Title: Banned Books - Top 3 Pros and Cons - ProCon.org
Headings: Banned Books – Top 3 Pros and Cons
Banned Books – Top 3 Pros and Cons
Should parents or other adults be able to ban books from schools and libraries?
Pro 1
Parents have the right to decide what material their children are exposed to and when.
Pro 2
Children should not be exposed to sex, violence, drug use, or other inappropriate topics in school or public libraries.
Pro 3
Keeping books with inappropriate content out of libraries protects kids, but doesn't stop people from reading those books or prevent authors from writing them.
Con 1
Parents may control what their own children read, but don't have a right to restrict what books are available to other people.
Con 2
Many frequently challenged books help people get a better idea of the world and their place in it.
Con 3
Books are a portal to different life experiences and reading encourages empathy and social-emotional development.
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Content: Having books with adult topics available in libraries limits parents’ ability to choose when their children are mature enough to read specific material. “ Literary works containing explicit sex, oral sex, explicit & violent descriptions of rape, masturbation, vulgar and obscene language” were on the approved reading list for grades 7-12, according to Speak up for Standards, a group seeking age-appropriate reading materials for students in Dallas, Texas. [ 4] If books with inappropriate material are available in libraries, children or teens can be exposed to books their parents wouldn’t approve of before the parents even find out what their children are reading. [ 16] “ [O]pting your child out of reading [a certain] book doesn’t protect him or her. They are still surrounded by the other students who are going to be saturated with this book,” said writer Macey France. [ 17]
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Pro 2
Children should not be exposed to sex, violence, drug use, or other inappropriate topics in school or public libraries. Books in the young adult genre often contain adult themes that young people aren’t ready to experience. [ 18] Of the top ten most challenged books in 2019, eight had LGBTQ+ content, and three were sexually explicit. [ 25] According to Jenni White, a former public school science teacher, “Numerous studies on the use of graphic material by students indicate negative psychological effects,” including having “more casual sex partners and [beginning] having sex at younger ages.” [ 19] The American Academy of Pediatrics has found that exposure to violence in media, including in books, can impact kids by making them act aggressively and desensitizing them to violence. [