On Book Banning and Fighting Back
Maureen Johnson's novel "The Bermudez Triangle" has been taken off the shelves of a high-school library in Oklahoma. I though I'd share the email I just sent to the members of the committee who banned the book:
Dear Mr. McCauley, Mrs. Verner, and Dr. Rosenberger,
My name is John Green. I am the author of the novels "Looking for Alaska" and "An Abundance of Katherines." I am deeply distressed by your decision to remove Maureen Johnson's novel "The Bermudez Triange" from the Bartlesville Mid High library. It is an excellent novel of considerable merit, and it makes absolutely no sense to deprive your students of the opportunity to read it.
Your decision is perhaps explained by the fact that, apparently, none of you has actually had the chance to read "The Bermudez Triangle." I would be happy to send you each a copy of the book free of charge so that you may read it. Also, as thanks to librarian Susan Hunt for defending intellectual freedom, I would like to donate other critically acclaimed and award-winning works of young adult literature to your high-school library.
Please let me know if these donations would be acceptable to you and the address to which I should send them. If you'd like to discuss this matter over the phone, please feel free to call me at (phone number redacted*). I can also be contacted at this email address. But you shouldn't worry too much about getting in touch. If I don't hear from you for a while, I'll just call you.
Best wishes,
John Green
*Nothing personal, guys! I would totally publish my phone number if I didn't always go over my minutes each month.
posted by John Green @ Tuesday, May 01, 2007
25 Comments
25 Comments:
No offense taken on the phone number thing.
Great letter. But if they don't want Bermudez Triangle, will they allow Alaska or any of the other books you might send?
Kelly,
Well, maybe not. But they should. And we'll fight that fight one book at a time. That's the idea.
jmg
I'm so glad you did this, John. I blogged about it yesterday too after reading Maureen's post. I hope these people respond to your comments and suggestions. Way back when, my high school drama class was performing WILD OATS and because of ONE mom's complaint over ONE LINE of dialog, the play was shut-down. My awesome directer proceeded to direct us in the stage version of Fahrenheit 451 as a form of protest. Censorship sucks. Way to take a stand!
Yay! Great letter.
Maureen's blog entry about this motivated me to write about a related subject today on my own blog.
Thanks for posting this, John!
Jo (Closet Nerd Fighter)
Perfect letter. You manage to be respectful yet also kind of snarky at the same time!
I am always baffled by peoples' efforts to censor books they have never read. Hopefully your letter will help them to reconsider.
Yeah, I was thinking 'oh if they got rid of one of Maureen's books, what would they think of John's?' Because really, I think they would have a lot more of a reason to get upset at your (awesome) books than Maureen's (also awesome) books.
I think it would have been pretty amazing to call you and actually talk to you. But I guess since I'm deprived of that opportunity...I'll live with applauding you for this letter. As I've mentioned on everyone else's blogs who've talked about Maureen's unjust banning...I can't stand people who would dare to ban a book because they don't agree with it. Seriously, if everyone thought that they had the right to do that, there would be nothing left. "Oh no, that book has a Christian in it. I'm an atheist. I think it should be removed." "Homosexuals? No. No way. Get that out of here." "Swearing? Who puts that in books? How horrible!" But let's jam to rap and rock that more than explicitly portray men using and abusing women, or each other, or a whole bunch more. Our poor, innocent children don't need to know about the wiles of the world! Please. They should be ecstatic that their children are READING. That they're bettering themselves and their minds with the words of quality writers. Not shove them closer to their X-boxes where things can be just as bad, or worse. Parents have a right to stop their children from doing things, reading things, seeing things. That's their job as a parent, to raise their kids as they think they should. But that doesn't mean they have a right to deprive the rest of the world from making their own choices.
Anyway...
rant over. I hope they get in contact with you soon!!
I am so glad that you responded like this. I am planning on doing the same. To think that there are people who have the audacity to tell me what I can and cannot read makes me want to scream. If people want to monitor what their own child reads, that is fine. They have a right to do that. But to deprive an entire school of kids (some of whom are eighteen, like myself) from reading it, is just insane. Especially when they haven't even read it themselves. Intellectual Freedom rocks. I think all Nerd Fighters should take a stand, like you said, one book at a time.
Fantastic letter -- professional and true. Maureen's lucky to have a friend and supporter in you.
Little Willow, Team Parker.
Hey, not to be picky but Ms. Verner was my teacher who would die before banning a book so I checked Maureen's site and it Mrs. Vernon.
I still can't believe this can happen today. Great letter, I hope they get a ton of mail and actually read the book. I haven't yet but am planning to get it now and read it with my 12 year old daughter. Thanks for the recommend!
That's awesome; thank you.
Brilliant letter, John.
ROCK. ON. fREADom! intellectual diversity! YES!
john, i'd like to say that um, you rock. and when i get more time i swear to god i'm reading this site from, er... front to back?
"looking for alaska" is one of my favorite books of all time. it makes me cry every time. in a good way, of course.
i'm an aspiring writer, so when i get my stuff published, you should check it out. heh. actually, scratch that.
so get on it and write another book soon, please. i, as a devoted fan, can't wait. ;)
I just left this comment on Maureen Johnson's blog:
"Hey,
At my bookstore, I've suggested (because of this one, really) that whenever somebody bans a book, we put it on display. Wouldn't it be great if every time there's a book challenge, libraries and bookstores across the country highlight the book on their shelves and display spaces?"
Then I thought, hey John Green would be the perfect spokesperson for that. I say we actually promote it. It would make it a lot less appealing to crazies and bigots to ban books if they knew it would have guaranteed display space all over the country.
The Pelham Public Library in Fonthill, Ontario, Canada is issuing a banned book challenge worldwide and John, we have been inviting authors (especially young adult authors who have been challenged) to sign up and take part. So far, Deborah Ellis, Maryrose Wood, and Meg Cabot have agreed to read their choice of banned or challenged books between now and June 30. You are very welcome to participate, as are your readers. Information is on the Fahrenheit 451 weblog on the right sidebar. To date we have about 150 people pledging to read over 1600 books that have been challenged or banned.
Wrote my email, decided to play the 'pastor' card.
Dear Mr. McCauley, Mrs. Vernon, and Dr. Rosenberger,
As an evangelical, American pastor living abroad I was dismayed to read that you have chosen to ban a book that apparently you’ve not even read. Banning a book, a work of fiction, is surprising enough but one that you haven’t even read is shocking. I hope I’ve heard this in error. To be involved in the educational process and to do what you are asked to do with integrity I would think it only reasonable that your librarian and your own common sense, when applied by actually reading over the text in question, would be the basis for your decision and not a ‘path of least resistance’ reaction to a single parent’s complaint.
As a Christian pastor I am very concerned about the morals of our children. The way to develop morals is not to ban books or ideas but to read the books with our children and discuss the ideas contained in them. Parents have a moral obligation to read to their children and a moral obligation to teach them HOW to think, not to tell them WHAT to think. We need young people with strong minds and strong hearts that will then manifest strong morals from the core of who they are rather than what they’ve been told to be.
It’s my hope and prayer that you will reconsider the action you’ve taken against your young readers by removing the book, “"The Bermudez Triangle" from your library shelves.
Sincerely,
Pastor Brian Metzger
(the 'pastor card' gets me in some doors otherwise closed and a 10% discount on my breakfast at Smittys.)
This comment has been removed by the author.
I grew up in Skiatook, Oklahoma, a small town just down the road from Bartlesville. I heard about this whole thing from an author and good friend of mine from Tulsa, and I am appalled at the book-banning. I spent several summers during high school in Bartlesville at arts and theater camps; they have always prided themselves on being a very arts- and literature- supportive community. That they would think it acceptable to ban a book like this on "religious" grounds is incredible. I plan on e-mailing the board members as well, from the perspective of someone who knows their community well, and knows that this is not the image they want to project for Oklahoma.
Beth,
What information did she even disseminate? Those email addresses (and phone numbers) are on the web. Did she disseminate the fact that it got banned and the names of the committee members? That doesn't seem uncouth to me at all. I mean, this is a PUBLIC school.
If Ninja Librarian Susan Hunt gets fired, these people are going to be in for some serious, long-lasting protests.
This comment has been removed by the author.
I love that we're all blogging this story. I don't think you use your myspace blog, John, but I put mine on there, too, to make sure that the yutes see it too. But you actually sent a letter as well. Right on.
Rock, rock on, Mr. Green and Ninja Librarian Susan.
As a future librarian and as an average, everyday, freedom loving jane it ruffles my feathers to see such selfish acts carried out by "concerned parents." Just who do they think they are. hrmph.
It makes me happy to see Ninja Librarian Susan sticking her neck out for intellectual freedom. She's a true hero.
And thanks to everyone else for inundating those people with letters, calls, and emails. You all are awesome. I'll be sure to get in contact with you if I ever run into trouble with silly folks try to pull books off my shelves.
If only every book challenge could get such a reaction!
Oh. My. God. You ended that letter with two beautiful words, immortalized forever in the hearts pf nerdfighters everywhere. "BEST WISHES" Awesome!
wow i was very interested in your letter. What you said was great. I also agree with the fact that we should have the right to read what we like. We are just entering this topic and soon to start reading Fahrenheit 451, i might just take intrest in getting some of those books myself and reading them !
I love the "Best Wishes!" at the end:)
DFTBA
Post a Comment
Subscribe to Post Comments [Atom]
<< Home