QUOTES OF THE DAY

CONTROVERSIAL

& BANNED 

BOOKS

"We believe attempts to censor ideas to which we have access--whether in books, magazines, plays, works of art, television, movies or song--are not simply isolated instances of harassment by diverse special-interest groups. Rather they are part of a growing pattern of increasing intolerance which is changing the fabric of America. . .
 
"Censorship cannot eliminate evil. It can only kill freedom. We believe Americns have the right to buy, stores have the right to sell, authors have the right to write and publishers have the right to publish Constitutionally-protected material. Period."

 

Excerpt from a letter to 28 newspapers, signed by Ed Morrow, president, American Booksellers Assn. and Harry Hoffman, president, Walden Book Co., Inc. (1990).

*   *   *

Some Censors and Bookbanners in the United States:

      Anti-Defamation League
      Barnes and Noble, bookseller, San Diego, California
      Central Intelligence Agency (CIA)
      Christian Voters League
      Columbus Metropolitan Library
      Concerned Women for America - Beverly LaHay, president
      Drake, North Dakota - school board
      Educational Research Analysts - Mel & Norma Gabler, founders
      Graves County, Kentucky school board
      Lake Lanier Regional Library system in Gwinnett County, Georgia
      Marion High School, Foxworth, Missippi
      McCarthy, Joseph R. - U.S. Senator
      Meese Commission
      National Assn. for the Advancement of Colored Peole (NAACP)
      National Assn. of Christian Educators (Robert Simonds, founder)
      National Federation of Decency (Rev. Donald Wildmon, exec. dir.)
      National Security Agency (NSA)
      New England Watch and Ward Society
      Olathe, Kansas - school system
      Parade Magazine - national magazine
      Rafferty, Max - CA superintendent of public instruction (1963)
      Rib Lake, Wisconsin - school board
      Roberts, Cokie - ABC News Commentator
      Roman Catholic Church - Index of Prohibited Books
      Sixty Minutes, CBS News Program Feature Story on Internet
      Stahl, Leslie - 60 Minutes News Commentator
      Talmadge, Eugene - governor of Georgia (1941)
      U.S. Bureau of Customs
      U.S. Food and Drug Administration
      U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service
      U.S. Information Agency (USIA)
      U.S. Justice Department
      U.S. Postal Service
      U.S. Treasury Department
      West Marion High School in Foxworth, Mississippi by School Superintendent

*   *   *

 "I work at a library, and librarians are not fans of banning books," he said. "We believe in letting people read what they want. It is part of what makes us great as a nation."

    Bolin said when books become controversial or banned, people want to read them more.

    "When a book is banned, people think there might be something to it, especially if others hate it," he said. "It makes the book edgy and becomes even more popular."

    Bolin said it is a personal choice if parents do not want their children to read a book, but government should never get involved.

- The News . org