Should Censorship Be Banned In Schools

In recent years, many schools have created banned book lists, banning certain books due to content deemed unsuitable for young readers, which naturally raises a question as to the justification and necessity of such a decision. I wholeheartedly disagree with this decision, as not only is censorship in general invasive to free speech, a right protected in public schools, but detrimental in the case of literature, being that there is an epidemic in the younger generation of the condition of semi-literacy. Therefore, if a student cannot obtain their literature of choice, the only logical position for them to take is to forgo reading entirely. For those reasons, it is my firmly held belief that banning any type of book would result in tempering …show more content…
Supreme Court case referenced prior has set the precedent in smaller courts. At first, censorship might appear to do good, in that what was once offensive is now a thing of the past. In spite of good intentions, however, it is inevitable that if the reason one book was banned is that someone was offended, someone else will be offended by something else, plain and simple. If you don’t believe me, here’s an illustration: The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger has had its share of controversy over the years, so let’s say it should be banned. To give the book due process, there must be qualifications to meet in order to do so. The book is obviously sexual in nature, as observed in Holden Caulfield’s recollection of his limited sexual relations with Jane, “I don’t want you to get the idea that she was a goddamn icicle or something, just because we never necked or horsed around much,” (88-89) as well as frequent swearing throughout the book. By that logic, however, a much different book, The Redneck Manifesto by Jim Goad, although one of only a handful of books on the topic of how the American white underclass came to be, has the same two strikes on it: Constant swearing, particularly racial slurs, as well as certainly graphic content, as in his breakdown of …show more content…
However harsh that ideology may sound, if left unchecked, or as I would go as far as to say, in existence, a banned book list at any public school library, including our own, would have the potential to, in one fell swoop, turn a teenager away from reading if they cannot read as they wish, without exposing them to the harsh reality laid before them in life; infringe on students’ and publishers’ first amendment right to freedom of speech, expression and the press; and set a precedent that could quickly undermine the best interest of anyone who should want a certain book from the library. For all these reasons, it is imperative that censorship of the written word stop henceforth, as once you surrender your rights, you may never get them