Censorship-suppression of information, ideas, or artistic expression by anyone, whether by government officials, church authorities, private pressure groups, or speakers, writers, and artist themselves.
Freedom-the quality of being frank or open; use without restriction.
There are two sides to every story. Black, white. Girl, boy. Dog, cat. Censorship, freedom-a subject that has troubled people as far back as the Revolutionary War. To every side there is an argument...
Certain books are feared to do harm to individuals in its audience, or in society as a whole, but the main reason behind book banning is the idea to protect the child's mind and self-esteem from any sort of harm or damage. Books having profanity, violence, or any sort of racism are said to be the "primary targets". Books that are considered dreary, illustrate teen smoking, believed to have handled suicide inappropriately, or conflict with values of the community were a few subjects challenged. The idea for a book to be banned is usually reasonable, thoughtful, and is one way to help protect selves, the family, and communities from perceived injustices and evil...
The other side of the story is that for every book banned; a child has become one step closer to deceitfulness and dishonesty. One aspect of freedom is to have the right to choose what you read, or even what your child reads. Yes, you can choose what you read-and what your child reads. But, then again, your child can just as easily choose what they want to read without your ever knowing. Sometimes the best way to protect your child is to not protect your child. If you so happen to never shelter out only certain books the child could be better off than the child that was kept from such books. No matter what the choice the parent or reader makes, it is a choice that only they can make, weighing out their own family values to their own good judgment. No one can decide what you think because sometimes you can think two things in one, that you could never explain in words, but it makes perfect sense inside of your mind and that is okay if that is what you think and believe will help you survive through any important issue...
-Thomas Jefferson, 1786
"Our liberty depends on the freedom of the press, and that cannot be limited without being lost..."
-Jimmy Carter, 1981
"America did not invent human rights. In a very real sense, human rights invented America."
-Ronald Reagan, 1985
"There can be no greater good than the quest for peace and no finer purpose than the preservation of freedom."
-http://www.luc.edu/libraries/banned/
-http://www.ala.org/bbooks/
-http://www.Math.uic.edu/`janetb/haulprojects/G/DEFINITIONS.html
-http://www.cwrl.utexas.edu/`banned/
-http://www.afn.org/`dks/banned/banned-books-94-95.html