‭Book Censorship‬

‭‘The Lord of the Flies’, by William Golding, ‘The Great Gatsby’, by F. Scott Fitzgerald, ‘Lord of the‬
‭Rings’, by J.R.R. Tolkien, ‘The Diary of Anne Frank’, by Anne Frank, ‘Animal Farm’, by George‬
‭Orwell, and ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’, by Harper Lee. What do all of these literary classics have in‬
‭common? They’re just some of the most banned books across America. By banned, I mean taken off of‬
‭required reading lists in public schools, out of the libraries, and even out of suggested additional‬
‭materials. Each book, including certain Bible storybooks, has a unique story and a meaningful lesson‬
‭that can be learned. Despite being timeless novels enjoyed by countless people, they are being‬
‭prohibited in schools and libraries across America, but why are they getting banned? What does our‬
‭society say about it? And what does the Bible say we should do in light of all this? In the next 9 minutes,‬
‭I’ll answer all of these questions, and more.‬

‭Let’s start with the why. The book bans in America have significantly increased in recent years,‬
‭but many of the books that have been banned in the last 3 years have been more… liberal. Some of these‬
‭newly banned or challenged books deal with themes of LGBTQ+ identity, and explicit content, but the‬
‭classic books that I mentioned earlier are still getting challenged by parents all around America, and‬
‭according to PEN America,an organization which supports the freedoms to write and read, the states that‬
‭ban books the most are Texas, Missouri, Florida, South Carolina, Utah, and Pennsylvania. ‘Of Mice and‬
‭Men’, ‘Animal Farm ', and' To Kill a Mockingbird 'were all banned and challenged because they‬
‭displayed “non-traditional” values, such as going against the community. Other books, such as The‬
‭Hunger Games, have also had petitions to ban them because it teaches people to speak out against‬
‭oppressive government. ‘The Lord of the Rings’, The entire ‘Harry Potter’ series, and ‘Bridge to‬
‭Terabithia’ were banned because they affirmed the use of‬‭real‬‭witchcraft, and were “utterly satanic”, yet‬
‭these books were written by openly Christian authors, with obvious references to the gospels. ‘Gone‬
‭With the Wind' and 'The Great Gatsby’ on the other hand, were banned for inappropriate topics, and the‬
‭use of a few racial slurs. Finally, ‘The Diary of Anne Frank’ was banned not for the vivid and horrible‬
‭description of living in a nazi death camp, but for Anne’s description of her maturing body. Some‬
‭parents have even gone so far as to say that the Bible should be banned as well, because of the “explicit”‬
‭content it contains, such as speaking about alcohol, adultery, and infanticide.What has our culture come‬
‭to? Petitioning to ban a book because of an idea or a fantasy? It is my notion that we shouldn’t ban‬
‭these kinds of books, but instead encourage the next generation to read them, and help them discern‬
‭what is good and bad about the topics they read about.‬
 ‭Now that we have discussed the why, now we can discuss what society says about it. There are many‬

‭anti-censorship blogs and articles floating around the internet right now, most of them advocating for the‬

‭un-prohibiting of many LGBTQ promoting books, such as ‘Gender Queer’‬‭by Maia Kobabe, and ‘All‬

‭Boys Aren’t Blue' by George M. Johnson. But many of these advocates for anti-censorship are saying‬

‭absolutely nothing about the bans involving classic novels. The people advocating for the abolishment‬

‭of censorship are the exact same kind of people who started banning books in the first place. A little‬

‭ironic, isn’t it?‬ ‭“One of the freedoms that the Nazis crushed was the freedom to read the books‬

‭they banned. They stopped the free press, banned and burned books. The freedom to read, which‬

‭is protected by the First Amendment, is the essential right and duty of our democracy…Banning‬

‭books and burning books are the same. Both are done for the same reason: fear of knowledge”‬

‭Grace Linn, a 100 year old advocate for the unbanning of novels. She talked about the Nazis, and how‬

‭banning books and burning them are the same. Like the old saying goes, those who fail to learn history‬

‭are doomed to repeat it. The New York Post put out an article on Justine Murray, a 2021 conservative‬

‭Miss New Jersey competitor. During the question and answer portion of the pageant, she went onstage‬

‭and delivered a compelling address regarding censorship and freedom of speech. In her speech she‬

‭talked about how parents, teachers, and celebrities are teaching kids to be narcissistic, selfish people that‬

‭think any belief other than their own is a threat. They shut down and cancel any other belief than their‬

‭own, saying that what is popular is always right. This is called a bandwagon fallacy, and unfortunately,‬

‭everyone can fall into this trap. Both liberals and conservatives ban books that go against their beliefs,‬

‭so what makes one book more correct than the other? To answer that question, I must now answer the‬

‭question of, what does the Bible say in light of this?‬

‭In‬‭Philippians 4:8‬‭, Paul wrote,‬‭“‬‭Finally, brothers,‬‭whatever is true, whatever is honorable,‬

‭whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any‬
‭excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things”‬‭. This passage raises an‬
‭important question; what is worthy of praise? Throughout the entire christian Bible, it is said over and‬
‭over again that God is worthy of praise. But what does this mean regarding censorship? It means we‬
‭should be diligent about what we read, and pay attention to what the message is. Is it something‬
 ‭honorable and lovely? Does the book promote things that are pleasing to God, or things that he‬
‭despises?‬‭“Seven things that are an abomination to him… haughty eyes, a lying tongue, and hands‬
‭that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked plans, feet that make haste to run to evil, a‬
‭false witness who breathes out lies, and one that sows discord among brothers”‬‭Proverbs 6: 16-19.‬
‭The things we read, watch, and learn about should warn against acting superior towards others, lying,‬
‭murdering, and evil things. What we think about should be pure and right, yet how do we know what is‬
‭right? The bible tells us in‬‭Galatians 5:22-23‬‭,‬
‭“...the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness,‬
‭self-control; against such things there is no law.”‬‭. We need to take this into account when choosing‬
‭books to read. The impacts of most of the classic novels that I stated deliver a lesson that everyone‬
‭should learn. ‘The Hunger Games’ teaches people to stand up for what they believe in, and to not go‬
‭with the popular beliefs. ‘The Diary of Anne Frank’ shows perseverance, something that the bible‬
‭commends. ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’ displays going against the mob mentality. As christians, we should‬
‭value all of these things, as there is so much pressure on us as a community in this day and age that we‬
‭need to be able to not crumble under immense pressure and suffering. ”‬‭Not only that, but we rejoice in‬
‭our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character,‬
‭and character produces hope.”‬‭Romans 5:3-4‬‭. Find hope‬‭in everything you read, and make sure that‬
‭what you read pleases the Lord. The LGBTQ books that liberal society promotes have non-biblical‬
‭values, such as homosexuality and gender fluidity, which encourages having hearts that devise wicked‬
‭plans and feet that make haste toward evil. To conclude this point, banning books might not be the right‬
‭decision regarding what we read. I acknowledge that some books, such as ‘The Diary of Anne Frank’,‬
‭may be inappropriate for young children. Yet, these books still provide useful lessons they can fully‬
‭understand and just like someone shouldn’t let their child watch an R rated movie, such as the Passion of‬
‭the Christ, when they’re 7, that child will have the maturity to watch those kinds of movies when‬
‭they’re older. This mentality and caution can translate into books just by knowing what is in the books‬
‭and deciding if it is appropriate for you as an adult, or if you have a child, appropriate for your child.‬

‭Finally, my last question of the day, why does the bible advise us to think about pure, lovely,‬
‭commendable, honorable, and righteous things? It’s because what we think about translates into what we‬
‭do. If we think about stealing, we’re going to be tempted to actually steal something, and then eventually‬
‭steal. We are a sinful people, and thinking about righteous things helps put a wall up against temptation.‬
‭“‬‭Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial,‬‭for when he has stood the test he will‬
‭receive the crown of life‬‭.”‬‭James 1:12‬‭.‬‭In light of‬‭this, be hopeful in your trials, and diligent in what‬
‭you read, persevere through your sufferings,‬‭if you‬‭do, you will receive the crown of life. Thank you for‬
‭your consideration.‬
 ‭Works Cited‬

‭“Banned & Challenged Books.”‬‭Advocacy, Legislation & Issues‬‭, 20 Feb. 2020,‬

‭www.ala.org/advocacy/bbooks. \‬

‭Haupt, Angela.‬‭The Rise in Book Bans, Explained -‬‭The Washington Post‬‭,‬

‭www.washingtonpost.com/books/2022/06/09/rise-book-bans-explained/. Accessed 2 Jan. 2024.‬

‭“100-Year-Old Grace Linn Tells the Martin County School Board to Stop Banning Books.”‬
‭YouTube‬‭, YouTube, 24 Mar. 2023, www.youtube.com/watch?v=_CblOkaeZUg.‬

‭Salo, Jackie. “Miss New Jersey Competitor Blasts ‘Orwellian’ Campus Censorship in Fiery‬
‭Speech.”‬‭New York Post‬‭, New York Post, 22 June 2021,‬
‭nypost.com/2021/06/22/miss-new-jersey-competitor-blasts-campus-censorship/.‬

‭“Bible Gateway Passage: Philippians 4:8 - English Standard Version.”‬‭Bible Gateway‬‭,‬

‭www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Philippians+4%3A8&version=ESV. Accessed 2 Jan.‬
‭2024.‬

‭“Bible Gateway Passage: Proverbs 6:16-19 - English Standard Version.”‬‭Bible Gateway‬‭,‬

‭www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=PROVERBS+6%3A16-19&version=ESV. Accessed 2‬
‭Jan. 2024.‬

‭“Bible Gateway Passage: Galatians 5:22-23 - English Standard Version.”‬‭Bible Gateway‬‭,‬

‭www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=galatians+5%3A22-23&version=ESV. Accessed 2 Jan.‬
‭2024.‬

‭“Bible Gateway Passage: James 1:12 - English Standard Version.”‬‭Bible Gateway‬‭,‬

‭www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=James+1%3A12&version=ESV. Accessed 2 Jan. 2024.‬