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Banned Books?
Americans take pride in the many rights they have earned throughout history. The Constitution and it’s amendments guarantee it’s people many things. For example, the First Amendment states that: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”. For years, controversial books have been under attack by authorities for a variety of reasons. As stated by the American Library Association, “[We] promote the freedom to choose, or the freedom to express one’s opinions, even if that opinion might be unorthodox or unpopular…”. In a popular Supreme Court case, Texas v. Johnson, a prominent quote was brought to attention: “If there is a bedrock principle underlying the First Amendment, it is that the Government may not prohibit the expression of an idea simply because society finds the idea itself offensive or disagreeable.”. Many people will argue that the banning and challenging of books is only done to protect others, usually children. Their arguments are more centered around making a responsible decision in what children should be exposed to, and what they should not. In an article written by Mark Hemingway, he expresses his view of society evolving to write more risque material just for the shock value. Mark argues that this is not only portrayed in books, TV shows that are on the air now targeted at children should be of question as well. Banned content is an extremely relevant topic, and people all around the country are expressing their views.
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