Censorship In American Communities

On the other hand, censorship is a topic known for its hypocrisy in the U.S. When the U.S has laws such as the first amendment which states: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.” Many people take a strong stance on the belief of censorship being unconstitutional. Following this the majority of books that are banned contain advanced

Book censorship today in America isn’t quite as drastic as that, but still is reflecting the same concepts. I remember in junior high school when we would have banned book week. This was where the school celebrated having the right to read censored and banned books. Written word is one of the most important aspects of free speech. In no circumstance whatsoever, should any piece of writing be censored. Writing thoughts and ideas and whatever else comes into someone’s mind has been a practice of humans ever since historians know that man existed. Telling people what they can and cannot read is an invasion of not only the reader’s rights, but the author’s as well. If someone doesn’t like what an author of a piece of literature has to say then that person has a right not to read it, or better yet form their own opinion and write about that. Book banning is and ungodly practice and the people of this world should learn from the mistakes of the past and not allow the censorship of written material. The only opposition that I can find to the censorship of books would be taking the same mindset on the topic as the Nazis did when they burned all of the Jew’s books. Trying to wipe out an entire race or group of people’s ideas and beliefs should never be done anywhere for any reason.

Censorship is a concept with several different meanings. To each individual censorship has its own meaning. Is it a violation of our rights or is it a protection for our well being? Censorship in the generic sense refers to the suppression of information, ideas, or opinions. It occurs in all forms of communication from technological media to print media. Each society, culture, or individual's belief is violated by the codes of censorship that our society instills.

The subject of censorship is a very controversial one, especially the banning of books. Many people believe they must protect themselves and others from the "evils" of many classic books and works of art because they can be deemed "indecent" in one way or another. Many believe that this is absurd and censorship in its current form is a violation of our First Amendment right to free speech. Personally, I align myself with the latter, however I do feel there are occasions where censorship is justifiable. The censorship of books is a division of censorship that, apart from Internet censorship, receives the most publicity. Banning books is the most popular form of such censorship. Many banned books are literary classics, such as The Catcher in

Censorship has evolved over time in America, from TV, books, and even the internet. America has prohibited specific things from citizen’s beliefs. The role that censorship plays in America is taken from personal beliefs, such as voting for certain things to be banned from books, TV, internet, and articles. This allows and denies things that are used for public use, due to personal preferences on things that are appropriate and inappropriate for public users.

Censorship is not having a say in any written material because the government does not approve of it. In the book "Fahrenheit 451" censorship is not a good thing because people didn’t have such freedoms like that of free speech. The author Ray Bradbury wrote the story to show how important censorship is so that is way there is so many problems throughout the story. In Bradbury's novel, he uses tone in several ways to illustrate damage censorship has on society through his use of charged words, his use of historical symbols and his reflection of historical positive role models.

The American Library Association defines censorship as the removal, suppression, or restricted circulation of literary or educational materials. Censorship can be subtle, almost unseen, as well as blatant and overt, but nonetheless, harmful. The abilities to read, speak, and express ourselves freely are core values. Throughout history many different governments and people have tried to ban books for many different reasons. People attempt to ban books because the material conflicts with their own beliefs. Some people believe that a child’s parent should be the only one able to censor what a child reads. Librarians and governing bodies should maintain that parents and only parents have the right and responsibility to restrict things from their children. According to the challenges by initiator, institution, type, and year, parents challenge books more often than any other group. The subject is very controversial causing many disagreements. Some people may believe that a book is wonderful, while others believe that it’s corrupting the youth. Books are banned to protect people, mainly children, from difficult ideas and information. Nudity, drugs, religious viewpoint,

The parents of our communities tend to fall on either side of the issue, divided into pro and anti-censorship groups. The big question that everyone is asking is if a student were to open a book and read about drugs, sex, or violence will this make a child more susceptible to this kind of behavior? Our United States board of education believes so, and has installed censorship safety precautions in the literature that is available in public schools and libraries. According to the American Library Association between 1990 and 2000 6,364 challenges against books were brought to Office of Intellectual Freedom by parents, teachers, and different pro-censorship organizations. The grounds for these challenges were that the books contained sexually explicit material, offensive language, satanic references, violence, homosexuality, or promotion of a religious belief. Some books that were on this list include The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (for incessant use of the n word), The Catcher and the Rye (Depicts teenage depression, prostitution and use of the f word) and Go Ask Alice (Instances of Drug Use, sex, and suicide. People that are pro censorship argue that no books are being banned. That, in fact, you can buy those same books in many bookstores or other places. They argue that is their right, as taxpayers to decide what their children should have

Censorship is altering or blocking certain material from media, internet, and books. With the emergence of different communication technologies, this has been all-pervasive. This is most seen in television programs. There are different disputes as to whether it more harmful than beneficial .Many proponents think that the use of it will establish a balance in what is shown in T.V shows, while opponents are criticizing on the foundation of threats and violations that it poses to people’s right to speech.

Harry Potter. The Giver. To Kill A Mockingbird. And Tango Makes Three. Of Mice And Men. The Witches. The list goes on forever. These are all books that have been banned for profanity, references to the occult and witchcraft, references to drugs and alcohol, and many other reasons. Censorship could have started as early as 339 BCE in Rome, when Socrates, a renowned Greek Philosopher, was sentenced to drink poison for his corruption of youth and his acknowledgement of unorthodox divinities (Newth 1). This was what modern censorship evolved from, the punishments becoming less and less severe from the poison drinking. Censorship is the act of limiting access and knowledge of ideas and materials, enforced by a higher official. Censorship should not be a concept used in society due to lack of civil rights, limited knowledge, and how censorship affects everyone.

Ellen Hopkins, the author if of the "Crank" series for young adult readers have has hise books pulled from middle school libraries in the district of Norman, Oklahoma and was also prohibited to speak to any school in the district even the one he was invited to.

“ The Giver” by Lois Lowry has the idea of censorship “the world where there are no bad words of bad deeds. But it is also the world where choices have been taken away and reality is distorted. And that is the most dangerous world of all”(Lois Lowry). “The Giver” a fiction novel relates a lot to society because the government controls what we do just like the chief elder in the book. When you don’t have different opinions and don’t think the same that’s when a world runs properly, because

Today, censorship is in place in more ways than you can imagine. As mentioned previously, movies, music, television, and more are filtered one way or another. Some people go to such lengths as illegal means of spreading materials deemed inappropriate for a certain viewing audience.

Censorship is the practice of officially examining books, movies, or other forms of art, and suppressing pieces that are deemed unacceptable. It is used to regulate what citizens in a society are able to view in their everyday lives. Censorship is an outdated practice and is no longer necessary in a democratic society.

Public Broadcasting Service or PBS also had an interesting article that discusses the etymology of the term censorship. The term censorship comes from the, Latin Term “censure” to give one’s opinion, to assess. The article similarly discusses the definition of the word censorship by different groups. Some individuals believe censorship to be the denial of the freedom of speech or press while others believe it to be the suppression of ideas and information certain people find objectionable and dangerous. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) say that "content neutrality"-- the government cannot limit expression just because any listener, or even the majority of a community, is offended by its content. Furthermore expression may be restricted only if it will clearly cause direct and imminent harm to an important societal