You do realize that while certain books are removed from school libraries they are still available from public libraries. I did a study of “book bans” for my book club and it turns out that PEN considers a book “banned” if it is moved from say, the junior high library to the high school library. It also considers a book that is removed from required reading lists by objections from parents to be banned. These titles are placed on a voluntary list. It appears that with the minimum amount of legwork any book that is published is available to any reader who wants to read it.
Here;s what I found out when I looked this up: PEN America explicitly defines what a banned book is, focusing on any action that removes or restricts student access to books in schools based on their content. The organization tracks and reports on these incidents, which differ from a book challenge.
PEN America's definition of a book ban
According to PEN America, a school book ban includes the following scenarios:
Complete removal: A book is completely removed from availability to students.
Restricted access: Access to a book is diminished or restricted. For example, moving a book to a higher-grade level shelf or requiring parental permission for a student to check it out is considered a ban.
Pending investigation: If a book is removed from shelves during an investigation, PEN America counts it as "banned pending investigation." This is because students cannot access the book during this time, which can last for weeks or months.
Based on content: The removal or restriction of access is a result of objections to its content from parents, community members, administrators, or government officials.
Book ban vs. book challenge
PEN America distinguishes a book ban from a book challenge in a key way:
Book challenge: An attempt to restrict or remove a book based on objections to its content.
Book ban: The actual removal or restriction of those materials. PEN America only tracks challenges that result in a book being banned.
How PEN America's definition differs from others
PEN America's definition is broader than that used by other organizations, like the American Library Association (ALA), which typically reserves the term "ban" for a book's complete removal. The broader scope of PEN's definition explains why its book ban numbers may differ from those published by other groups.
I did my research a couple of years ago but I’ll try to go back & check sources.. It wasn’t on PEN…the details didn’t support their claims of book banning. I’m of the generation that really saw book bans in Russia and don’t take the term casually. As far as the availability in public libraries, I took the titles of the books that were listed as banned and used the public library system to see availability. No books have been removed from public libraries. Any movement has been in school libraries.
You do realize that while certain books are removed from school libraries they are still available from public libraries. I did a study of “book bans” for my book club and it turns out that PEN considers a book “banned” if it is moved from say, the junior high library to the high school library. It also considers a book that is removed from required reading lists by objections from parents to be banned. These titles are placed on a voluntary list. It appears that with the minimum amount of legwork any book that is published is available to any reader who wants to read it.
Solzhenitsyn’s books were banned in Russia. He was sent to the Gulag and it was illegal to sell, read or own his books. Punishment was imprisonment.
That’s a book ban. Using that term here is in the same vein as calling people Nazis or Fascist.
I cannot find anything on PEN’s site that shows their definition of a banned book. Can you show where this information is, I’m genuinely curious?
Here;s what I found out when I looked this up: PEN America explicitly defines what a banned book is, focusing on any action that removes or restricts student access to books in schools based on their content. The organization tracks and reports on these incidents, which differ from a book challenge.
PEN America's definition of a book ban
According to PEN America, a school book ban includes the following scenarios:
Complete removal: A book is completely removed from availability to students.
Restricted access: Access to a book is diminished or restricted. For example, moving a book to a higher-grade level shelf or requiring parental permission for a student to check it out is considered a ban.
Pending investigation: If a book is removed from shelves during an investigation, PEN America counts it as "banned pending investigation." This is because students cannot access the book during this time, which can last for weeks or months.
Based on content: The removal or restriction of access is a result of objections to its content from parents, community members, administrators, or government officials.
Book ban vs. book challenge
PEN America distinguishes a book ban from a book challenge in a key way:
Book challenge: An attempt to restrict or remove a book based on objections to its content.
Book ban: The actual removal or restriction of those materials. PEN America only tracks challenges that result in a book being banned.
How PEN America's definition differs from others
PEN America's definition is broader than that used by other organizations, like the American Library Association (ALA), which typically reserves the term "ban" for a book's complete removal. The broader scope of PEN's definition explains why its book ban numbers may differ from those published by other groups.
I did my research a couple of years ago but I’ll try to go back & check sources.. It wasn’t on PEN…the details didn’t support their claims of book banning. I’m of the generation that really saw book bans in Russia and don’t take the term casually. As far as the availability in public libraries, I took the titles of the books that were listed as banned and used the public library system to see availability. No books have been removed from public libraries. Any movement has been in school libraries.
Of course every book is available for purchase.