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{{Short description|Book removed or banned from public and/or private usage}}
{{censorship}}

[[File:Quema de libros.jpg|thumb|200px|Chilean soldiers burn books considered politically subversive in 1973, under [[Augusto Pinochet]]'s dictatorship.]]


'''Book censorship''' is the act of some authority taking measures to suppress ideas and information within a book. [[Censorship]] is "the regulation of free speech and other forms of entrenched authority".<ref>{{cite book|title=Culture Wars in America : an Encyclopedia of Issues, Viewpoints, and Voices|isbn=978-0765683175|edition= 2nd|location=Armonk, New York|oclc=881383488|last1=Chapman|first1=Roger|last2=Ciment|first2=James|date=2014}}</ref> Censors typically identify as either a concerned parent, community members who react to a text without reading, or local or national organizations.<ref name=":1" /> Books have been censored by authoritarian dictatorships to silence dissent, such as the [[People's Republic of China]], [[Nazi Germany]] and the [[Soviet Union]]. Books are most often censored for age appropriateness, offensive language, sexual content, amongst other reasons.<ref name=":5" /> Similarly, religions may issue lists of banned books, such as the historical example of the [[Catholic Church]]'s ''[[Index Librorum Prohibitorum]]'' and bans of such books as [[Salman Rushdie|Salman Rushdie's]] ''[[The Satanic Verses]]'' by [[Ayatollah Khomeini]],<ref>Swan, John. 1991. "The Satanic Verses," the "Fatwa," and Its Aftermath: A Review Article. ''The Library Quarterly: Information, Community, Policy'' 61.4:429–443</ref> which do not always carry legal force. Censorship can be enacted at the national or subnational level as well, and can carry legal penalties. In many cases, the authors of these books could face harsh sentences, exile from the country, or even execution.
'''Book censorship''' is when a book is removed from the shelf of a library. It can be enacted at the national or subnational level, and can carry legal penalties for their infraction. Books may also be [[Challenge (literature)|challenged]] at a local, community level. As a result, books can be removed from schools or libraries, although these bans do not extend outside of that area. Similarly, religions may issue lists of banned books – a historical example being the [[Roman Catholic Church]]'s ''[[Index Librorum Prohibitorum]]'' – which do not always carry legal force.


==Background==
==Background==
"Almost every country places some restrictions on what may be published, although the emphasis and the degree of control differ from country to country and at different periods."<ref>[http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/1966/censorship-of-books/1 A.H. McLintock, An Encyclopaedia of New Zealand: ''Censorship of Books'']. Teara.govt.nz (2009-04-23). Retrieved on 2012-01-21.</ref> There are a variety of reasons for which books may be banned. Materials are often suppressed due to the perceived notion of obscenity. This obscenity can apply to materials that are about sexuality, race, drugs, or social standing.
"Almost every country places some restrictions on what may be published, although the emphasis and the degree of control differ from country to country and at different periods."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/1966/censorship-of-books/1|title=Censorship of Books |work=teara.govt.nz}}</ref> There are a variety of reasons why books may be censored. Materials are often suppressed due to the perceived notion of obscenity. This obscenity can apply to materials that are about sexuality, race, drugs, or social standing.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ala.org/bbooks/about|title=About Banned & Challenged Books|work=ala.org|date=25 October 2016}}</ref> The censorship of literature on the charge of obscenity appears to have begun in the mid-19th century.<ref>{{cite magazine |date=2016-06-21 |title=This Is What Americans Used to Consider Obscene |url=https://time.com/4373765/history-obscenity-united-states-films-miller-ulysses-roth/ |access-date=2023-04-23 |magazine=Time |language=en}}</ref> The rise of the middle class, who had evangelical backgrounds, brought about this concern with obscenity.{{citation needed|date=September 2022}} Book censorship has been happening in society for as long as they have been printed, and even before with manuscripts and codices. The use of book censorship has been a common practice throughout our history.


Governments have also sought to ban certain books which they perceive to contain material that could threaten, embarrass, or criticize them.<ref>
Governments have also sought to ban certain books which they perceive to contain material that could threaten, embarrass, or criticize them.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://onlinebooks.library.upenn.edu/banned-books.html|title=Banned Books Online|work=upenn.edu}}</ref> A well known example of this happening is [[George Orwell|George Orwell’s]] novels, [[Animal Farm]] and [[Nineteen Eighty-Four|1984]] being banned in the [[Soviet Union]] for their critique of [[Totalitarianism|Totalitarian government]], With Animal Farm being an allegory for the Russian revolution of 1917.<ref>Koga and others, Abel. “1984.” The Censorship Files, 27 Apr. 2018,</ref>
{{cite news
| first = Walter
| last = Skold
| title = Ray Bradbury Condemns Cuban Book Burning; 'Fahrenheit 451' Author Takes Stance While U.S. Librarians Ignore Counterparts
| curly = y
| url = http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=45050
| work = [[WorldNetDaily]]
| accessdate = 10 Jan 2009
| quote = Among some of the many thousands of materials burned or destroyed by the Cuban Department of Interior were books on the [[United States Constitution]], [[Martin Luther King, Jr.]], journalism manuals, a book called 'Fidel's Secret Wars,' and in one case, even a book by [[José Martí]], the Cuban hero of independence beloved by most Cubans and often quoted by Castro.}}</ref>



Other leaders outside of the government have banned books, including religious authorities.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia
Throughout history, societies practiced various forms of censorship in the belief that the community, as represented by the government, was responsible for molding the individual.<ref name=":3" /> According to Harvard Library, books have been getting banned since 1637 when the first book was recorded to be banned.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://guides.library.harvard.edu/c.php?g=1269000&p=9306840#:~:text=What%20is%20considered%20the%20first,Puritan%20customs%20and%20power%20structures.|title=Guttman-Library}}</ref>

Other leaders outside the government have banned books, including religious authorities.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia
| title = Index Librorum Prohibitorum
| title = Index Librorum Prohibitorum
| encyclopedia = Encyclopædia Britannica Online}}</ref> Church leaders who prohibit members of their faith from reading the banned books may want to shelter them from perceived obscene, immoral, or profane ideas or situations.
| encyclopedia = Encyclopædia Britannica Online}}</ref> Church leaders who prohibit members of their faith from reading the banned books may want to shelter them from perceived obscene, immoral, or profane ideas or situations or from ideas that may challenge the teaching of that religion.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=aph&AN=54091811&site=eds-live|title=USF NetID Single-SignOn |author=University of South Florida|work=usf.edu}}</ref>


But even religious materials have been subject to censorship. For example, various [[religious text|scriptures]] have been banned (and sometimes burned at several points in history). The [[Bible]], and other religious scriptures have all been subjected to censorship and have been banned by various governments. Similarly, books based on the scriptures have also been banned, such as [[Leo Tolstoy]]'s ''[[The Kingdom of God Is Within You]]'', which was banned in the [[Russian Empire]] for being [[anti-establishment]].
Religious materials have been subject to censorship as well. For example, various [[religious text|scriptures]] have been banned (and sometimes burned at several points in history). The [[Censorship of the Bible|Bible has been censored]] and even banned, as have other religious scriptures. Similarly, books based on the scriptures have also been banned, such as [[Leo Tolstoy]]'s ''[[The Kingdom of God Is Within You]]'', which was banned in the [[Russian Empire]] for being [[anti-establishment]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://sitemaker.umich.edu/globalnonviolence/files/tolstoy.pdf|title = Office of Budget and Planning}}</ref>


The banning of a book often has the effect of enticing people to [[Streisand effect|seek the book]].<ref name="npr.org" /> The action of banning the book creates an interest in the book which has the opposite effect of making the work more popular.<ref name="npr.org" />
==Book burning==
[[Book burning]] is the practice of destroying, often ceremoniously, books or other written material. It is usually carried out in public, and is generally motivated by moral, religious, or political objections to the material, with a desire to censor it.
<!--


== Methods ==
==Book censorship in religion==
[[File:Joseph_Schorer_Bücherverbrennung_1933.jpg|thumb|[[Nazi Germany]] burned works of Jewish authors, and other works considered "un-German".]]
{{See also|Censorship by religion}}


===Book burning===
-->
[[Book burning]] is the practice of destroying, often ceremonially, books or other written material. It is usually carried out in public and is generally motivated by moral, religious, or political objections to the material, with a desire to censor it. [[Book burning]] is one of the original types of censorship dating back to 213 BCE.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Biscontini |first1=Tracey Vasil |title=Protests, Riots, and Rebellions: Civil Unrest in the Modern World |last2=Edgar |first2=Kathleen J. |publisher=UXL |year=2018 |isbn=978-1410339089 |volume=1 |pages=171–202 |language=English |chapter=Free Speech}}</ref> Book burning has historically been performed in times of conflict, for example [[Nazi book burnings]], [[Library of Congress|US Library of Congress]], [[Arianism|Arian]] books, Jewish Manuscripts in 1244, and the burning of Christian texts, just to name a few.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/brief-history-book-burning-printing-press-internet-archives-180964697/|title=A Brief History of Book Burning, From the Printing Press to Internet Archives|last=Boissoneault|first=Lorraine|website=Smithsonian|language=en|access-date=2019-05-05}}</ref> In the United States, book burning is another right that is protected by the [[First Amendment to the United States Constitution|first amendment]] as a freedom of expression.<ref name=":2" />


==Banned books==
===School censorship===
In the United States, school organizations that find contents of a book to be offensive or unfit for a given age group will often have the book [[Censorship of school curricula in the United States|removed from the class curriculum]].<ref name=":2" /> This type of censorship usually arises from parental influence in schools.<ref name=":2" /> Parents who do not feel comfortable with a child's required reading will make efforts to have the book removed from a class, and replaced by another title.<ref name=":2" />

===Banned books===
{{Main|List of books banned by governments}}
{{Main|List of books banned by governments}}
[[File:Wikimedia Hackathon 2024 - Banned Books Museum 05.jpg|thumb|Banned Books Museum in Tallinn, Estonia]]
<!--
According to the Marshall University Library, a [[List of books banned by governments|banned book]] in the United States is one that has been "removed from a library, classroom, etc."<ref name=":73">{{Cite web|url=http://www.marshall.edu/library/bannedbooks/|title=Marshall University Libraries – Banned Book – 2018 Banned Books|website=www.marshall.edu|access-date=2019-04-15}}</ref> In many situations, parents or concerned parties will ban or propose a ban on a children's book based on the book's contents.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.yalsa.ala.org/thehub/2013/09/27/what-makes-a-book-ban-worthy/|title=Why Do We Ban Books, Anyway?|date=2013-09-27|website=The Hub|language=en-US|access-date=2019-04-15|archive-date=2019-04-24|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190424185754/http://www.yalsa.ala.org/thehub/2013/09/27/what-makes-a-book-ban-worthy/|url-status=dead}}</ref> The American Library Association publishes a list of the top "Banned and Challenged Books" for any given year.<ref name=":8" /> The American Library Association also organizes a "Banned Books Week", which is "an annual event celebrating the freedom to read."<ref name=":8" /> The goal of the project is to bring awareness to banned books and promote the freedom to learn.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ala.org/advocacy/bbooks/banned|title=Banned Books Week (September 22–28, 2019)|last=admin|date=2012-12-11|website=Advocacy, Legislation & Issues|language=en|access-date=2019-04-15}}</ref>
===Specific cases===
*The sale of Adolf Hitler's book ''[[Mein Kampf]]'' is banned in some countries.


In 2020, the [[Banned Books Museum]] in [[Tallinn]], [[Estonia]], was created to showcase a variety of books that have been banned in different locales.
*In 1996, Roger Garaudy published his most controversial work, ''[[The Founding Myths of Modern Israel]]]'', whose contents were translated into English in 2000 by the Institute for Historical Review. Its original French title is Les Mythes fondateurs de la politique israélienne.


===Shelf removal===
*''[[Making of a Godol|Making of a Godol: A Study of Episodes in the Lives of Great Torah Personalities]]''
Shelf removal refers to being unable to buy or borrow a book from a bookstore or library, respectively.
-->

==Book censorship by country==
====School libraries====
{{Main|Book censorship in Canada}}
According to the American Library Association, "the school library is a unique and essential part of the learning community, and when led by a qualified school librarian, prepares all learners for college, career, and life."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ala.org/news/state-americas-libraries-report-2018/school-libraries|title=School Libraries|last=JCARMICHAEL|date=2018-03-31|website=News and Press Center|language=en|access-date=2019-04-15}}</ref> In certain scenarios, concerned third parties often voice their concerns over certain titles in libraries that they deem to be unfit for students. In 1982, the Island Trees Union Free School District No. 26 versus Pico was taken to the [[Supreme Court of the United States|United States Supreme Court]].<ref name=":9" /> In the case, students and parents challenged the board's removal of certain titles from the school library.<ref name=":9" /> The books included texts which the board considered to be "anti-American, anti-Christian, anti-Semitic, and just plain filthy."<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.oif.ala.org/oif/?p=11481|title=The Pico Case – 35 Years Later|date=2017-11-07|website=Intellectual Freedom Blog|language=en-US|access-date=2019-04-23}}</ref> The Supreme Court Justices stated removal of books from libraries was only permissible if the books were considered educationally unsuitable.<ref name=":1" /><ref>{{cite book|title=School Law Update, 1986|last=Jones|first=Thomas N.|date=1986|publisher=Publication Sales|oclc=954313353}}</ref>
{{Main|Book censorship in China}}

{{Main|Book censorship in Iran}}
====Public libraries====
{{Main|Book censorship in the Republic of Ireland}}
[[Public library|Public libraries]] are considered to be open to the public within a town or community. Similar to school libraries, removal of books from public library shelves is often the subject of heavy debate. "Public schools and public libraries...have been the setting for legal battles about student access to books, removal or retention of 'offensive' material, regulation of patron behavior, and limitations on public access to the internet."<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.ala.org/advocacy/intfreedom/censorship|title=First Amendment and Censorship|last=admin|date=2008-06-13|website=Advocacy, Legislation & Issues|language=en|access-date=2019-04-15}}</ref>
{{Main|Book censorship in the United States}}

===Privishing===
Privishing is the practice by which a book publisher at the behest of governments or special interests acquires the rights to a manuscript and then sabotages the distribution and marketing of the book, usually breaching publishing contracts. Methods include cutting print runs so as to make books unprofitable, scaling back promotional efforts, delaying release so as to miss holiday seasons, cutting advertising budgets, and pressuring reviewers to be hostile. An example is [[Gerard Colby|Gerard Colby's]] 1984 ''Du Pont: Behind the Nylon Curtain'' - where the [[Du Pont family]] convened a "war counsel" to suppress the book and put pressure on publisher Prentice Hall to ensure its limited distribution and print run. With a limited print run of 10,000, the family then dispatched its own agents to buy up as many copies as possible.<ref>{{cite news |title=Privish and Perish |newspaper=Washington Post |date=October 9, 1983}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Charlotte |first1=Dennett |title=Book Industry Refines Old Suppression Tactic |work=The American Writer |issue=1 |publisher=National Writer's Union |date=March 1984|volume=3 }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |editor-last1=Borjesson |editor-first1=Kristina |title=Into the Buzzsaw |date=2002 |publisher=Promethius Books |location=Amherst, NY |isbn=1-57392-972-7 |pages=15–35}}</ref>

===University library list of offensive books===
Beginning in October 2023, [[Cambridge University]] is compiling a list of books that some consider "offensive".<ref>{{Cite news |last=Somerville |first=Ewan |date=2023-10-21 |title=University of Cambridge library ‘blacklists harmful books’ in decolonising drive |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2023/10/21/university-of-cambridge-national-library-book-blacklist/ |access-date=2024-06-13 |work=The Telegraph |language=en-GB |issn=0307-1235}}</ref> An email to faculty asked for lists of books they considered to fit in the vague category "problematic". Some faculty responses included comparing it to Nazi book bans and also labelling it "[[Nineteen Eighty-four|Orwellian]] and alarming".

== Reasons ==
Book censorship can arise for any number of reasons. Concerned parties may find certain texts to be unfit for a learning environment. Some of the most common reasons for censorship include:

* '''Offensive Language''' – Novels that contain profane or offensive language are one reason which book could be censored. Individuals who do not find the language of the book to be appropriate will seek the book to be banned or censored. ''[[Adventures of Huckleberry Finn]]'', by [[Mark Twain]], is a book that has been censored and considered controversial for over 100 years.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ala.org/advocacy/bbooks/100-most-frequently-challenged-books-1990%E2%80%931999|title=100 most frequently challenged books: 1990–1999|last=admin|date=2013-03-26|website=Advocacy, Legislation & Issues|language=en|access-date=2019-04-23}}</ref> It has been argued whether the book should be considered racist, or anti-racist, due to the use of the word "[[nigger]]" in the text. In 1982, a school administrator of Virginia called the novel the "most grotesque example of racism I've ever seen in my life".<ref>{{Cite book|title=One Hundred Years of Huck Finn|last=Brown, Robert B.|date=1984|publisher=American Heritage Publishing Co., Inc|oclc=671279626}}</ref>
* '''Age Appropriateness''' – One of the most common reasons for censorship is when a book's content does not align with the intended age of the audience. This reason is one of the more popular reasons because it is generally applied to any title a censor deems worthy of censorship.<ref name=":7" /> Many parents and concerned parties will challenge titles or hold back books from children, in hopes that they will not negatively impact an impressionable child. Common examples of this include ''[[Looking for Alaska]]'', ''I am Jazz,'' and ''[[Habibi (graphic novel)|Habibi]]'', which all were listed on the American Library associations top 10 challenged books for 2015 for age appropriateness.<ref name=":4" /> However, free speech organizations and library groups note that in practice, many books that are challenged on a basis of being inappropriate or containing sexual content are books dealing with [[LGBT]] and racially diverse characters.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Harris |first=Elizabeth A. |last2=Alter |first2=Alexandra |date=2023-06-20 |title=Authors and Students Sue Over Florida Law Driving Book Bans |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2023/06/20/books/book-bans-florida-tango-makes-three.html |access-date=2024-03-04 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref>
* '''Sexual Content''' – Many parents will find any sort of sexual interaction within literature to be a cause for action.<ref name=":7"/> Concerned parties worry that reading books about sex will cause the reader to "think about, express interest in, or have sex."<ref name=":7"/> In 2013, the American Library Association ranked ''[[Fifty Shades of Grey|50 Shades of Grey]]'' as number 4 on the annual study of challenged books for its graphic sexual content.<ref name=":4" /> In addition, ''[[The Country Girls]],'' by [[Edna O'Brien]], was banned by Ireland's censorship board in 1960 for the book's explicit sexual content.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.irishtimes.com/news/warm-welcome-home-for-o-brien-1.631349|title=Warm welcome home for O'Brien|last=Deegan|first=Gordon|newspaper=The Irish Times|language=en|access-date=2019-05-02}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.irishexaminer.com/viewpoints/columnists/ryle-dwyer/there-was-some-truth-in-paisleys-tirades-against-our-priestly-republic-127774.html|title=There was some truth in Paisley's tirades against our priestly republic|date=2010-08-14|website=www.irishexaminer.com|access-date=2019-05-02}}</ref>
* '''Other''':<ref name=":5" />
** Religious Affiliation – A title can be censored due to a religious affiliation, if a concerned party views the book as religiously charged, or a certain religious group deems the book to be anti-religious.<ref name=":6" /> ''[[On the Origin of Species]],'' by [[Charles Darwin]], has been surpassed and challenged since publication in 1859 due to its discussion of the theory of Evolution.<ref name=":6" /> [[Bible|The Bible]] has also been censored all over the world, including Spanish versions of The Bible being banned in Spain from the sixteenth to the nineteenth century.<ref>{{cite book|title=The Bible in Spain Or, the Journeys, Adventures, and Imprisonments of an Englishman in an Attempt to Circulate the Scriptures in the Peninsula.|last=Borrow|first = George Henry|year=1894|oclc=971378940}}</ref>
** Witchcraft – When a book uses magic or witchcraft. ''[[Harry Potter]],'' by [[J. K. Rowling|J.K. Rowling]], was the #1 most challenged book series in 2001 and 2002, for the use of witchcraft, and for being satanic, according to the American Library Association.<ref name=":4" />
** Violence or Negativity – These books are censored due to violent and graphic scenes, or are considered to be damaging for readers. In Australia, ''How to Make Disposable Silencers,'' by Desert and Eliezer Flores was banned after being considered to "promote, incite, or instruct in matters of crime or violence".<ref>{{cite web |last1=Nitschke |first1=Philip |last2=Stewart |first2=Fiona |date=November 22, 2009 |title=Peaceful Pill Handbook - Reasons for Decision |url=http://www.oflc.gov.au/www/cob/rwpattach.nsf/VAP/(084A3429FD57AC0744737F8EA134BACB)~989+-+Decision+7+February+2007+-+The+Peaceful+Pill+Handbook.pdf/$file/989+-+Decision+7+February+2007+-+The+Peaceful+Pill+Handbook.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091122231022/http://www.oflc.gov.au/www/cob/rwpattach.nsf/VAP/(084A3429FD57AC0744737F8EA134BACB)~989+-+Decision+7+February+2007+-+The+Peaceful+Pill+Handbook.pdf/$file/989+-+Decision+7+February+2007+-+The+Peaceful+Pill+Handbook.pdf |archive-date=November 22, 2009 |access-date=March 24, 2022 |website=Wayback Machine}}</ref> In France, ''Suicide mode d'emploi,'' by Claude Guillon, which reviews recipes for suicide, was banned and resulted in a law to be made which prohibits provocation to commit suicide and propaganda or advertisement of products, objects, or methods for committing suicide.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/jo_pdf.do?numJO=0&dateJO=19880101&numTexte=&pageDebut=00013&pageFin=|title=Fac-similé JO du 01/01/1988, page 00013 {{!}} Legifrance|website=www.legifrance.gouv.fr|access-date=2019-05-02}}</ref>
** Racial Issues – Novels which promote stories of racism or encouraging racism towards a group of people. ''[[Adventures of Huckleberry Finn]],'' as well as ''[[To Kill a Mockingbird]],'' by [[Harper Lee]], have been censored for many years due to the use of racial slurs within the texts.<ref>{{Cite magazine|url=https://time.com/5138752/mockingbird-huckleberry-finn-racial-slurs-racism/|title=U.S. School District Removes Books Over Racial Slurs|magazine=Time|language=en|access-date=2019-04-23}}</ref>
**Political Influence – Occurs when a book is considered by a censor to be politically motivated, or a censor has a certain political motivation for censorship. In 1958, the Irish Censorship of Publications Board banned the book ''Borstal Boy'' because of critiques of [[Irish republicanism]], social attitudes and the [[Catholic Church]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.banned-books.org.uk/sections/wrong|title=Banned Books {{!}} Just wrong|website=www.banned-books.org.uk|access-date=2019-04-29}}</ref> ''[[Areopagitica]]'', by [[John Milton]], was banned in the [[Kingdom of England]] for the philosophical defenses of the right to [[freedom of speech]] and expression.<ref>{{cite book|title=100 Banned Books|url=https://archive.org/details/100bannedbooksce00karo|url-access=limited|last=Karolides|publisher=Checkmark Books|year=1999|isbn=0816040591|pages=[https://archive.org/details/100bannedbooksce00karo/page/20 20]–22}}</ref>
**LGBTQ+ Content – Censorship happens when authors will include [[LGBT|LGBTQ+]] characters and themes in their novels. ''[[Drama (graphic novel)|Drama]],'' by [[Raina Telgemeier]], has been one of the top 10 most challenged books for the last three years for the use of LGBTQ+ characters, according to the American Library Association.<ref name=":4" /> ''[[The Well of Loneliness]],'' by [[Radclyffe Hall]], was banned in the UK from 1928 to 1949 for the lesbian themes the book presents.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2005/jan/02/books.gayrights|title=Lesbian novel was 'danger to nation'|last=Smith|first=David|date=2005-01-02|work=The Observer|access-date=2019-05-02|language=en-GB|issn=0029-7712}}</ref>
**Religious Authority – Censorship occurs when the predominant religions actively suppress and destroy books with opposing views or ideologies that go against specific religious teachings. Historically, this form of censorship has been seen with the purging of Pagan books, the burning of Islamic libraries during the Crusades, and the destruction of Mayan history from the Aztecs and, later, the Spanish colonizers.

== International book censorship ==

=== Nazi-Era Germany ===
{{Cleanup rewrite||section|date=October 2022}}
During the [[World War II|Second World War]], the [[German Nazi Party|German Nazi party]] hosted frequent book burnings following seizures of property belonging non-Nazi Germans. The burnings were organized along with the efforts of an all-powerful Aryan Race that were being instated in the government by [[Joseph Goebbels]]; the Nazi Minister for Popular Enlightenment and Propaganda.<ref name=":0" /> These events were seen as a symbolic cleanse for the German people, ridding their country and Aryan identity of anything that was 'un-German' in its ideals.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Merveldt|first=Nikola von|date=2007-04-12|title=Books Cannot Be Killed by Fire: The German Freedom Library and the American Library of Nazi-Banned Books as Agents of Cultural Memory|url=https://muse.jhu.edu/article/213118|journal=Library Trends|language=en|volume=55|issue=3|pages=523–535|doi=10.1353/lib.2007.0026|issn=1559-0682|hdl=2142/3723|s2cid=39301623|hdl-access=free}}</ref> The materials included in the burning were not limited to works made within the Weimar Republic of the time, and the blacklist being followed reached to American authors as well as socialist and communist works. Ultimately, the blacklist for book burnings was focused on any content that would threaten the totality of Nazi power in Germany. More than anything else, these book burnings were aiming to remove Jewish cultural influences in Germany, at the order of the rising Nazi regime.<ref name=":0" />

=== Ireland's Censorship of Publications Act of 1929 ===
Ireland's relationship with censorship was connected to the passing of the Censorship of Publications Act in 1929 as a result of an all-encompassing effort on the part of the [[Catholic Action]]s groups.<ref name=":10" /> The 1929 act would not be repealed until 1967. For the 38 years before the act was repealed, the status of Irish works was left completely at the whim of members of the [[Catholic Church]]. In accordance to the act, the censorship board put into place would be composed of a member of the [[Catholic Truth Society of Ireland]] (CTSI) or a Knight of St. Columbanus as well as three additional Catholics and a final Protestant.<ref name=":10" /> This congregation were tasked with deciding whether or not a work had any tendency towards the "indecent or obscene".<ref name=":10" /> For a work to be prohibited there was a required four-to-one majority following an intense analysis of the work for any potentially problematic content.<ref name=":10" /> Works that were deemed too provocative would be banned by the deciding board.

=== Apartheid Regime of South Africa ===
The nearly 50-year period of [[Apartheid]] in South Africa, under influence of the severe policies of [[racial segregation]], silenced the voices of many who were critical of the government. The censorship of such writings was legalized under the institution of the 1950 Suppression of Communism Act. This act was the government's tool to refute any anti-government propaganda being released against the Apartheid, allowing the works of any person who had left the country or who was considered to have acted against the state to be prohibited entirely.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Vlies|first=Andrew van der|date=2007-11-01|title=Reading Banned Books|journal=Wasafiri|volume=22|issue=3|pages=55–61|doi=10.1080/02690050701565810|s2cid=219609182|issn=0269-0055}}</ref> Banned people were marked with a Communist label, making it clear that no works being produced on their behalf were to be consumed by a South African Citizen.

It was not until the early 1990s, the [[Government of South Africa|South African Government]] began a process of evaluating the banned materials looking to decide if certain works should still be considered prohibited in the country. This evaluation led to much of the considerations for prohibited materials to become limited to explicit topics instead of politically driven messaging.<ref name=":11" /> Though some materials remained undesirable following this reevaluation, there were major publications that were then allowed to be distributed in South Africa. Especially notable was the country's growing openness to various works of political thinkers such as [[Nelson Mandela]], [[Karl Marx]] and [[Vladimir Lenin]].<ref name=":11" /> Credit for this new perspective can be offered towards an increasingly liberal political climate coming into place during the early 1990s.

=== Ukraine ban on Russian Books ===
On December 30, 2016, President [[Petro Poroshenko]] of Ukraine signed into law a decree that restricts import of books into Ukraine from Russia. According to the law, a person can bring at most 10 Russian books without a permit. Unauthorized distribution of books from Russia is under a penalty. The State Committee for Television and Radio-broadcasting, whose duties include enforcing the information policy in Ukraine, is set in charge of book permits and is to issue bans on books deemed inappropriate which come "from territory of the aggressor state and from the temporarily occupied territory of Ukraine". Types of printed matter which require permits include books, brochures, children's books including coloring books, as well as maps, atlases, globes, etc. Each permit is to be entered into the special state register and is valid for at most five years. Bans are based on evaluations by a council of experts and may be contested.

==Challenged books==
[[File:Banned books graph.JPG|thumb|This graph shows the number of book challenges from 2000 to 2005 and the most popular reasons for the challenges.]]
{{Main|List of most commonly challenged books in the United States}}

==By country==
{{Main|Lists of banned books}}
{{See also|Book censorship in Canada|Book censorship in China|Book censorship in Iran|Book censorship in the Republic of Ireland|Book censorship in the United States}}


==See also==
==See also==
*[[Imprimatur]]
*[[List of authors and works on the Index Librorum Prohibitorum]]
*[[Burning of books and burying of scholars]]
*[[Burning of books and burying of scholars]]
*[[Where they burn books, they will in the end also burn people]]
*[[List of authors and works on the Index Librorum Prohibitorum]]
*[[Freedom of the press]]
*[[Nazi book burnings]]
*[[Expurgation|Bowdlerization]]


==References==
==References==
{{reflist|refs=
{{Reflist|2}}


<ref name=":0">{{cite web |url=https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/content/en/article/book-burning |title=Book Burning |website=encyclopedia.ushmm.org |language=en |access-date=2020-02-20}}</ref>

<ref name=":1">{{cite web |url=https://www.ericdigests.org/pre-9215/library.htm |title=The Right To Read: Censorship in the School Library. ERIC Digest. |website=www.ericdigests.org |language=en |access-date=2019-04-15}}</ref>

<ref name=":2">{{cite web |url=https://ncac.org/resource/the-first-amendment-in-schools-censorship |title=The First Amendment in Schools: Censorship |last=Staff |first=NCAC |website=National Coalition Against Censorship |language=en-US |access-date=2019-04-17}}</ref>

<ref name=":3">{{cite web |url=https://galeapps.gale.com/apps/auth?userGroupName=&sid=GVRL&origURL=https%3A%2F%2Fgo.gale.com%2Fps%2Fi.do%3Fp%3DGVRL%26u%3D%26id%3DGALE%257CCX1941000018%26v%3D2.1%26it%3Dr%26sid%3DGVRL%26asid%3Dc7026386&prodId=GVRL |title=Gale-Institution Finder |website=galeapps.gale.com}}</ref>

<ref name=":4">{{cite web |url=http://www.ala.org/advocacy/bbooks/frequentlychallengedbooks/top10 |title=Top Ten Most Challenged Books Lists |last=admin |date=2013-03-26 |website=Advocacy, Legislation & Issues |language=en |access-date=2019-04-17}}</ref>

<ref name=":5">{{cite web |url=http://libguides.butler.edu/bannedbooks?p=217686 |title=LibGuides: Banned Books: Reasons for Banning Books |last=Commons |first=Information |website=libguides.butler.edu |language=en |access-date=2019-04-17}}</ref>

<ref name=":6">{{cite book |title=Literature suppressed on religious grounds |last=Bald, Margaret. |date=2006 |publisher=Facts On File |others=Wachsberger, Ken. |isbn=0816062692 |edition= Rev. |location=New York |oclc=62090850}}</ref>

<ref name=":7">{{cite web |url=https://www.powells.com/post/lists/the-big-five-why-books-are-banned |title=The Big Five: Why Books Are Banned by Powell's Books |website=www.powells.com |language=en-US |access-date=2019-04-17}}</ref>

<ref name=":8">{{cite web |url=http://www.ala.org/aboutala/ |title=About ALA |website=About ALA |language=en |access-date=2019-04-15}}</ref>

<ref name=":9">{{cite web |url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/Board-of-Education-Island-Trees-Union-Free-School-District-No-26-v-Pico |title=Board of Education, Island Trees Union Free School District No. 26 v. Pico {{!}} law case |website=Encyclopedia Britannica |language=en |access-date=2019-04-23}}</ref>

<ref name=":10">{{cite journal |last=Drisceoil |first=Donal Ó |date=2005 |title='The best banned in the land': Censorship and Irish Writing since 1950 |journal=The Yearbook of English Studies |volume=35 |pages=146–160 |doi=10.1353/yes.2005.0042 |jstor=3509330|s2cid=159880279 |issn=0306-2473|hdl=10468/733 |hdl-access=free }}</ref>

<ref name=":11">{{cite news |last1=Wren |first1=Christopher S. |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1990/07/23/world/south-africa-easing-up-on-its-political-censorship-of-books.html |title=South Africa Easing Up on Its Political Censorship of Books |date=1990-07-23 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |access-date=2020-02-20}}</ref>

<ref name="npr.org">{{cite web |url=https://www.npr.org/2013/09/20/224427254/could-banning-books-actually-encourage-more-readers |title=Could Banning Books Actually Encourage More Readers? |date=20 September 2013 |work=NPR.org}}</ref>

}}
==Further reading==
==Further reading==
*[[Bauer, Stefan]] (2006). ''The Censorship and Fortuna of Platina's Lives of the Popes in the Sixteenth Century''. {{ISBN|978-2-503-51814-5}}.
*{{Cite book
*{{Cite book
| edition = 3d ed.
| edition = 3d
| publisher = R.R. Bowker
| publisher = R.R. Bowker
| isbn = 978-0-8352-0204-6
| isbn = 978-0-8352-0204-6
| last = Haight
| last = Haight
| first = Anne
| first = Anne
| title = Banned books informal notes on some books banned for various reasons at various times and in various places.
| title = Banned books informal notes on some books banned for various reasons at various times and in various places.
| location = New York
| location = New York
| date = 1970
| year = 1970
| url-access = registration
| url = https://archive.org/details/bannedbooksinfor00haig
}}
}}
* Clegg, Cynthia S. (2001). ''Press censorship in Jacobean England.'' Cambridge University Press.
* Craig, Alec. 1962. ''The Banned Books of England and Other Countries.'' London: George Allen & Unwin.
*Davis, KC. “The Lady Goes to Court: Paperbacks and Censorship (Reprinted from ''Two-Bit Culture: The Paperbacking of America'', 1984).” ''Publishing Research Quarterly'' 11, no. 4 (1996): 9–32.
* Edwards, M. J. (2017). Christianity, Book-Burning and Censorship in Late Antiquity. ''The Journal Of Ecclesiastical History'', 68(4), 825–827.
* Neilson, W. A. (1930). Is Official Censorship of Books Desirable? CON. ''Congressional Digest'', 9(2), 56–57.
* [[Robert Darnton]] ''Censors at Work: How States Shaped Literature'' W. W. Norton & Company, 2014 {{ISBN|0393242293}}
* Rohmann, Dirk. (2016). "Christianity, Book-Burning and Censorship" in ''Late Antiquity: Studies in Text Transmission.'' Vol. 135. De Gruyter.

==External links==
* [https://bannedbooks.indiana.edu/ bannedbooks.indiana.edu]
{{Commons category|Book censorship}}


{{Media manipulation|state=collapsed}}
{{Media manipulation|state=collapsed}}
{{censorship}}
{{Books}}
{{Authority control}}


[[Category:Book censorship| ]]
[[Category:Book censorship| ]]
[[Category:Textual scholarship]]

[[la:Censura librorum]]
[[fi:Kielletyt kirjat]]

Latest revision as of 03:41, 17 November 2024

Chilean soldiers burn books considered politically subversive in 1973, under Augusto Pinochet's dictatorship.

Book censorship is the act of some authority taking measures to suppress ideas and information within a book. Censorship is "the regulation of free speech and other forms of entrenched authority".[1] Censors typically identify as either a concerned parent, community members who react to a text without reading, or local or national organizations.[2] Books have been censored by authoritarian dictatorships to silence dissent, such as the People's Republic of China, Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union. Books are most often censored for age appropriateness, offensive language, sexual content, amongst other reasons.[3] Similarly, religions may issue lists of banned books, such as the historical example of the Catholic Church's Index Librorum Prohibitorum and bans of such books as Salman Rushdie's The Satanic Verses by Ayatollah Khomeini,[4] which do not always carry legal force. Censorship can be enacted at the national or subnational level as well, and can carry legal penalties. In many cases, the authors of these books could face harsh sentences, exile from the country, or even execution.

Background

[edit]

"Almost every country places some restrictions on what may be published, although the emphasis and the degree of control differ from country to country and at different periods."[5] There are a variety of reasons why books may be censored. Materials are often suppressed due to the perceived notion of obscenity. This obscenity can apply to materials that are about sexuality, race, drugs, or social standing.[6] The censorship of literature on the charge of obscenity appears to have begun in the mid-19th century.[7] The rise of the middle class, who had evangelical backgrounds, brought about this concern with obscenity.[citation needed] Book censorship has been happening in society for as long as they have been printed, and even before with manuscripts and codices. The use of book censorship has been a common practice throughout our history.

Governments have also sought to ban certain books which they perceive to contain material that could threaten, embarrass, or criticize them.[8] A well known example of this happening is George Orwell’s novels, Animal Farm and 1984 being banned in the Soviet Union for their critique of Totalitarian government, With Animal Farm being an allegory for the Russian revolution of 1917.[9]


Throughout history, societies practiced various forms of censorship in the belief that the community, as represented by the government, was responsible for molding the individual.[10] According to Harvard Library, books have been getting banned since 1637 when the first book was recorded to be banned.[11]

Other leaders outside the government have banned books, including religious authorities.[12] Church leaders who prohibit members of their faith from reading the banned books may want to shelter them from perceived obscene, immoral, or profane ideas or situations or from ideas that may challenge the teaching of that religion.[13]

Religious materials have been subject to censorship as well. For example, various scriptures have been banned (and sometimes burned at several points in history). The Bible has been censored and even banned, as have other religious scriptures. Similarly, books based on the scriptures have also been banned, such as Leo Tolstoy's The Kingdom of God Is Within You, which was banned in the Russian Empire for being anti-establishment.[14]

The banning of a book often has the effect of enticing people to seek the book.[15] The action of banning the book creates an interest in the book which has the opposite effect of making the work more popular.[15]

Methods

[edit]
Nazi Germany burned works of Jewish authors, and other works considered "un-German".

Book burning

[edit]

Book burning is the practice of destroying, often ceremonially, books or other written material. It is usually carried out in public and is generally motivated by moral, religious, or political objections to the material, with a desire to censor it. Book burning is one of the original types of censorship dating back to 213 BCE.[16] Book burning has historically been performed in times of conflict, for example Nazi book burnings, US Library of Congress, Arian books, Jewish Manuscripts in 1244, and the burning of Christian texts, just to name a few.[17] In the United States, book burning is another right that is protected by the first amendment as a freedom of expression.[18]

School censorship

[edit]

In the United States, school organizations that find contents of a book to be offensive or unfit for a given age group will often have the book removed from the class curriculum.[18] This type of censorship usually arises from parental influence in schools.[18] Parents who do not feel comfortable with a child's required reading will make efforts to have the book removed from a class, and replaced by another title.[18]

Banned books

[edit]
Banned Books Museum in Tallinn, Estonia

According to the Marshall University Library, a banned book in the United States is one that has been "removed from a library, classroom, etc."[19] In many situations, parents or concerned parties will ban or propose a ban on a children's book based on the book's contents.[20] The American Library Association publishes a list of the top "Banned and Challenged Books" for any given year.[21] The American Library Association also organizes a "Banned Books Week", which is "an annual event celebrating the freedom to read."[21] The goal of the project is to bring awareness to banned books and promote the freedom to learn.[22]

In 2020, the Banned Books Museum in Tallinn, Estonia, was created to showcase a variety of books that have been banned in different locales.

Shelf removal

[edit]

Shelf removal refers to being unable to buy or borrow a book from a bookstore or library, respectively.

School libraries

[edit]

According to the American Library Association, "the school library is a unique and essential part of the learning community, and when led by a qualified school librarian, prepares all learners for college, career, and life."[23] In certain scenarios, concerned third parties often voice their concerns over certain titles in libraries that they deem to be unfit for students. In 1982, the Island Trees Union Free School District No. 26 versus Pico was taken to the United States Supreme Court.[24] In the case, students and parents challenged the board's removal of certain titles from the school library.[24] The books included texts which the board considered to be "anti-American, anti-Christian, anti-Semitic, and just plain filthy."[25] The Supreme Court Justices stated removal of books from libraries was only permissible if the books were considered educationally unsuitable.[2][26]

Public libraries

[edit]

Public libraries are considered to be open to the public within a town or community. Similar to school libraries, removal of books from public library shelves is often the subject of heavy debate. "Public schools and public libraries...have been the setting for legal battles about student access to books, removal or retention of 'offensive' material, regulation of patron behavior, and limitations on public access to the internet."[27]

Privishing

[edit]

Privishing is the practice by which a book publisher at the behest of governments or special interests acquires the rights to a manuscript and then sabotages the distribution and marketing of the book, usually breaching publishing contracts. Methods include cutting print runs so as to make books unprofitable, scaling back promotional efforts, delaying release so as to miss holiday seasons, cutting advertising budgets, and pressuring reviewers to be hostile. An example is Gerard Colby's 1984 Du Pont: Behind the Nylon Curtain - where the Du Pont family convened a "war counsel" to suppress the book and put pressure on publisher Prentice Hall to ensure its limited distribution and print run. With a limited print run of 10,000, the family then dispatched its own agents to buy up as many copies as possible.[28][29][30]

University library list of offensive books

[edit]

Beginning in October 2023, Cambridge University is compiling a list of books that some consider "offensive".[31] An email to faculty asked for lists of books they considered to fit in the vague category "problematic". Some faculty responses included comparing it to Nazi book bans and also labelling it "Orwellian and alarming".

Reasons

[edit]

Book censorship can arise for any number of reasons. Concerned parties may find certain texts to be unfit for a learning environment. Some of the most common reasons for censorship include:

  • Offensive Language – Novels that contain profane or offensive language are one reason which book could be censored. Individuals who do not find the language of the book to be appropriate will seek the book to be banned or censored. Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, by Mark Twain, is a book that has been censored and considered controversial for over 100 years.[32] It has been argued whether the book should be considered racist, or anti-racist, due to the use of the word "nigger" in the text. In 1982, a school administrator of Virginia called the novel the "most grotesque example of racism I've ever seen in my life".[33]
  • Age Appropriateness – One of the most common reasons for censorship is when a book's content does not align with the intended age of the audience. This reason is one of the more popular reasons because it is generally applied to any title a censor deems worthy of censorship.[34] Many parents and concerned parties will challenge titles or hold back books from children, in hopes that they will not negatively impact an impressionable child. Common examples of this include Looking for Alaska, I am Jazz, and Habibi, which all were listed on the American Library associations top 10 challenged books for 2015 for age appropriateness.[35] However, free speech organizations and library groups note that in practice, many books that are challenged on a basis of being inappropriate or containing sexual content are books dealing with LGBT and racially diverse characters.[36]
  • Sexual Content – Many parents will find any sort of sexual interaction within literature to be a cause for action.[34] Concerned parties worry that reading books about sex will cause the reader to "think about, express interest in, or have sex."[34] In 2013, the American Library Association ranked 50 Shades of Grey as number 4 on the annual study of challenged books for its graphic sexual content.[35] In addition, The Country Girls, by Edna O'Brien, was banned by Ireland's censorship board in 1960 for the book's explicit sexual content.[37][38]
  • Other:[3]
    • Religious Affiliation – A title can be censored due to a religious affiliation, if a concerned party views the book as religiously charged, or a certain religious group deems the book to be anti-religious.[39] On the Origin of Species, by Charles Darwin, has been surpassed and challenged since publication in 1859 due to its discussion of the theory of Evolution.[39] The Bible has also been censored all over the world, including Spanish versions of The Bible being banned in Spain from the sixteenth to the nineteenth century.[40]
    • Witchcraft – When a book uses magic or witchcraft. Harry Potter, by J.K. Rowling, was the #1 most challenged book series in 2001 and 2002, for the use of witchcraft, and for being satanic, according to the American Library Association.[35]
    • Violence or Negativity – These books are censored due to violent and graphic scenes, or are considered to be damaging for readers. In Australia, How to Make Disposable Silencers, by Desert and Eliezer Flores was banned after being considered to "promote, incite, or instruct in matters of crime or violence".[41] In France, Suicide mode d'emploi, by Claude Guillon, which reviews recipes for suicide, was banned and resulted in a law to be made which prohibits provocation to commit suicide and propaganda or advertisement of products, objects, or methods for committing suicide.[42]
    • Racial Issues – Novels which promote stories of racism or encouraging racism towards a group of people. Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, as well as To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee, have been censored for many years due to the use of racial slurs within the texts.[43]
    • Political Influence – Occurs when a book is considered by a censor to be politically motivated, or a censor has a certain political motivation for censorship. In 1958, the Irish Censorship of Publications Board banned the book Borstal Boy because of critiques of Irish republicanism, social attitudes and the Catholic Church.[44] Areopagitica, by John Milton, was banned in the Kingdom of England for the philosophical defenses of the right to freedom of speech and expression.[45]
    • LGBTQ+ Content – Censorship happens when authors will include LGBTQ+ characters and themes in their novels. Drama, by Raina Telgemeier, has been one of the top 10 most challenged books for the last three years for the use of LGBTQ+ characters, according to the American Library Association.[35] The Well of Loneliness, by Radclyffe Hall, was banned in the UK from 1928 to 1949 for the lesbian themes the book presents.[46]
    • Religious Authority – Censorship occurs when the predominant religions actively suppress and destroy books with opposing views or ideologies that go against specific religious teachings. Historically, this form of censorship has been seen with the purging of Pagan books, the burning of Islamic libraries during the Crusades, and the destruction of Mayan history from the Aztecs and, later, the Spanish colonizers.

International book censorship

[edit]

Nazi-Era Germany

[edit]

During the Second World War, the German Nazi party hosted frequent book burnings following seizures of property belonging non-Nazi Germans. The burnings were organized along with the efforts of an all-powerful Aryan Race that were being instated in the government by Joseph Goebbels; the Nazi Minister for Popular Enlightenment and Propaganda.[47] These events were seen as a symbolic cleanse for the German people, ridding their country and Aryan identity of anything that was 'un-German' in its ideals.[48] The materials included in the burning were not limited to works made within the Weimar Republic of the time, and the blacklist being followed reached to American authors as well as socialist and communist works. Ultimately, the blacklist for book burnings was focused on any content that would threaten the totality of Nazi power in Germany. More than anything else, these book burnings were aiming to remove Jewish cultural influences in Germany, at the order of the rising Nazi regime.[47]

Ireland's Censorship of Publications Act of 1929

[edit]

Ireland's relationship with censorship was connected to the passing of the Censorship of Publications Act in 1929 as a result of an all-encompassing effort on the part of the Catholic Actions groups.[49] The 1929 act would not be repealed until 1967. For the 38 years before the act was repealed, the status of Irish works was left completely at the whim of members of the Catholic Church. In accordance to the act, the censorship board put into place would be composed of a member of the Catholic Truth Society of Ireland (CTSI) or a Knight of St. Columbanus as well as three additional Catholics and a final Protestant.[49] This congregation were tasked with deciding whether or not a work had any tendency towards the "indecent or obscene".[49] For a work to be prohibited there was a required four-to-one majority following an intense analysis of the work for any potentially problematic content.[49] Works that were deemed too provocative would be banned by the deciding board.

Apartheid Regime of South Africa

[edit]

The nearly 50-year period of Apartheid in South Africa, under influence of the severe policies of racial segregation, silenced the voices of many who were critical of the government. The censorship of such writings was legalized under the institution of the 1950 Suppression of Communism Act. This act was the government's tool to refute any anti-government propaganda being released against the Apartheid, allowing the works of any person who had left the country or who was considered to have acted against the state to be prohibited entirely.[50] Banned people were marked with a Communist label, making it clear that no works being produced on their behalf were to be consumed by a South African Citizen.

It was not until the early 1990s, the South African Government began a process of evaluating the banned materials looking to decide if certain works should still be considered prohibited in the country. This evaluation led to much of the considerations for prohibited materials to become limited to explicit topics instead of politically driven messaging.[51] Though some materials remained undesirable following this reevaluation, there were major publications that were then allowed to be distributed in South Africa. Especially notable was the country's growing openness to various works of political thinkers such as Nelson Mandela, Karl Marx and Vladimir Lenin.[51] Credit for this new perspective can be offered towards an increasingly liberal political climate coming into place during the early 1990s.

Ukraine ban on Russian Books

[edit]

On December 30, 2016, President Petro Poroshenko of Ukraine signed into law a decree that restricts import of books into Ukraine from Russia. According to the law, a person can bring at most 10 Russian books without a permit. Unauthorized distribution of books from Russia is under a penalty. The State Committee for Television and Radio-broadcasting, whose duties include enforcing the information policy in Ukraine, is set in charge of book permits and is to issue bans on books deemed inappropriate which come "from territory of the aggressor state and from the temporarily occupied territory of Ukraine". Types of printed matter which require permits include books, brochures, children's books including coloring books, as well as maps, atlases, globes, etc. Each permit is to be entered into the special state register and is valid for at most five years. Bans are based on evaluations by a council of experts and may be contested.

Challenged books

[edit]
This graph shows the number of book challenges from 2000 to 2005 and the most popular reasons for the challenges.

By country

[edit]

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Chapman, Roger; Ciment, James (2014). Culture Wars in America : an Encyclopedia of Issues, Viewpoints, and Voices (2nd ed.). Armonk, New York. ISBN 978-0765683175. OCLC 881383488.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  2. ^ a b "The Right To Read: Censorship in the School Library. ERIC Digest". www.ericdigests.org. Retrieved 2019-04-15.
  3. ^ a b Commons, Information. "LibGuides: Banned Books: Reasons for Banning Books". libguides.butler.edu. Retrieved 2019-04-17.
  4. ^ Swan, John. 1991. "The Satanic Verses," the "Fatwa," and Its Aftermath: A Review Article. The Library Quarterly: Information, Community, Policy 61.4:429–443
  5. ^ "Censorship of Books". teara.govt.nz.
  6. ^ "About Banned & Challenged Books". ala.org. 25 October 2016.
  7. ^ "This Is What Americans Used to Consider Obscene". Time. 2016-06-21. Retrieved 2023-04-23.
  8. ^ "Banned Books Online". upenn.edu.
  9. ^ Koga and others, Abel. “1984.” The Censorship Files, 27 Apr. 2018,
  10. ^ "Gale-Institution Finder". galeapps.gale.com.
  11. ^ "Guttman-Library".
  12. ^ "Index Librorum Prohibitorum". Encyclopædia Britannica Online.
  13. ^ University of South Florida. "USF NetID Single-SignOn". usf.edu.
  14. ^ "Office of Budget and Planning" (PDF).
  15. ^ a b "Could Banning Books Actually Encourage More Readers?". NPR.org. 20 September 2013.
  16. ^ Biscontini, Tracey Vasil; Edgar, Kathleen J. (2018). "Free Speech". Protests, Riots, and Rebellions: Civil Unrest in the Modern World. Vol. 1. UXL. pp. 171–202. ISBN 978-1410339089.
  17. ^ Boissoneault, Lorraine. "A Brief History of Book Burning, From the Printing Press to Internet Archives". Smithsonian. Retrieved 2019-05-05.
  18. ^ a b c d Staff, NCAC. "The First Amendment in Schools: Censorship". National Coalition Against Censorship. Retrieved 2019-04-17.
  19. ^ "Marshall University Libraries – Banned Book – 2018 Banned Books". www.marshall.edu. Retrieved 2019-04-15.
  20. ^ "Why Do We Ban Books, Anyway?". The Hub. 2013-09-27. Archived from the original on 2019-04-24. Retrieved 2019-04-15.
  21. ^ a b "About ALA". About ALA. Retrieved 2019-04-15.
  22. ^ admin (2012-12-11). "Banned Books Week (September 22–28, 2019)". Advocacy, Legislation & Issues. Retrieved 2019-04-15.
  23. ^ JCARMICHAEL (2018-03-31). "School Libraries". News and Press Center. Retrieved 2019-04-15.
  24. ^ a b "Board of Education, Island Trees Union Free School District No. 26 v. Pico | law case". Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved 2019-04-23.
  25. ^ "The Pico Case – 35 Years Later". Intellectual Freedom Blog. 2017-11-07. Retrieved 2019-04-23.
  26. ^ Jones, Thomas N. (1986). School Law Update, 1986. Publication Sales. OCLC 954313353.
  27. ^ admin (2008-06-13). "First Amendment and Censorship". Advocacy, Legislation & Issues. Retrieved 2019-04-15.
  28. ^ "Privish and Perish". Washington Post. October 9, 1983.
  29. ^ Charlotte, Dennett (March 1984). "Book Industry Refines Old Suppression Tactic". The American Writer. Vol. 3, no. 1. National Writer's Union.
  30. ^ Borjesson, Kristina, ed. (2002). Into the Buzzsaw. Amherst, NY: Promethius Books. pp. 15–35. ISBN 1-57392-972-7.
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Further reading

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  • Bauer, Stefan (2006). The Censorship and Fortuna of Platina's Lives of the Popes in the Sixteenth Century. ISBN 978-2-503-51814-5.
  • Haight, Anne (1970). Banned books informal notes on some books banned for various reasons at various times and in various places (3d ed.). New York: R.R. Bowker. ISBN 978-0-8352-0204-6.
  • Clegg, Cynthia S. (2001). Press censorship in Jacobean England. Cambridge University Press.
  • Craig, Alec. 1962. The Banned Books of England and Other Countries. London: George Allen & Unwin.
  • Davis, KC. “The Lady Goes to Court: Paperbacks and Censorship (Reprinted from Two-Bit Culture: The Paperbacking of America, 1984).” Publishing Research Quarterly 11, no. 4 (1996): 9–32.
  • Edwards, M. J. (2017). Christianity, Book-Burning and Censorship in Late Antiquity. The Journal Of Ecclesiastical History, 68(4), 825–827.
  • Neilson, W. A. (1930). Is Official Censorship of Books Desirable? CON. Congressional Digest, 9(2), 56–57.
  • Robert Darnton Censors at Work: How States Shaped Literature W. W. Norton & Company, 2014 ISBN 0393242293
  • Rohmann, Dirk. (2016). "Christianity, Book-Burning and Censorship" in Late Antiquity: Studies in Text Transmission. Vol. 135. De Gruyter.
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