Censorship in Public Schools Essay - 1625 Words

because he thinks they might contain quot;obscenities or offensive sexual referencesquot; (Berger 59). -A Vermont high school librarian is forced to resign because she fought the school boards decision to remove Richard Prices The Wanderers, and to quot;restrictquot; the use of Stephen Kings Carrie and Patrick Manns Dog Day Afternoon (Jones 33). -An Indiana school board takes action that leads to the burning of many copies of a textbook that deals with drugs and the sexual behavior of teenagers (Berger 61). These cases of censorship in public schools are not unusual and there is evidence that such challenges are increasing (Woods 2). These challenges are actually typical of the ones being leveled against school libraries today.†¦show more content†¦The courts have time and again ruled that the Constitution prohibits Congress from censorship of any form. These two opposing sides have butted heads again and again leaving behind landmark cases for future legal actions. One of the most famous of those cases was Pico vs. Board of Education, Island Trees Union Free School District No. 26, which was the first school library censorship case to reach the Supreme Court (Jones 35). In March 1976, the Island Trees School Board in New York removed eleven books that they deemed quot;anti-American, anti-Christian, anti-Semitic, and just plain filthyquot; (Berger 59) from the high school library shelves. Among these books were Slaughterhouse Five by Kurt Vonnegut, A Hero Aint Nothing but a Sandwich by Alice Childress, and Soul on Ice by Eldridge Cleaver (Jones 37). The board felt that it had quot;a moral obligation to protect the children in our schools from this moral dangerquot; (Berger 60). Five students then sued the school board on grounds that their decision violated their First Amendment rights. The suit was passed around the courts until June 1982 when the Supreme Court took up the cause and ruled that the school board would have to defend its removal of the books. The Supreme Court decided that since the library is used voluntarily, they can choose books there freely and that, as Justice Brennan stated, quot;the First Amendment rights of students may be directly and sharplyShow MoreRelatedWhat Is the Objective of Internet Censorship in Public Schools?1820 Words   |  8 PagesShawn Nephi Klaxx What is the objective of internet censorship in public schools? Is it effective and does it do more good than bad? When talking about internet censorship in schools, heated debates are always bound to arise on what they should block, how strict they should be, and if they should even be there. The topic of fettered or unfettered internet is a hot topic and can be both good and bad for education. When talking about something that sounds like such aRead MoreCensorship For Middle School Students Essay1111 Words   |  5 PagesCensorship by definition is the suppression of speech or removal of communicative material which may be considered objectionable or repulsive. Censorship is nothing new and its effects are constantly felt throughout society. Many societies use censorship to protect the established moral and social order. Book censorship in western cultures can be traced to the earliest years of Christianity, when the church began to suppress opposing views as unorthodox. In ancient times, before the printing pressRead MoreCensorship and Material Selection Policies Essay863 Words   |  4 Pagesthat they are morally objectionable by the standards applied by a censor. It has been like this for ages. As long as someone has something to tell, another will be there to try and prevent them. Schools have been doing this for quite a while now and there is a need to stop it. 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The official start on the entire blockade of certain age groups has started with the MPAA† Motion Picture Association of America† in wanting to prohibit certain age groups from viewing certain movies, yet there has always been ways around theRead MoreCensorship Essay1325 Words   |  6 PagesCensorship â€Å"Congress shall make no law†¦prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech or of the press, or the right to petition the government for a redress of government.†(Ravitch, 118) As stated in the First Amendment of the United States Constitution, the people of this nation have the right to exercise their beliefs out loud, or in writing. With this in mind, does the government have the right to undermine the foundation of our nation, and censor what we read