Discussion #2: Factors for Banning

[Alisa Cooper]

Identify and explain factors that motivate people and organizations to challenge and/or ban books. Do you agree or disagree with these factors? Explain your position. Or explain and exemplify uses of censorship by a dominant culture to suppress minority voices.

These are two separate discussion topics. You can choose to discuss one or both, but keep them separate (i.e. don't post responses to both topics in the same post.)

[Jake Lough]

I agree with you there are censorship threw out the hist of our goverment. I just hate when I hear the goverment planned for the planes to go into those towers. I saw a video that suggest that explosians came from with in the buildings. like the goverment put bombs on each floor and blew them up with people in side. It makes me sick>>>>>>>>>.

[Hana Izuka]

Almost anyone can censor anything. Books are just one aspect of it. Adults censor things for children, boyfriends censor their thoughts for their girlfriend, and the government censors decisions from its people. I believe that censorship is just another form of lying. If you don't tell the whole truth, then you're not telling the truth. When it comes to censorship, you are hiding a persepctive, another view on something. If I didn't tell you that the big bad wolf ate the grandma and little Red Riding Hood, then you would be awfully confused when I told you that they were both cut out of the wolf's stomach. Applying this to real life, if you don't know the whole story, then how do you prove your point? When people say, "Don't worry, honey, you don't have to think about this," I disagree completely. I believe that if a person wants to learn about something, they should learn about it because knowing more can only make your point stronger. That is where I stand.

[Jacquie Kemper]

Hana, I had to laugh at your post. How true you are that it would be mighty hard to explain why Little Red Riding Hood and her Grandmother were cut out of the wolfs stomach if you censored the fact they were both eaten by the wolf!

That analogy can be used on many cases of censorship. That without the whole story, it no longer has a point. It has lost it's perspective.

I do censor things for my children. I tell them a point with as much detail as I can in a way I know they can understand. I know many parents struggle with this issue. How do we tell our children the truth in a way they can understand the magnitude of it.

[Caitlin]

Wow, I couldn't agree with you more. Obviously, the more knowledge you have the stronger point you can make. Gaining knowledge is opening your mind and eyes to everything if you have censors everywhere throughout life how can you completely do that? As far as a factor for banning books being fear? Sure, I suppose I'd agree with that to a degree. What is the fear really though? Is it just a control issue? Having control over your children, religious group, boyfriend/girlfriend, whatever it may be, yes that feels great. Control is a powerful thing but if not for the right reason, it's evil. So I believe, as of now until one of you throws me for a loop, that there are many reasons for banning books, but no reason is a good one. Of course use censorship with your kids, yes teach them moral rules, there is a right age and time for everything and you should know when that is. Every child is different, every human being is different. So how can anyone ban something from a whole group?

[Latiesha]

totally. i also wanted to add, from a religious point of view, that freewill was the right that god gave us all, if you believe in god or in a higher power or powers. if the creator of the universe is willing to let us ultimately decide for ourselves shouldnt we look from other perspectives, feel things out and make informed decisions? i know, crazy idea, right.

[Jacquie Kemper]

During World War II, Nazi student’s burned books in an effort to ‘purify’ German culture. These book burnings were done at the same time Hitler was staged actions against Jews and his political opponents. Thousands of German writers and artists left Germany, fearing persecution.

Hitler’s hatred of the self proclaimed ‘anti German’ literature was not fueled by religious backing. It was fueled, in my opinion, by insanity. But how does Hitler’s book burning really differ from any other literary banning? He invoked fear and showed consequence to all who went against him. I do not see it as being any different. It is just another example of banning.

One can only imagine what Hitler and his followers used as criteria for which books to burn. Anything written by a Jew or any book published by a company owned by a Jew? Add to that any book with context he did not approve of. I wonder what was left in the libraries.

[Renee Stein]

I think the factors that motivate people to challenge or ban books are emotions, beliefs and lack of understanding. People challenege a book if it goes against what their where taught by their religious beliefs. They also will challenge a book if they do not like the way the book comes across on a certain topic, that leaves a bad taste in their mouth so to say. Finally people might challenge a book if they don't understand the topic or the point of view. For example a children's book titled "Daddy's Roommate" was banned because many people disagree with homosexuality.

[Julie]

Renee, I agree with your point about people's motivations to ban things. Sometimes the three are intertwined when people get so emotionally attached to their beliefs they are cut off from some forms of understanding because they limit their experiences to fit their beliefs. Biases form so strong when people keep themselves from the direct experience of the thing in question. Like on the homosexuality issue, many "homophobic" people often feel the way they do because their belief has told them that, in the case of Christianity, it is a sin. That's where their view on the issue stops. If their God says "no", so do they, even if there is biological evidence that homosexuality can be due to the chemical proportions of the person. Aside from that, our human lives are short. We ought to be entitled to love who we want without having it offend other people. I didn't know that they banned that book. That's not only a discrimination against "homosexuals", but also their children.

[Caitlin]

That is very interesting that they banned that book for those reasons. It does just go to show you that discrimination is a huge reason for banning books. Discrimination against any type whether it's females, gay, lesbian, race, religion anything that can be argued and proven unfit. I just don't understand who gets the say in what's banned? If a book bad mouths or is against gays and lesbian can a bunch of people that are gay try to get it banned? Who gets to be the judge? It just seems so wrong altogether to me.

[laura]

There are many factors that motivate people and organizations to challenge and/or ban books. For instance, people might do this because of their religion. Religion is a huge factor for people because there are many different kinds of cultures that fit their religions. So, say there is a catolic who sees his/her son/daughter reading a book pertaining to the use of condoms. They might think its going to far and that, that book is incorrect and dont want their child reading it. Another Factor is power, power over other groups of people can be very questionable. But it is out there and if they dont feel as if that book is important enough or that power might think it will open peoples minds to other things and try to revolt. I also thought this article i saw in my other class was interesting. It was off of AskMen.com and it was the top ten harsh legal systems and it relates just as there are banishments other than books. The one that stood out the most was the number 7 china. China stood out to me because im always hearing about them and how they have some crazy rules but this is just silly. Anyway it is stated:
Common crimal act: Owning a porn website
Jail sentence in ohio: None
Jail sentence in China: Life imprisonment if site has over 250,000 hits
Kind of just a tid bit of information

[Renee Stein]

I think in America we suppress the voices of minorities quite often. Majorly popular and talked about books are usually about straight, white people. Very rarely is a majorly popular book about homosexuals or people of different races. The Kite Runner is the only book I can think of that was very popular and also turned into a movie that was about people from the Middle East. And that book is still banned in some places.

[Latiesha]

true. from the standpoint of a "brown" homosexual woman it seems as though other minority groups are suppressed out of anoyance. its like we're viewed as whiny babies who use our race, gender or sexual orientation as a way to get back at them for all the wrong we've expierenced or something. that is defintaley not the case for me. i see it all the time though like with affirmative action. a friend once told me that i should be angry if i was ever hired on a job because of affirmative action. i was thrown back by this first because she was white and two because she was TELLING me how to feel about the whole thing.

in canada, their parliment formally addressed the nation and had a day where they honored their native peoples (indians) and openly apologized to them for things past that they had done to them. i am pretty sure that this definatley brought that country together. and in my opinion, canada is leaps and bounds ahead of the u.s. socially. but my point is that if there was something like that done here or real attempts at promoting eqaulity and unity, things woudnt be so bad and banning and challenging could be minimized.