I was watching a newscast on ABC Chicago, and they were discussing a new feature – “Wounded: Stop the Violence.” They interviewed a young man, Miguel Perez, who has a violent past. He visits schools around Chicago and discusses his past and how he overcame gang violence and drug use. School administrators allow him to do this, even though he includes the gritty details of his past. He is welcomed into these school because his overall message is positive as he teaches children about the negative consequences of violence. The intent of this feature is not directly related to censorship, but it got me thinking.
There are many books available to children that discuss these same subjects, yet they are challenged and sometimes banned. What is the difference between a man speaking to children about his experiences with gang violence and drug use and a book discussing those same subjects? The newscast showed clips of the man speaking, and the audience contained children of all ages. How do school administrators and parents decide if something sends a “good” or “bad” message to children? If these students were given a book, such as Autobiography of My Dead Brother by Walter Dean Myers, which discusses gang violence and how a young man overcomes such violence, would the parents accept it as educational material as they accept Perez visiting the schools with his life story?
Perhaps it is the reality of the issue to which parents or teachers do not object. Reading a book can leave a lot to the imagination, and seeing an actual person discuss a violent past brings a sense of grounded reality to the subject. Personally, though, I believe it is all the same. Reading a novel like those listed below can teach a young reader about many things, including the negative consequences of violent behavior. While there may be parts of the book that are offensive, the overall message of each is positive, hopeful, and very relatable to a variety of young adults.
The Chocolate War by Robert Cormier
Durango Street and Scorpions by Walter Dean Myers
The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton
Party Girl by Lynne Ewing
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3 comments:
I don't know you got me thinking now about his. Is there something about a fiction, non-fiction issue. The speaker spoke of facts and true life, and some of the books banned are fiction? I don't know. It would be interesting to know if the parents of the children were aware he was coming to speak. Maybe there would have been parents objecting and maybe there was afterwards. Is there more a respect for a speaker presenting then a book? Maybe it is the imagination process that concerns many...
Allison, I bring up a similar "speaker"-type case in my blog, but it involves a controversial speaker at a public library rather than school library. I'm sure at a school library, it can get even more controversial. I had similar thoughts on this as Sue. I wonder if the true life aspect of what the speaker is saying is more acceptable than fictionalized accounts. I think in challenges, patrons may not understand that some of the things discussed in fiction are not being encouraged but rather discouraged, or if not outright discouraged than at least made for critical thinking/contemplation. I think that's why it's important for the challengers to read the whole work and discuss it with a library/teacher to ensure that they understand the work completely.
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