sexually explicit, unsuitable for a specific age group or have offensive language.

Challenges to censor certain books have mostly come from school boards, school libraries and public libraries, in that order, according to statistics provided by ALA.

Many conversations about censorship have taken place across the nation as a result. As libraries play an important role in the flow of information, according to NEML Director Rhiannon Leo-Jameson, it is not uncommon to hear visitors — in particular adults and teenagers — start up a conversation on the matter. That is especially true during Banned Book Week.

Teenagers “tend to be more angsty and curious,” the director said, leading them to question why certain books were banned. But censorship is also a conversational topic shared among adults.

“Kids, they’re surprised to find out why a book was banned, but I don’t think they realize the implication of it, you know?” said Leo-Jameson. “Whereas adults get taken aback and they starts having these conversations about the whole thing.”

At this time, a formal conversation about censorship has not taken place at the Millerton library.

“We’ve always kind of gone back and forth about it because we purposely try not to take too political of a stance in general because ... we don’t want anyone to feel we’re siding one way or the other with any topic,” said Leo-Jameson. “But, libraries are a place for information, we help provide it for free and it’s important to us that we don’t censor content. Even if we personally don’t believe in it, if it’s something the people in our community want us to have we’ll have it — we’re trying to be a reflection of our community.

The librarian added that it would be interesting to have a conversation about the subject with teens “and see what they have to say.” She said perhaps that talk will take place sometime in the future.

The harm of censorship

Censoring a book is a “slippery slope,” said Leo-Jameson, who said it can be detrimental to society.

“In the terms of using it to erase parts of history, which was the case with some of the books, unfortunately sometimes it seems it can work,” she said. “If you just don’t let that information be known, you can erase an entire chunk of history. And not only that, but certain governments of different countries have taken these actions to make themselves look better usually, and that is kind of a scary thing.

Leo-Jameson said that “actually trying to erase” history is a form of  oppression, and “a way to keep people isolated.”

Sometimes, censorship is used as a means of sheltering young minds, however manipulative.

“Kids and teens continually think they’re alone in the world, that they’re wrong, and that could be terrible,” Leo-Jameson said. “They can ruin the rest of their lives.”

NEML Youth Services Coordinator Kristin McClune also had some thoughts on the issue.

“As an adult, [BBW] makes me think of the First Amendment and the freedom of press and the implications of censorship and what happens when you have a society that’s not rooted in the freedom of expression,” she said.

Discussing banned books

For some, the reasons given for banning books just don’t make  sense.

According to McClune, one example is Bill Martin Jr.’s children’s book, “Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?”

“Banning ‘Brown Bear, Brown Bear’ was a complete accident,” McClune said. “The Texas Board of Education banned it in 2010 because they mixed up Bill Martin Jr. and Bill Martin.”

Bill Martin Jr. is the author and illustrator of more than 298 children books. Whereas Bill Martin is a professor at DePaul University in Chicago who wrote “Ethical Marxism: The Categorical Imperative of Liberation,” the book the board actually meant to ban.

“People always wonder ‘Oh, wow. How did that get banned?’ And then they find out that it was an accident, because really there is nothing that you can deduce from that book that it’s even vaguely political,” McClune continued. “Believe me, I tried. I read it a couple of times and I’m like, where is the secret message? What does the bird represent? There is really no political meaning in there. It’s just a children’s book.”

She said it took about a year for people to notice  the difference between “Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?” —  a simple children’s book —and a book about liberation. 

“Lord of the Rings,” by J.R.R. Tolkien, is another example of a popular book that was banned.

This book, according to both librarians, exemplifies why banning books is subjective — it’s all about interpretation.

“Lord of the Rings” was banned and even burned in Alamagordo, N.M., in 2001 outside Christ Community Church. It was argued the book included satanic references.

“But then if you read it in another lens, people say that it is an allegory for the Bible. It’s so ironic that some people take it as a satanic book,” while others are convinced it refers to the Bible, said McClune.

“I’ve also heard that it’s a reflection of the author’s time spent in war — he fought in World War I,” Leo-Jameson added.

Recommendations for happy reading

To enjoy a good read, Leo-Jameson had a few tips.

“The fastest way to get somebody to read a book is just to tell them that they can’t read something, so it is important for parents to know what their children are reading” she said. “The key is to read the books maybe beforehand, because if it is something that you don’t want your child to know about — it could be death, it could be anything that you’re just not ready to approach with your child — then you should be aware of the content.

“However, you just can’t make a sweeping judgment for everybody. What’s appropriate for one child who maybe just lost a grandparent may not be for someone who hasn’t approached that subject yet,” she added.