Challenge young people with good literature

*This column was originally published November 2006 in The Blue and Gold, a community-based newspaper for Centralia College




Once again, a group of grownups have objected to a work of literature, for fear its content will confuse and warp the minds of young people.

Several language arts teachers in the Puyallup School District want to remove "The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman" by Ernest J. Gaines from the required eighth grade reading list.

According to an Oct. 16 article in The News Tribune, the teachers oppose the book as an instructional material because they say it contains racial slurs and sexual situations that are inappropriate for eighth graders.

The book, which was originally chosen by the school board to promote multicultural awareness, is a history-inspired novel that tells the stories of African Americans through the perspective of a 110-year-old black woman.

Personally, I have never read "The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman." But, hearing about the controversy makes me bloodthirsty to buy a copy. And I bet a million bucks the students in question are also curious to see what the big deal is about.

I do not understand why adults get so adamant about what young people should and should not read. I suppose they get riled up over sexual references, ungodly language and subversive ideas because they want to safeguard their children from the evils of the world.

Judy Blume, one of the nation's most censored authors in the nation, once wrote "Let children read whatever they want and then talk about it with them. If parents and kids can talk together, we won't have as much censorship because we won't have as much fear."

I suspect those Puyallup teachers partially object to "The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman" because they are afraid to discuss unsettling topics with young people. They may be more comfortable presenting a reality that' sugarcoated that none that exposes the ugly injustices of mankind.

Unfortunately, today's teenagers do not frolic in fields of innocence. From frightening episodes of school violence to sexual predators on the Internet, they face a number of dangers and need forums to discuss them.

Books rich in artistic content are wonderful ways to raise issue awareness in young people.

By nature, reading is an activity that encourages reflective and critical thinking. Because reading requires long periods of concentration, the lessons unfolded in books are more fully explored than with other forms of media.

In today's hypermedia landscape, teachers and parents should rejoice each time a child picks up and enjoys a book--no matter what smut it may contain, because the average American child watches three to four hours of television a day.

That means by the time they turn 18, they will have spent more time sucked in by the tube than learning in the classroom, according to the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry.

I think it's ironic that the Harry Potter series has received as much backlash as it has. The series' ability to inspire millions of children to turn of the TV and read is flat-out phenomenal.

But, instead of taking delight in children using their imagination, some people went on a crusade to ban Harry Potter books. They saw the books as anti-Christian, because of their use of magic and sorcery, as if J.K. Rowling were an instrument of the devil preying on children's souls.

In our nation, the right to intellectual freedom is key to democracy--its protected under the First Amendment of the Bill of Rights. I am thankful to live in a country where the Internet isn't censored for political content as it is in China, and where I can check out Hitler's despicable "Mein Kampf" at my local library if I wanted to.

But the intellectual freedom of minors is a delicate issue. It will always be contested as long as childhood is seen as a time of innocence.

Understandably, adults must protect their children from the ills of the world. They must, to an extent, check and filter their children's influences and experiences. Parents and teachers should implant the initial gears of a child's moral compass.

But also, let us hope to raise children with minds capable of exploring infinite possibilities. Let us hope our children can chew on tough issues and stay strong. Let us ope they leave the nests as thoughtful being who can draw solutions to the world's heaviest problems.

And one way to achieve this is to give them books--lots and lots of books.

Sadly, the only voice missing in the "Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman" debate is the voice of the eighth graders.

Perhaps the concerns of those teachers are legitimate. But how will they truly know how the books will affect eighth graders until they read and respond to it?

I say, let this year's eighth graders be the judge of what literature they can handle.

I doubt one book with a few racy passages will damage them forever.