Forever... by Judy Blume
Young love finds itself in a boring story banned so many times it should have its own shelf in the library.
Banned
1982
Orlando, Florida
Park Hill Jr. High School, Missouri for promoting "the stranglehold of humanism on life in America"
Scranton, PA - challenged for language, "masturbation, birth control, and disobedience to parents"
1983
Akron, Ohio - challenged in school libraries
Howard-Suamico High School, Wisconsin - "it demoralizes marital sex."
1984
Cedar Rapids, Iowa - "pornography and explores areas God didn't intend to explore outside of marriage"
Holdrege, Nebraska - challenged and moved to the adult section at the public library for being "pornographic and does not promote the sanctity of life, family life."
1986
Patrick County, Virginia - placed on restricted shelf
Campbell County, Wyoming - challenged in school libraries as pornography and that it would encourage children "to experiment with sexual encounters."
1987
Moreno Valley, California - challenged at school libraries for profanity, sex, and thems that encourage disrespectful behavior
Eliot, Minnesota - challenged at a classroom library for not casting "a responsible role of parents," that the teens of today are not as sex-minded as the characters, and being pornography, creating a bad role model.
1988 - West Hernando Middle School, Florida - school principal recommended it be removed from school library as inappropriate
1992 - Herrin Junior High School, Illinois - placed on reserve to be checked out with parental permission for being "sexually provocative reading."
1993
Schaumburg, Illinois - removed from Frost Junior High School library because "it's basically a sexual 'how-to-do' book for junior high students. It glamorizes [sex] and puts ideas in their heads."
Rib Lake, Wisconsin - Superintendent found the book "sexually explicit" and filed a "request for reconsideration." The book was confiscated by the principal after being placed on the "parental permission shelf." A guidance councilor spoke out against the principal's actions, his contract was not renewed in retaliation, and a federal jury awarded him $394,560.
1994 - Mediapolis School District, Wisconsin - Removed from school libraries for not promoting abstinence or monogamy, and "lacks any aesthetic, literary, or social value." Returned a month later accessible to high school students.
1995
Gainesville, Florida - removed after a science teacher objected to the sexual content and reference to marijuana
Muncie, Indiana - moved to restricted section of high school library requiring written parental permission.
1996 - Wilton School District, Iowa - challenged for sexual content
1997 - Elgin School District U46, Illinois - banned from middle school libraries for sex. Decision upheld in 1999 and returned to shelves in 2002.
2006 - Fayetteville, Arkansas - Challenged in the Fayetteville Middle and Junior High School libraries along with more than 50 other titles as being too sexually explicit and promoting homosexuality.
Sources
Doyle, Robert P. Banned Book: Challenging Our Freedom to Read.
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"Dances and Dames"
Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
