Censorship
The censor on the other hand, begins with a list of or “no-no’s” and then seeks to identify whether any of these “taboo” words, subjects, themes or attitudes are present in an item. And if they are found, often even just once, then the material must not be acquired, or, if it has already been purchased, the item must be removed. For many, possibly most, censors, the concept of considering content is totally irrelevant. Jenkinson (2002, p. 22)
The most difficult form of censorship to detect is that of our own and others’ self-censorship, for it is absolutely invisible, and this silent censorship easily, and, I suspect, usually, occurs during the process of selection.
Freedom can be protected in a democratic society only if its citizens have unrestricted access to information and ideas. (2001, para 2)
When librarians do their jobs properly, they connect people with the information they want and need. Moody (2005, p. 146)
How do librarians determine if a book is age appropriate? Reading reviews, reading and assessing the books themselves, and asking for input from others in the community emerged as top answers. (2016 p, 2)
The majority of challenges originate from parents, especially in elementary schools. School administrators and teachers are the second most likely source of book challenges, followed by the students themselves. (2016 p, 3)
Social and cultural expectations and needs require today’s students at all levels of education to be critical thinkers, that they understand history and broad social movements, that become comfortable using a variety of media, and that they have access to good teaching (Callison and Tilley 1998; Chadwick-Joshua 1992; Harada et al. 2004). Without access to information, democratic institutions and societies are at risk. Participants in this study appear to have a vague understanding of this, but only a small minority seem to relate this to their social and professional responsibilities to help protect students’ intellectual freedom rights.
//ezproxy.csu.edu.au/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=lih&AN=7277053&site=ehost-live">Selection and censorship: It’s simple arithmetic. School libraries in Canada, 2(4), 22. Retrieved from http://ezproxy.csu.edu.au/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=lih&AN=7277053&site=ehost-live
What do school library specialists really know? School Library Media Research, 10. Retrieved from http://www.ala.org/aasl/sites/ala.org.aasl/files/content/aaslpubsandjournals/slr/vol10/SLMR_Censorship_V10.pdf
//web.a.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.csu.edu.au/ehost/detail?sid=c0a1a5f0-a3ea-4888-b507-0f8826668fa1%40sessionmgr4002&vid=1&hid=4209&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=lih&AN=18032663"> Covert censorship in libraries: A discussion paper. Australian Library Journal, 54(2), 138-147.
School Library Research Journal. (2016). Controversial books survey