Calling all book lovers: Banned Books week is Sept. 25 through Oct. 1! All of you rebels should plan to take pictures with your favorite banned book, such as To Kill a Mockingbird or The Holy Bible. But wait, some of you may ask, what is this Banned Books Week you speak of and what books are we talking about?
According to bannedbooksweek.org, “The Banned Books Week Coalition is a national alliance of diverse organizations joined by a commitment to increase awareness of the annual celebration of the freedom to read… Banned Books Week was launched in 1982 in response to a sudden surge in the number of challenges to books in schools, bookstores, and libraries.”
“We have never banned books at Delphi Community High School,” said Ms. Lawton. “We have had books challenged before in which we had to get a committee together and prove that we should be allowed to read these books. Luckily, we won!” Ms. Lawton then went on to explain that she has to choose books that fit in with the curriculum and that are appropriate for the student body.
Some of you may be asking, why are books banned? What are the reasons for banning a book? Well, to be completely honest, some of the reasons are ludicrous. For instance, many books have been challenged for being age-inappropriate, or because they have references to sex. One of the reasons that Fifty Shades of Gray was challenged was because it was “poorly written.” There are many reasons that books are banned (sexually explicit, language, homosexuality), but all of the reasons are inane.
Books are books; they are expressions of the author, and they enable the reader to learn about the world. They should not be censored because some parents are worried about their child. Banned Books Week is an important week for many reasons; it is an opportunity to teach students about censorship, an opportunity to have students read classics, an opportunity to let students realize that they, too, have a voice.