Finally stood my ground on a banned book at my campus event

Last semester I was helping organize a small free speech fair on our quad. The student activities board told me I had to choose between putting out a table with either "The Handmaid's Tale" or "Maus" because they said both were too "divisive" for a public event. I pushed back hard and picked "Maus" since it was already getting pulled from some schools near us in Ohio. The board ended up letting me keep it but only if I added a disclaimer sign next to it. About 30 people stopped by over the 4 hours and only one person complained about the comics format. Honestly it felt good to see students actually reading something that someone tried to hide. Has anyone else had to fight for a specific book at a campus event like this?

2 comments

2 Comments

the_mary14h ago

Wait, they made you put a disclaimer next to "Maus"? What kind of disclaimer even says about a Holocaust graphic novel? That's wild to me, it's not like the book is promoting anything bad. I'm glad only one person complained, that sounds like a win for free speech honestly. The whole idea of banning books just makes me want to read them more, you know?

oliver_mitchell12h ago

Over in my county, they tried to put a sticker on "The Hate U Give" saying it promoted violence against police. One librarian pushed back hard and got them to drop it before it even went on a shelf. Made me realize how much it helps when people actually speak up instead of just rolling over. You ever had a book in your school or library that got the warning label treatment?