Banned Books

Banned Book Giveaway: Sometimes being the literary rebel can expand your mind

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By Beste Tatlican

From very young, we are taught to do what we are told. We learn right from wrong from our parents, from others who raise us, our siblings, and aunts alike. We learn how to treat others, how to respect others, and how to expect the same in return. We learn ethics and common courtesy. Not much long after, we learn to read, reinforcing these ideas and practicing them. Over the next few years, we begin to find our voices. We slowly clarify what we stand for and what we don’t. 

Reading books for fun marks the time period when we first learn to dream. Using our imagination beyond the words we are reading on that page, we bring bright images into the world around us. We see the world through a more cultured, educated lens. They don’t say people who read a lot know a lot for no reason. Suddenly, we are understanding how things work, can make our own judgments, see the world around us. The concept of banned books brings a lot of intrigue to any educational environment. Why are they banned? Who is banning these books? Did they even read those books?

On Thursday, September 26, 2024, I learned the main answer to these questions in our very own Salten Hall during the Banned Book Giveaway. The event was held to bring attention to books and remind people to read, read, read! It was so successful that I believe all of the books were taken by the time I came back within half an hour to an hour later. I was very happy to see our own students being so excited to read these books and critically think for themselves, as college students. With the help of The Slate team, I asked a couple of passionate readers who organized the event some of my impromptu questions in a quite, impromptu interview itself.

The main takeaway from both of their responses was the fact that much of the content that is disliked about the banned books actually still makes some people uncomfortable today, and was probably banned for that reason. They mostly consist of relevant topics like historical discrimination based on race or gender, the debates going on about women’s bodily autonomy, and much more. Gender identity issues within some of these books make people doubt the effectiveness of the book it seems, as well as the representations of more mature ideas, which is a subjective factor depending on how people were raised, might also be banned it seems. It’s about controversy. 

The power of literature was also mentioned. These stories have power. “A power to influence, a power to humanize, a power to better understand…it’s about controlling narratives broadly and on an individual level of books,” one of the hosts added. I was delighted to listen to both of the organizers who were there, and hear their valuable insight.

Examples of some of the books, as well as more of their thoughts can be found on our YouTube channel – thanks to the talented work of Sameer Kumar. So I would like to extend my thanks for that as well. Go grab your own book and read away!