Censorship in School Library

A New Jersey middle school recently made headlines when its principal censored a teen poetry book in response to a parental complaint. After one student's mother objected to the poem, "Diary of an Abusive Stepfather," the principal simply removed the pages with this piece from the book, Paint Me Like I Am. The school system's superintendent backed this decision. Written by a teen author, the poem in dispute contains profane language and violent content, as it describes the perspective of a child abuser.

Perhaps this work needs to be evaluated for its appropriateness in a middle school library. However, the school administration's approach to the situation violates the standards of responsible review and the ethics of intellectual freedom. The ALA correctly declares such "expurgation of library materials" to be in opposition to the Library Bill of Rights as it alters the author's original work and perhaps his or her overall message (Intellectual Freedom Manual, p. 146-147). Since authors generally do not approve these changes, this form of censorship may also break United States copyright laws.

Although the principal evidently believed he was doing less harm by retaining the book without its incendiary pages instead of removing the book completely, he clearly acted unwisely. In the future, would the principal remove any item that a parent declared offensive? One person should never make such decisions in a democratic society. The school library should have a process in place for parents and patrons to request reconsideration of materials. This process should involve a formal complaint, a committee review, and standardized guidelines. The administration's handling of this situation was wildly inappropriate and unethical; hopefully, community backlash will encourage the school to amend their procedure.

Link to the story:
http://www.thedailyjournal.com/article/20090518/NEWS01/905180322

References

Marko, D.M. (2009, May 18). Vineland principal censors book. The Daily Journal. Retrieved from http://www.thedailyjournal.com

Office of Intellectual Freedom. (2006). Intellectual Freedom Manual, 7th ed. Chicago: American Library Association.