Restricting the right to read is such a foreign concept to me. For years, my parents have let me explore various different genres and ideas with not that much of a leash. I've certainly never known if books were banned in my community.
But as I was researching for this blog, I noticed a few things. I had heard of a lot of books that were banned or challenged. Harry Potter. The Hunger Games. Captain Underpants, for crying out loud! If that's not age-appropriate I don't know what is. I also noticed that black female authors that I had heard of, such as Zora Neale Hurston, Maya Angelou, and Toni Morrison, ended up on the list a few times. It made me wonder if they would have received the same kind of treatment if they were white males.
I think that books are definitely dangerous... to those in power. Books contain ideas that shape beliefs and sometimes even change lives. They can inspire people to do things that maybe they wouldn't do before. They can instill passion in someone who may have been afraid before. Banning books is keeping people weak, and in fear, and unable to think for themselves. A lot of these books were banned because they started conversations. But the thing is, if we are to progress as a society, we need to start conversations. About science, or about technology. About human rights. Anything that can help us become better. If we don't know or even attempt to understand others' perspectives, every step the human race takes forward will ultimately result in another two steps back.
Great post, Taylor. I particularly like your exploration of why there seem to be a disproportionate number of black female authors on that list. I wonder if these women are more willing to deal with more indelicate and controversial topics because of the oppression they experience and the attempts to silence their voices on a day-to-day basis.
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