Find, read and analyse a peer-reviewed journal article.

censorship 1

Cappel-McCoy, Gwen. (2019, 20 September). English Department, Library Staff Team Up to Read Banned Books [Image]. https://oberlinreview.org/19256/arts/english-department-library-staff-team-up-to-read-banned-books

Topic: Censorship

 

For this activity, I read and analysed a peer-reviewed journal article: Danielle E. Hartsfield & Sue C. Kimmel (2020) “Please let this be the crassest thing my child reads!”: Exploring community perceptions of challenged children’s literature, Reading Psychology, 41:5, 369-402, DOI: 10.1080/02702711.2020.1768983

 

This study looked at five titles that was banned on multiple occasions by The American Library Association (American Library Association, 2013, para. 1-20; Hartsfield & Kimmel, 2020, p. 377). A parental book club was formed to read and discuss the books. Whilst reading parents began to enjoy the books, which caused participants to change their minds, not support the ban, and strengthened parental supervision when the material was viewed as extreme (psychiatric ward, suicide).

 

 

Censorship3

American Library Association. (n.d.). Censorship by the numbers [Image]. http://www.ala.org/advocacy/sites/ala.org.advocacy/files/content/Infographic.Reasons.png

Australian Library and Information Association (2018, para. 1); Intellectual freedom for teens: a practical guide for young adult & school librarians 2015, p. 2) argue that libraries come from the understanding of intellectual freedom, the individual’s right to find information that has a free expression of ideas, refraining from excluding or censoring material. When reading this I was annoyed, that self-censorship exists, and Downey (2017, p. 125); Kennedy (2019, para. 3) state that censorship likley exists based on assumption to parents’ backlash of educator’s choice of controversial titles, religion, and political thoughts, and family views.

 

 

How was the activity relevant to your professional practice working with children and/or young adults? What gaps in your knowledge were revealed and how might you fill those gaps?

Censorship 4

Anonymous. (n.d.). [Image]. https://i2.wp.com/media.boingboing.net/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/550xNx20130917_093854-nggid03308-ngg0dyn-550x550x100-00f0w010c010r110f110r010t0101.jpg.pagespeed.ic_.E7kSwGluxk1.jpg?w=970

Previously, I had no knowledge on how books were selected for Children and Young adult (C&YA) or the argument regarding intellectual freedom in C&YA collections (American Library Association, n.d., para. 1), as I had not worked in collection management, more the person whom has shelved them. Often, I witnessed incomplete graphic novel series’, Moeller and Becnel (2020, p. 522) demonstrate this could be self-censorship based on librarians lack of awareness of the format and graphics in graphic novel collections. For C&YA accessing this collection, it could reduce the passion for reading in a library or look for information elsewhere if the graphic novel materials were incomplete.

 

 

censorship 2

Banned Books Week Celebrates “Our Right to Read” [Image]. (2017, September 22). The Authors Guild. https://www.authorsguild.org/industry-advocacy/banned-books-week-celebrates-right-read

In spite of these gaps, I would advocate for an open discussion to censoring, giving reasoning for choosing a title and how relevant it is to the collection (Hartsfield & Kimmel, 2020, pp. 395-396), produce a collections policy, stressing that C&YA will seek to find information for their pursuit of learning, it may not be what their parents condone, but what inspires their lives and their pursuit for reading (American Library Association, 2016, para. 1; Dresang, 2013, as sighted in Hartsfield & Kimmel, 2020, p. 394; Williams, 2020, p. 43). If users weren’t satisfied with material choices, they would be invited to a meeting with the children and youth librarian, followed up with community research if the material was considered offensive. Based on Fanetti (2012, p. 6); Hartsfield and Kimmel (2020, p. 397) the parent’s decision to read and make the determination if the material is best for their child, material would include caregivers. In targeting C&YA, take part in banned book week, set up a trivia event (Banned Book Week, n.d., para. 1), discuss the importance of the right to read and open discussion with them about censorship, and how it could hinder learning.

 

References

 

American Library Association. (2013, March 26). Top 10 most challenged books lists. http://www.ala.org/advocacy/bbooks/frequentlychallengedbooks/top10

 

American Library Association. (2016, December 8). How to respond to challenges and concerns about library resources. http://www.ala.org/tools/challengesupport/respond

 

American Library Association. (n.d.). Young adult library services association (YALSA). http://www.ala.org/yalsa

 

Australian Library and Information Association. (2018). Free access to information statement. https://www.alia.org.au/about-alia/policies-standards-and-guidelines/statement-free-access-information

 

Banned Book Week. (n.d.). Banned books week program kits. https://bannedbooksweek.org/resources/banned-books-week-program-kits

 

Downey, J. (2017). Public library collections in the balance: Censorship, inclusivity, and truth. ABC-CLIO, LLC.

 

Fanetti, S. (2012). A case for cultivating controversy: Teaching challenged books in k-12 classrooms. The ALAN review, 40(1). https://doi.org/10.21061/alan.v40i1.a.1

 

Hartsfield, D. E., & Kimmel, S. C. (2020). “Please let this be the crassest thing my child reads!”: exploring community perceptions of challenged children’s literature. Reading Psychology, 41(5), 369-402. https://doi.org/10.1080/02702711.2020.1768983

 

Intellectual freedom for teens: a practical guide for young adult & school librarians. (2015). (K. Fletcher-Spear & K. Tyler, Eds.). ALA Editions. https://portal.igpublish.com/iglibrary/search/ALAB0000378.html

 

Kennedy, E. (2019, July 3). Kids’ book censorship: The who and why. ThoughtCo. https://www.thoughtco.com/childrens-book-censorship-overview-626315

 

Moeller, R. A., & Becnel, K. E. (2020). “They’re so stinkin’ popular, how could you say no?” graphic novel collection development and school librarian self-censorship. The Library Quarterly, 90(4), 515-529. https://doi.org/10.1086/710262

 

Williams, R. N. (2020). Self-censorship in secondary school libraries (Publication Number 28256510) [Ed.D., Cambridge College]. ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Global. Ann Arbor. https://ezproxy.csu.edu.au/login?url=https://www.proquest.com/dissertations-theses/self-censorship-secondary-school-libraries/docview/2469515374/se-2?accountid=10344

https://primo.csu.edu.au/discovery/openurl?institution=61CSU_INST&vid=61CSU_INST:61CSU&aufirst=Renee&aulast=Williams&atitle=&title=Self-Censorship+in+Secondary+School+Libraries&volume=&date=2020&spage=&issn=

 

 

 

One comment

  1. carolinerehn371 says:
    March 30, 2021 at 7:37 am

    Good stuff Louise! Love all your great images too, that’s what I needed in mine.

    Reply

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