Society, institutions, and common sense: Themes in the discourse of book challengers in 21st century United States

Knox, Emily J.M.

doi:10.1016/j.lisr.2014.06.003

Cited by 10 publications

(17 citation statements)

References 21 publications

(8 reference statements)

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“…Schmidt and colleagues (2007) asserted "the idea that teachers are responsible for protecting innocent children is inherent in their thinking" (p. 53). In her study about the discourse of book challengers, Knox (2014b) found that protecting children's innocence is a primary reason why people bring book challenges forward in schools and libraries. We are disturbed that some participants in our study, who are or will be working directly with children, share the same sentiments as book challengers despite their awareness of the right to read.…”

Section: Themes In Censorship Researchmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…According to Dresang (2003), there are three common assumptions that adults have about children: (a) children are innocent and require the protection of adults, (b) children are depraved and require redemption, and (c) children are capable, wise, and seek connections with texts and other people. Those who would censor books may hold the first two assumptions as Knox’s (2014b) work suggests, yet Dresang believes the third assumption of children-as-capable most accurately describes contemporary youth, and it should be the role of adults to educate children about challenging or controversial topics rather than protect them through actions such as censorship and restricting access to information. Given that adult beliefs about children and childhood inform decisions to provide or restrict access to books, it is important to understand what teachers and school librarians believe regarding what is appropriate (or not) for children to read.…”

Section: Theoretical Perspectivesmentioning

confidence: 99%

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“It Was . . . the Word ‘Scrotum’ on the First Page”: Educators’ Perspectives of Controversial Literature

Kimmel

Hartsfield

2018

Journal of Teacher Education

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Preemptive censorship occurs when educators avoid particular books because they dislike the ideas or values the books contain or fear the controversy the books may evoke. Although not as blatant as other forms of censorship, preemptive censorship has the unfortunate consequence of restricting children’s access to ideas and information. Moreover, preemptive censorship violates students’ intellectual freedom and right to read. In this study, we employ critical discourse analysis to examine discussions by preservice teachers and school librarians as they responded to a controversial children’s book. Our analysis of the discussions revealed that many preservice educators maintain a protective view of children, fear the negative reactions of parents, and would choose to engage in preemptive censorship rather than create controversy in their classrooms and schools. We conclude by recommending ways that teacher educators can support preservice teachers and school librarians in their efforts to promote the professional value of intellectual freedom.

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Section: Themes In Censorship Researchmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Theoretical Perspectivesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“It Was . . . the Word ‘Scrotum’ on the First Page”: Educators’ Perspectives of Controversial Literature

Kimmel

Hartsfield

2018

Journal of Teacher Education

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“…Schrader (1997) links this dismissal to what he calls "word fear," noting that it is a type of interpretation of people who reject any distinction between narrative and indoctrination, between portrayal and instruction and promotion, between description and "how-to," between disclosure and endorsement and advocacy, between statement and encouragement and glorification, between exposure and seduction, between telling and teaching, between storytelling and condoning, between discussion and recruitment, between knowledge and action. (10) As I have previously (Knox 2014(Knox , 2015 demonstrated, this common sense interpretation of texts unites book challengers of different ideologies and worldviews. This type of interpretation can also be called "monosemic," wherein it is believed that texts possess a stable referent and can only have one meaning.…”

Section: N D O C T R I N a T I O N _ F E A T U R Ementioning

confidence: 89%

“…In this article, I hope to show that a particular interpretation of these books is crucial to understanding the opposition to the MAS program. As I have previously argued (Knox 2014), calls for the restriction, removal, and relocation of books are often a matter of interpretation of texts. Critics who argued for both the dismantling of the MAS program and the removal of the textbooks often employ what I call "common sense" interpretive strategy with regard to texts wherein texts "mean what they say and say what they mean"; this is an interpretive strategy that is strongly associated with the concept of indoctrination.…”

Section: N D O C T R I N a T I O N _ F E A T U R Ementioning

confidence: 99%

Indoctrination and Common Sense Interpretation of Texts: The Tucson Unified School District Book Banning

Knox

2017

JIFP

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Throughout January of 2012, national news reports described the ongoing saga of “banning” books used in the Tucson Unified school District’s (TUSD) Mexican American Studies (MAS) Program. According to MAS students and teachers, on Friday, January 13, school officials attended class sessions and told teachers to box and remove books that were out of compliance with a recently passed Arizona law banning ethnic studies in public education institutions. TUSD administrators had decided that, in order to comply with the law, not only would the MAS program have to end but any books used in the curriculum would need to be removed from classrooms. Books on the removal list included Pedagogy of the Oppressed by Paolo Freire, Critical Race Theory by Richard Delgado and Jean Stefancic, and, famously, Shakespeare’s The Tempest. The TUSD maintained that it has not banned the books since they are still available in the libraries throughout the school system. This article, which focuses on the reasons for removing the books from the MAS program classrooms, is grounded in a social constructionist metatheoretical framework as well as the study of reading practices and previous research on book challengers. It is intended to demonstrate that those who argued for the dismantling of the program and the removal of the books employed what might be called a common sense or monosemic interpretive strategy with regard to texts and were particularly focused on the idea of indoctrination in public schools.

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“…"Censor" is also a highly contested term, and its use can shut down rather than facilitate communication. (Knox 2014a(Knox , 2014b(Knox , 2015) that unite the discourse of those who challenge books in public institutions, and I will discuss those most relevant to the 2016 national election.…”

Section: Opposing Censorship In Difficult Timesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Opposing Censorship in Difficult Times

Knox¹

2017

The Library Quarterly

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What does it mean to support intellectual freedom under the new administration? How do we uphold our values when many will disagree with the information provided in our institutions? In this short essay I offer a summary of my research on book challengers to better understand why people attempt to censor information. I then argue that, to move forward, librarians and other information professionals must recommit to supporting the principles of intellectual freedom, the code of ethics, and the values of librarianship; review policies; and know their communities-local, state, and national. A s part of my research I receive daily Google alerts on banned books, censorship, intellectual freedom, and book challenges. This helps me remain apprised of what is happening across the country and the world regarding information access. In late January 2017, I received a Google alert that piqued my interest: Animal Farm, George Orwell's allegorical novel, had recently been removed from the curriculum at Stonington Middle School in Mystic, CT (Collins 2017). The board and superintendent insisted that the book had not been banned but simply removed from the curriculum. According to Doyle's (2014) most recent bibliography of challenged books, Animal Farm, a staple of middle school curricula across the country, has not been challenged in the United States since 1987. However, I was not surprised to see the title in my Google alerts, as I suspect that Animal Farm, 1984, Brave New World, and other dystopian and antiauthoritarian novels will be challenged many times over the coming years. In the wake of the election, librarians and other information professionals have been asking themselves how to respond to the authoritarian tendencies of the new administration. My own research focuses on information access, particularly intellectual freedom and censorship and what I call "the discourse of censorship" (Knox 2014b, 2015). I am especially concerned with how people justify the control of knowledge and how to respond to such demands for control. In the weeks after the election it became clear to me that access to information in the public sphere would be threatened and that it was important that those on the front lines know how to respond to such threats.

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Society, institutions, and common sense: Themes in the discourse of book challengers in 21st century United States

Cited by 10 publications

References 21 publications

“It Was . . . the Word ‘Scrotum’ on the First Page”: Educators’ Perspectives of Controversial Literature

“It Was . . . the Word ‘Scrotum’ on the First Page”: Educators’ Perspectives of Controversial Literature

Indoctrination and Common Sense Interpretation of Texts: The Tucson Unified School District Book Banning

Opposing Censorship in Difficult Times

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