Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry

A Raisin in the Sun
By Lorraine Hansberry

A play of a family trying to find their way in the world and a few characters from fiction who died and caused the stories to happen.

Banned

1979 - Utah - The Ogden School District restricted circulation of the play after responding to criticism from an anti-pornography group

2004 - Illinois - Challenged as degrading to African Americans at Normal Community High School but retained

Sources

Doyle, Robert P. Banned Books: Challenging Our Freedom to Read. ALA. 2014.

"Dances and Dames" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison

Invisible Man
By Ralph Ellison

Ralph Ellison's groundbreaking story about a boy becoming a man is discussed in part and we go into characters in fiction that have no name.

Banned

1975

Pennsylvania - Excerpts banned in Butler

Wisconsin - Removed from high school reading list in St. Francis

1994 - Washington - Retained the Yakima schools after two parents raised concerns about language, violence, and sex.

2013 - North Carolina - Challenged but retained at Randolph County high school libraries for language.

Sources

Doyle, Robert P. Banned Books: Challenging Our Freedom to Read. ALA. 2014.

"Dances and Dames" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

Lord of the Flies by William Golding

Lord of the Flies
By William Golding

Our humanity is building the hope that we are better than we are.

Banned

1974 - Texas - Challenged at the Dallas Independent School District HIgh School libraries.

1981

North Carolina - Challenged at the Owen High School for "demoralizing inasmuch as it implies that man is little more than an animal."

South Dakota - Challenged at the Sully Buttes High School.

1983 - Arizona - Challenged at the Marana High School as inappropriate.

1984 - Texas - Challenged at the Olney Independent School District for "excessive violence and bad language."

1988 - Toronto, Ontario, Canada 0 Board of Education ruled on June 23, 1988 that the novel is "racist and recommended that it be removed from all schools." Parents and members of the black community complained about a reference to "niggers" in the book and said it denigrates blacks.

1992 - Iowa - Challenged in the Waterloo schools for profanity, passages about sex, and defamatory statements about minorities, God, women, and the disabled.

2000 - New York - Challenged but retained in Bloomfield on the ninth grade English reading list.

Sources

Doyle, Robert P. Banned Books: Challenging Our Freedom to Read. ALA. 2014.

"Dances and Dames" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

Animal Farm by George Orwell

Animal Farm
By George Orwell

Today we learn about the classic tale of animal rights and a few more books that were meant for adults but given to children.

Banned

1965 - Wisconsin - A Wisconsin survey revealed that the John Birch Society had challenged the novel's use, objecting to the words "masses will revolt."

1968 - New York - The New York State English Council's Committee on Defenses Against Censorship surveyed English classrooms where it was identified as a "problem book" with the reason that "Orwell was a communist."

1977 - Russia - Suppressed from being displayed at the Moscow International Book Fair.

1982 - Georgia - Objected to for it's political theories in DeKalb County during a survey period of 1979 to 1982

1987 - Florida - Banned from Bay County's middle and high schools in Panama City by the Bay County school superintendent. Forty-four parents filed a suit against the district claiming that the instructional aids policy denied constitutional rights and the book was reinstated along with sixty-four other books.

2002 - United Arab Emirates - Banned from schools along with 125 other books. The Ministry of Education banned it on the grounds that it contained written or illustrated material that contradicts Islamic and Arab values, including pictures of alcoholic drinks, pigs, and "indecent images."

Sources

Doyle, Robert P. Banned Books: Challenging Our Freedom to Read. ALA. 2014.

"Dances and Dames" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

Nineteen Eighty-Four (1984) by George Orwell

1984 (Signet Classics)
By George Orwell

The story of man who feels all is not right with the world. Then he finds out how wrong the world really is.

Banned

  • 1950 - Banned and burned in communist Russia under Stalin and USSR, ownership meant possible arrest for its anti-communist views. Allowed back in country after editing in 1990.
  • 1981 - Jackson County, Florida - challenged for being pro-communist and contained “explicit sexual content.”
  • Wrenshall, Minnesota - teacher was fired for refusing to remove it from reading list (unconfirmed)
  • 2009-10 - Amazon deleted it and Animal Farm from users kindles sparking controversy. Amazon found that the “copies” deleted had been published illegally from an independent publisher that had ignored copyright laws (1984 is under copyright until 2020) and the money spent was refunded. This was more of a recall to protect copyright than a ban or censorship case.
  • 2017 - Idaho - book is under scrutiny after being challenged by a Jefferson County parent for having "violent, sexually charged language."

Sources

Doyle, Robert P. Banned Books: Challenging Our Freedom to Read. ALA. 2014.

Bodkin, Devin. "JEFFERSON COUNTY ADMINISTRATORS CONSIDER BANNING CLASSIC NOVEL." Idaho Ed News. Retrieved September 26, 2017 from https://www.idahoednews.org/news/jefferson-county-administrators-consider-banning-classic-novel/ 

"Dances and Dames" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

Brave New World by Aldous Huxley

Brave New World
By Aldous Huxley

Welcome to the world that is brave and new with drugs and violence! What's gonna happen?

Banned

1932 - Ireland - banned in the country

1980 - Missouri - Removed from Miller classroom

1988 - Oklahoma - Challenged as required reading at Yukon High School because "the book's language and moral content"

1993 - Challenged as required reading in Corona and Norco Unified School District for being "centered around negative activity." Book retained and alternatives offered.

2000 - Alabama - Removed from Foley High School library after a parent complained to the school and Alabama Governor Don Siegelman characters showed contempt of religion, marriage, and family.

2003 - Texas - Challenged but retained in South Texas Independent School District in Mercedes for sexuality, drugs, suicide. Principals were then required to offer alternatives

2008 - Indiana - Challenged but retained in Coeur D'Alene School district for sex and drug use.

2010 - Maryland - Challenged in Glen Burnie at North County High School by a petition created by a group of parents who wanted the book removed due to sexual content.

2011 - Washington - Challenged but retained after a parent complained the book has a "high volume of racially offensive derogatory language and misinformation on Native Americans. In addition to the inaccurate imagery, and stereotype views, the text lacks literary value which is relevant to today's contemporary multicultural society."

Sources

Doyle, Robert P. Banned Books: Challenging Our Freedom to Read. 2014.

Top 100 Banned/Challenged Books: 2000-2009

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Help support the podcast on Patreon

"Dances and Dames"

Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

Snow Falling on Cedars by David Guterson

Snow Falling on Cedars
By David Guterson

Like sands through the hourglass, these are snows falling on cedars. This story is so full of racial drama and the sex!

Banned

#33 on Top 100 Banned/Challenged Books: 2000-2009

1997 - Washington - Challenged in Snohomish School District by parents who acknowledged literary value but complained about sexual content including intercourse and masturbation as well as language made it inappropriate for high school students.

1999 - Texas - Removed from classrooms and a library in Boerne Independent High School because of depictions of violence, sex, and racial bigotry; later returned

2001 - Washington - 150 South Kitsap parents claimed the book was pornography and the school board admitted it contained sexual content and profanity, banning the book. The town opposed the ban.

2003-4 - California - Challenged but retained in Modesto for sexual content and scenes of war.

2007 - Ontario, Canada - Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School Board removed the book from shelves and reading lists pending review due to an anonymous complaint via letter about sexual content and language

2007-8 - Idaho - Part of a five book challenge in Coeur d’Alene School District for sexual references

2011 - Washington - Retained in college-level classes at Richland high schools. Teachers said the book was selected for the curriculum 12 years ago because it deals with prejudice against Japanese-Americans in the Pacific Northwest during and shortly after World War II.

Sources

Top 100 Banned/Challenged Books: 2000-2009 - ALA

Banned Books Week - Snow Falling on Cedars - Mansfield Library - Youtube

David Guterson, A Brief Biography - University of Maine at Farmington

Doyle, Robert P. Banned Books: Challenging Our Freedom to Read. 2014.

Dufferin-Peel approves 'Snow Falling on Cedars' - Brampton news

Prize-winning novel pulled from school shelves - CBCNews

Snow Falling on Cedars - The Amazing Smile

Snow Falling on Cedars - imdb.com

Snow Falling on Cedars - Marshall University Libraries

Snow Falling on Cedars by David Guterson - Wikipedia

Subscribe on iTunes, Stitcher, Google Play Music, or RSS Feed

Help support the podcast on Patreon

"Dances and Dames"

Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

Beloved by Toni Morrison

Beloved
By Toni Morrison

We read an award winning book about a ghost haunting the life of an ex-slave and then talk about ghosts in the library.


Banned

1996 - Texas - Challenged but retained for violence at Round Rock Independent High School

1997 - Maine - Challenged for language at the Madawaska School District

1998 - Florida - Challenged at the Sarasota County schools for sexual content

2000 - Illinois - After a board member promised to bring Christian beliefs to board decision making at the Northwest Suburban High School District 214, a number of titles were challenged and retained. The board member had based her decisions on excerpts from the Internet.

2007

Indiana - Parents asked for parental permission for student access for five books at the Coeur d'Alene School District

Kentucky - Pulled from the senior Advanced Placement English class at Eastern High School in Louisville after two parents complained of bestiality, racism, and sex. Students had to start over with Scarlett Letter for their AP exams.

2012 - Michigan - Challenged but retained at Salem High School Advanced Placement English classes after numerous considerations of district officials including appropriate for age, accuracy of the material, objectivity of the material, and necessity of covering the material.

2013 - Virginia - Challenged at the Fairfax County schools because parent complained for beastility, gang rape, and an infant's gruesome murder

2016 - Virginia - Came into focus during legislation over whether or not parents should be notified about school materials. Excerpts of the novel were read on the state senate floor depicting the novel as a work of, as Senator Richard Black put it, "moral sewage."




"Dances and Dames"

Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/


The Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger

The Catcher in the Rye
By J.D. Salinger

Advice and ghosts are in the library as well as the classic novel about a whiny jerk going out on the town and learning that life if full of hypocrisy, even himself.


Banned

1960 - Oklahoma - Teacher was fired in Tulsa from an 11th grade English position for assigning the book. Teacher appealed and was reinstated but the book was removed from the school

1963 - Ohio - Columbus parents asked the school board to ban the novel for being "anti-white" and "obscene." The school board refused.

1975 - Pennsylvania - Removed from reading list after parents complained about the language and content. The book was reinstated after the school board vote, orginally 5-4, was deemed illegal as they required a two-thirds vote in favor to remove a text.

1977 - New Jersey - Challenged and the board ruled the book could be read in an advanced placement class with parental permission.

1978 - Washington - Issaquah school removed it from their optional reading list

1979 - Michigan - Removed from the required reading list at Middleville.

1980 - Ohio - Removed from Jackson Milton school libraries in North Jackson

1982

Alabama - Removed from Anniston High School libraries and later reinstated

Manitoba, Canada - Removed from school libraries in Morris along with two other books as they violate committee's guidelines covering "excess vulgar language, sexual scenes, things  concerning moral issues, excessive violence, and anything dealing with the occult."

1983 - Montana - Challenged at Libby High School due to the book's contents

1985 - Florida - Banned from English classes at the Freeport High School in De Funiak Springs as being "unacceptable" and "obscene"

1986 - Wyoming - Removed from Medicine Bow senior high school English reading list because of profanity and sexual references

1987 - North Dakota - Banned from a required sophomore English reading list at Napoleon High School after parents and the local Knights of Columbus chapter complained of profanity and sexual references

1988 - Indiana - Challenged at the Linton-Stockton High School as being "blasphemous and undermines morality"

1989 - California - Muroc Joint Unified School District board in Boron High School removed the book from school reading lists after parents complain the novel was unsuitable because of profanity, blasphemy and promotion of anti-family values. Local resident and religious activist Patty Salazar said she supports the board action because the novel "doesn't belong in a public high school." "It uses the Lord's name in vain 200 times," she said. "That's enough reason to ban it right there. They say it describes reality. I say let's back up from reality. Let's go backwards. Let's go back to when we didn't have an immoral society."

1991 - Illinois - Challenged at Grayslake Community High School

1992

Illinois - Challenged at the Jamaica High School in Sidell for profanity, depiction of premarital sex, alcohol abuse, and prostitution

Iowa - Challenged at Waterloo schools for profanity, lurid passages about sex, and statements defamatory to minorities, God, women, and the disabled.

Florida - Challenged at Duval County public school libraries for profanity, lurid passages about sex, and statements defamatory to minorities, God, women, and the disabled.

Pennsylvania - Challenged at the Cumberland Valley High School after parent's objections of profanity and immorality.

1993 - California - Challenged and retained at Corona Norco Unified School district because it is "centered around negative activity."

1994

Wisconsin - Challenged but retained at the New Richmond High School for use in some English classes

New Hampshire - Challenged as mandatory reading in the Goffstown schools for language and sexual content

1995 - Florida - Challenged at the St. Johns County Schools

1996 - Maine - Parent challenged over the word "fuck" ("f" word) at teh Oxford Hills High School

1997

Georgia - Challenged but retained at the Glynn Academy High School in Brunswick after a student objected to profanity and sexual content.

California - Removed by school superintendent required reading curriculum of the Marysville Joint Unified School District  to get it "out of the way so that we didn't have that polarization over a book."

1999-2000 - Georgia - Vanned and reinstated after community protests at the Windsor Forest High School in Savannah after a parent complained about the sex, violence, and profanity

2000 - Alabama - Challenged but retained at the Limestone County school district after complaints of language

2001

South Carolina - Removed by a Dorchester District 2 school board member in Summerville because it "is a filthy, filthy book."

Georgia - Challenged by a school board member for language but retained in Glynn County

2005 – Maine - Challenged, but retained as an assigned reading in the Noble High School in North Berwick.

2009 – Montana - Challenged in the Big Sky high School in Missoula

2010 - Florida - Challenged but retained in the Martin School District after a parent's complaint for language




"Dances and Dames"

Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/