http://www.ala.org/ala/issuesadvocacy/b ... QgodVjo_mQ
I remember, back in 1980, when the so-called Moral Majority INC. founded by the Reverend Jerry Falwell, was campaigning to support Ronald Reagan while he was running for President.Banned Books Week: Celebrating the
Freedom to Read
September 24â??October 1, 2011
Banned Books Week (BBW) is an annual event celebrating the freedom to read and the importance of the First Amendment. Held during the last week of September, Banned Books Week highlights the benefits of free and open access to information while drawing attention to the harms of censorship by spotlighting actual or attempted bannings of books across the United States.
Intellectual freedomâ??the freedom to access information and express ideas, even if the information and ideas might be considered unorthodox or unpopularâ??provides the foundation for Banned Books Week. BBW stresses the importance of ensuring the availability of unorthodox or unpopular viewpoints for all who wish to read and access them.
The books featured during Banned Books Week have been targets of attempted bannings. Fortunately, while some books were banned or restricted, in a majority of cases the books were not banned, all thanks to the efforts of librarians, teachers, booksellers, and members of the community to retain the books in the library collections. Imagine how many more books might be challengedâ??and possibly banned or restrictedâ??if librarians, teachers, and booksellers across the country did not use Banned Books Week each year to teach the importance of our First Amendment rights and the power of literature, and to draw attention to the danger that exists when restraints are imposed on the availability of information in a free society.
Banned Books Week is sponsored by the American Booksellers Association; American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression; the American Library Association; American Society of Journalists and Authors; Association of American Publishers; and the National Association of College Stores. It is endorsed by the Center for the Book in the Library of Congress. In 2011, the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund; National Coalition Against Censorship; National Council of Teachers of English; and PEN American Center also signed on as sponsors.
For more information on getting involved with Banned Books Week: Celebrating the Freedom to Read, please see Calendar of Events, Ideas and Resources, and the new Banned Books Week site. You can also contact the ALA Office for Intellectual Freedom at 1-800-545-2433, ext. 4220, or bbw@ala.org.
I also remember back in the early 1980s, there was a wave of book burnings across the country sponsored by many right-wing religious groups.
And I remember watching on ABC NEWS NIGHTLINE, on the CBS NEWS, and on the NBC NEWS broadcasts, some incidents of public book burnings where people were gathered around their bonfires, tossing in books to be burned, and singing Christian religious hymns.
It was all very frightening to watch!
The NEWS videos on TV back in the 1980s were reminiscent of some old film clippings I had seen from the 1930s of book burnings in NAZI Germany.
The only difference between the TV NEWS videos from the 1980s and the old NAZI film clips from the 1930s was that the videos from the 1980s were in living color and were happening here in the USA, while the old NAZI film clips from the 1930s were in black & white and happened in Germany. Also the clothing styles were different. But aside from that, there was otherwise very little difference. Both gave me the creeps!
The old 1930s black & white film clips from NAZI Germany gave me the creeps!
But the newer TV NEWS videos in living color back in the 1980s gave me nightmares!!!
There were many attempts to have certain books removed from school libraries, some successful, but fortunately, most attempts were not successful, and even in most of the successful attempts, the books were later reinstated back into the school libraries.
Almost all attempts to have certain books removed from public libraries were even less successful. Adults should have the right to read whatever they choose.
Most of the controversy was over books such as The Catcher In The Rye, Slaughter House Five, The Grapes Of Wrath, For Whom The Bell Tolls by Earnest Hemingway, etc. etc. and ironically enough, Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury, a science fiction novel about a futuristic society in which all books were banned.
The reasons given???
Well, The Catcher In the Rye and Slaughter House Five had the four-letter F-words in them.
And, The Grapes of Wrath depicted poverty in America "all too realistically" which was the moronic reason given, because if too many people read that book, then too many people might become more sympathetic toward the plight of those living in poverty, and we can't have that now! Can we?
Well, I say . . . . . FUCK 'EM!!!
I'll read whatever I damn well please!!!
And now, more recently, when Sarah Palin, the helicopter huntress, was Mayor in her hometown up in Alaska, she wanted to have the head librarian in the city Public Library fired, and she even inquired if certain books could be removed, from a PUBLIC LIBRARY!!!
And yet, this moronic, bubble-headed little bimbo with the IQ of a steam iron wants to run for President!!!
Again, I remember back in 1980, when Carl Sagan's 13 episode program, COSMOS, came out on PBS, and I saw all 13 episodes and I even have the book, COSMOS, by Carl Sagan.
Recently, back in the summer of 2009, PBS had a program titled, "400 Years of The Telescope". It was all about Galileo, and the program was in celebration of the 400th anniversary of when Galileo first used his telescope to observe the moon, planets, and stars.
Before the program started, PBS had a disclaimer announcing "This program may not be suitable for all family members. Viewer discretion advised." and my reaction to that was . . . . .
SAY WHAT???
Back in 1980, when COSMOS came out, there was nothing saying that viewer discretion was advised. The program covered Darwin's Evolution, Galileo, etc. etc. and one episode covered the history of the Roman Catholic Church and the Inquisition. Yet, no advise on viewer discretion was given.
Back then, the only time PBS said that "viewer discretion is advised" was is if when it had a documentary, for example: covering the history of NAZI Germany, and if it showed any scenes of the concentration camps, and the victims who where were killed. Also, any documentary with photos or film clips of violent scenes. Now, in the case, I can understand viewer discretion being advised because some of the scenes would be disturbing to little children, therefore, not suitable for all family members.
But the history of Galileo and his telescope??? Come on!!!
If a similar type of documentary had been shown back in 1980, there would have been no advise of viewer discretion.
OH! BUT NOW!!!
Viewer discretion is advised because the documentary covered the history of the Roman Catholic Church and The Inquisition, and so, we must be very careful not to offend some peoples' religious sensibilities. We must be very careful not to step on any toes and we must all tread lightly!!!
FUCK THAT!!!
Sorry, but I'm too big and fat, and too heavy to tread lightly, because I weigh about 400 pounds!
No, I don't tread lightly!
I stomp my feet, and the ground rumbles beneath me as I tread heavily, and I don't don't give a flying fucking Hootenanny in Hell if I stomp on a few toes along the way!
No, I don't mean physically, but only, verbally.
I love to stomp on the toes of uneducated morons and hear them scream!
So, deal with it!!!
I'm fat and sassy! I love to sing & dance & stomp my feet & really rock your world!
