The Story of Books

The first book was created around 500 BCE, since then, the spread of information has been ingrained into societies globally.

Through books, humankind has been able to expand to what it is today, where the power of knowledge can be directly accessed from your fingertips in a matter of seconds. Now, entire buildings designed and built for the containment and shelter of thousands of books exist and are loved by many. They have been able to unite people, and educate many, but how have these beloved creations caused such an adverse reaction in recent times?

What’s the issue?

Just within the past year, 4,240 books have been targeted. This is due to many factors, all revolving around the education and raising of children. Parents have found certain topics in books as unsuitable for children and , have advocated for the removal of several works in public and school libraries. By doing so, they can shelter their children from the real world and erase important topics.

What books are being targeted?

Books that are at risk of being taken off the shelves involve topics of racism, sexism, government, sexuality, and more. For example, a book considered a classic, Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird is at risk due to issues of racism in the setting it occurs in- the American south in the 1930’s

Due to its historical accuracy and themes of racial prejudice, some parents have found it too harsh for the consumption of students. Although racial slurs are utilized, they reveal the harsh reality of racism.

Other examples of the affected books are Of Mice and Men (a book about friendship), The Hate U Give (the story of a young woman), The Handmaid’s Tale (a dystopian novel about a corrupt government), Harry Potter (a fictional story about a boy with magical abilities), and more books that include vital topics in the modern day.

Morals and freedom of speech

By banning these books, Americans lose their constitutional freedom of speech and thus, differing opinions are limited. This is catastrophic due to the tunnel vision toward an unrealistic world this creates. This also means that since only certain opinions are “suitable” for children to absorb, that is the only opinion that adults want them to be exposed to. Therefore, causing the decline of self-curated opinions in the world and contributes to the erasure of individuality and personal beliefs, all due to adults deeming reality to be too overbearing for the children living in it.

Ignorance

Erasure of the past is also heavily prominent in restricting access to these books due to the common desire for books containing raw history being banned in many libraries. Parents are concerned about making their children happy, but in reality, they are contributing to the ever-growing issue of ignorance in our society today.

Ignorance is not bliss. Being devout of the real world is damaging not only on an individual level, but to generations as a whole. Children not learning about the true harshness of reality makes them not well prepared for the world of living.

“There is only one good, knowledge, and one evil, ignorance,” Martin Luther King Jr. stated.

But goodness is not possible in our world without the bad. Presenting life as cupcakes and rainbows to children causes a life of disappointment and expectations not aligned with reality. Showing and conveying how the world is tough, but that they can handle it creates independence and awareness of what people have to do to function in society and be successful.

Previous generations

Advocates for book bans are mainly parents protecting their children. However, they grew up reading these “harmful” books and still turned out to be successful adults. If this accessibility causes such distortion and mental trauma, then how are these adults qualified to make decisions for the children of today?

They were allowed to read a book about a dystopian world. They were allowed to read the book about racism. They were allowed to read the adventures of a boy with an imagination and magic. They were allowed to read harrowing stories of people in real-life situations. They were allowed to be informed about the ever-expanding world of love, hate, compassion, neglect, unity, and segregation the world was and still is.

So why shelter the inevitable human experience?