Banned Books Week: Stories of Censorship
Students in the bridge experience course LI 202, Free to All: Public Libraries in U.S. Society, researched cases of censorships in public libraries over the last two centuries. Using primary sources they wrote short reports about these cases and designed corresponding posters for Banned Books Week. Browse this guide to learn about the variety of cases in libraries.
Course Instructor: Johanna MacKay
Poster and Report by Bianca Berman '26
Melissa has been at the top of many of ALA's most challenged book lists including 2018-2020.
The book Melissa (originally titled as George) was written in 2015 by Alex Gino. It is the story of a young boy who secretly wants to be called Melissa and wants to try out and star in the school play, Charlotte’s Web. Soon after it was published, there were many positive ratings and reviews on the book; however, many parents did not support the book nor did they want their child exposed to it. Many schools believed that this book would be a good example of anti-bullying, while others felt that it brought topics that were an issue. One of which people are afraid to admit: the topic of transgender people. Parents are afraid that it is not a topic that young children should concern themselves with nor do they believe it to be appropriate. The author as well as others would argue that this book is showing a story of a young child who is able to find herself and that many young children might find comfort and warmth from this book.
Parents are insistent on the other hand that this book shows pornography. Many also believe that this book should not be distributed because it differentiates with the “traditional family structure” (Hauser, 2020). Due to all these disagreeing factors, the book Melissa was listed as one of the most challenged books in 2016 and 2017 by the American Library Association. Some believe that the book itself is not a problem, but that the audience it is said to target right now, 7-10 year old's, is not appropriate, and that instead of removing the book all together from libraries and public schools, the best solution would be to relocate the book to the teenager section (Ritchie, 2024).
The interesting thing is, that while the book was being challenged but continued staying on the shelves, it was increasingly being checked out. In other words, it was clear that there was a huge audience for this book, as well as it having a huge impact on students. Many have come out stating how essential this book is for students going through similar things, and that the amounts of child suicides have been increasing, and that if there was more coverage about transgender children, then students would find themselves comforted and represented as well as seen and understood.
Sources
Butler, S. L. (2018, May 09). Fictional trans girl roils a reading match. New York Times, C3.