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Banned Books in America: Persepolis and the Censored Classroom
Christine Calvo
LIS 652
April 26, 2013
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Overview
Censorship continues to be a debate in American libraries and schools. Not solely reserved for printed matter, our communities are haunted by attempts to censor the indefatigable internet. Haunted­­since, typically, people are defiant towards imposed restraints, especially those restricting their freedoms, even less so when it involves the youth. These limitations strikes fear and have range of purpose from those of the Forefathers’ intent on freedom and liberty of expression to the Communist/McCarthyism restraint of that freedom era of the 1950s. The word censorship was first noted in the Index Librorum Prohibitorum (Venice 1564) a collection of inappropriate titles created by the Catholic Church. This 16th century index was not removed until June 14, 1966 by Pope John Paul II. Most recent example of censorship took place in March 16, 2013.
Persepolis, an Iranian autobiographical graphic novel by Marjane Satrapi was banned from a school in Chicago, claiming that its material was too inappropriate for students. The novel covers issues of the Iranian revolution and intolerance from the point of a female protagonist. The reasons for removal were graphic violence and language. It is suggested that the author’s intent be covered to know their concerns for the reader. Satrapi was interviewed by a blog CoCreate about her creative process in 2012. Her thought about what to consider when writing is explained below: “When I make books I always ask myself: ‘Will the reader understand exactly what I want to say?’” she says. “When I make a film I always ask myself the question: ‘Will the viewer understand exactly what I have to say?’ Because obviously I don’t write books for myself or make movies for myself, either. ”
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Scope
This bibliographic essay serves multiple purposes. Firstly, it is for educators interested in introducing graphic novels as an educational tool to their curriculum. Secondly, there are also resources on censorship­­mostly ALA accredited materials on the web or in print. Lastly, there are resources on censorship in classrooms. Not only critical opinion on how censorship has affected the classroom but there are also law literature available for educators to refer to. No personal opinion or bias of the Chicago Public School’s decision are included in this essay. The intended audience are authors, educators, librarians and students mature enough to view the graphic novel materials. Authors included are educators, librarians who have published material on censorship­­incidents, the law and writers who publish their opinion of Persepolis’s removal from the classroom. The work discussed will be largely on censorship and minor explanation on graphic novels beyond its place in the classroom. Blog entries are also in this essay. Their inclusion in the works analyzed is imperative to observing the thoughts of the public. There are also images included at the end of the essay of examples of banned material from publications to classroom materials. Understanding Graphic Novels
Graphic novels in the classroom is not brand­new, but certainly not as long included into the syllabus as other novels like Adventures of Tom Sawyer or The Scarlet Letter. Therefore there are some materials provided how a librarian can go about reading graphic novels and choosing which stories are the best to include in their collection. These books aid librarians and educators to inform themselves about this new format of print. There has been some periodical reading put out by librarians addressing their reluctance to carry graphic novel material. 4
An illustrated article by Gene Yang, an educational technologist, from 2007, “Graphic Novels in the Classroom” is an introductory lesson on what is a graphic novel. The language is simple enough that teachers may be able to utilize as a tool in the classroom. The material may seem outdated with the thrown mention of Myspace as a relatable social media. Yet, Yang makes his point that the graphic novel is an effective education tool. Yang’s article defines the graphic novel as a new genre at time when audiences were still unsure of which one (or if could be) labeled as. Moving beyond an introductory item, a resource that can be used in a lesson plan has also been considered appropriate.
Jesse Karp through American Libraries published, “The Power of Words and Pictures: Graphic Novels in Education,” provides a discussion of the reluctance to adapt graphic novels into an academic setting. To further their point that graphic novels are effective educational tools, Karp includes a sample lesson of The Arrival. By some opinions, graphic novels have ceased to be a topic of discussion and should be incorporated as a tool. The article argues that the medium shows a range of themes and room for development for the students. Karp’s lesson plan for The Arrival provides topics such as immigration (thematic) and visual metaphors (language), and this can be deduced from the story since graphic novels have as much narrative content as other printed material. This article seeks to move graphic novels from more than “agents of desentization and proponents of violence at worst,” (Karp 34).
David S. Serchay, a Youth Services Librarian from South Florida, published The Librarian’s Guide to Graphic Novels for Adults (Neal­Schuman, 2010). As stated in the title, the text is a resource for librarians, however, the material should be interchangeable with an educator’s goal in the classroom as a librarian’s acquisitional goals. Serchay collects titles and gives them social, historical and cultural background. He, also includes an essay on the future of the graphic novel in the classroom. This 5
material, it should be noted, carries titles for adults­­meaning this material would not be appropriate for students. Serchay’s first title, “The Librarian’s Guide to Graphic Novels for Children and Tweens,” would be more fitting for the context of the classroom. It incorporates how­­graphic novels­­builds vocabulary, comprehension, decoding and story development. This should prove effective tools in the classroom. Censorship Overview and History
The etymology of censorship has an early mention in 1533 during Roman times. The censor was a person who took “censuses and oversaw public morals” (Online Etymology Dictionary). Index Librorum Prohibitorum (1564) is the first mention of censorship in text. It was found in a sourcebook compiled by the Catholic Church. An article by Fordham University, “Modern History Sourcebook: Index librorum prohibitorum, 1557­1966 [Index of Prohibited Books],” published a list of authors who had been censored (e.g., Denis Diderot, Honore Balzac, Victor Hugo). A list like this is an effective tool to illustrate the length of censorship’s history. Another view to take­­these authors were deemed inappropriate to relieve society from a norms that would eventually alter social thought, sometimes for the better or worse. Propaganda and Mass Persuasion: A Historical Encyclopedia, 1500 to the Present put out by Nicholas J. Cull includes a brief entry on censorship. For data trends in Censorship up to the late 1980s, it is recommended to browse through An American Profile­Opinions and Behavior, 1972­1989. This was edited by Floris W. Wood. There are a few tables surveying the opinion of carrying pro­communist books. One table is separate by race and another age. These tables are for observing the trend in censorship. 6
The Encyclopedia of Censorship (Facts on File Library of World History) a large compendium on matters of censorship. The work was published to connect censorship with political motive. As viewed in the index, it is a collection of censored titles, authors, reference sources, topics (i.e, human sexuality), and political actions taken against censorship. The editor states in the forward that challenges of literary titles are also included in the work. Although, it is not an outright ban of the book, challenges are precursors to the eventual ban in the classroom. Censorship in the Classroom
A large part of the Persepolis dispute is the argument of what “censorship” is. The Chicago Public School administration who order the books off the shelves used the term “challenged,” to save a full outcry from parents and other advocates of the graphic novel’s narrative. Articles on topic of the graphic novels removal from classrooms also use, “challenge” and “censored” interchangeably. Censorship can mean many things at any appropriate time. The argument inflates when one party decides what is appropriate without a parent’s consent. The titles included below will inform educators on discussions of best practices to take when censorship becomes an actual occurrence in the classroom. A good start can be found in the text, Opposing Viewpoints: Censorship (San Diego, Greenhaven Press, 2002). There are four chapters on different types of Censorship and each chapter includes the Pro and Con arguments. This is an excellent presentation for its lack of bias and ability to open the discussion to more than a vocal witch hunt. A most helpful chapter to browse for educators and librarians interested is Chapter 3, “ Should Schools and Libraries Practice Censorship?” Helen Chaffee Biehle argues in her article “Libraries Should Restrict Access to Offensive Books” that the 7
librarian is there in place of the parent and should be protecting the child from anything obscene. Biehle is aware that in the Library Bill of Rights there is no restriction of age and that limiting titles by appropriateness is censorship. She argues that complete freedom to the individual­­no supervision­­encourages reckless behavior and that this behavior will translate into the rest of society. Bruce J. Ennis writes the opposition in his article, “American Library Association Intellectual Freedom Policies and the First Amendment.” Ennis is not a library professional rather a general counsel to the Freedom to Read Foundation. Ennis is concerned with the rights, but less with the effects of unsupervised materials made accessible to young students. Ennis explains that because of the Library Bill of Rights that classroom materials cannot be removed merely by the educator’s distaste for the material. Another over text of the history on censorship to consider would be Gail Blasser Riley’s Censorship (New York, Facts on File, 1998). Riley compiles brief essays on the discussion of censorship­­it’s effects on society­­and begins to look at media and the rise of digital information. Herbert N. Foerstel’s Banned in the U.S.A. : A Reference Guide to Book Censorship in Schools and Public Libraries (Westwood, Greenwood Press, 1994) is a guide of censorship in the past. The root of the matter in this text are legal cases.
Literature of Legal Cases and Opinion of Censorship in the Classroom
ALA provides an index of questions and answers concerning censorship and challenges. Challenges occur when an individual would to like to ban a title out of concern for the youth. 8
Intellectual Freedom for Children: The Censor is Coming (ALA), gives background information on the process of title censoring. True Stories of Censorship Battles in America’s Libraries edited by Valerie Ny and Kathy Barco are first­person accounts of librarians in their pursuit to provide access to users. The chapter by Marie­Elise Wheatwind in particular ,“The Complexity and Challenges of Censorship in Public Schools” relates her experience teaching censorship in her class. Wheatwind reflects that in the past, students in her honor programs were interested in the history and process of censored titles. She found that teaching banned books encouraged students to read more. Each section of the book is divided by ideas such as collection, librarians as censor, controversy, recommendations, when to step in and parental involvement. The internet also has a heavy overlay of blogs and online articles available, such as a comic book blog, The Fabler, that published an article about four librarians that were fired for their involvement with students and graphic novels. The article raises that the event in which two librarians prevented an 11­year­old from borrowing a graphic novel for its sexual content, they were fired. The argument in this situation was the division of whether or not the librarians had any right to determine what was appropriate. Secondly, it is also discussed why because of the graphic novels­­instant visual message, that it is quickly viewed negatively whereas other titles that carry as much inappropriate material in their pages via the written word continue to stay on the shelves.
ALA themselves have been involved in some matters defending the free speech in the classroom, as mentioned in the the article by Gordon Flagg, “ALA Sues School for Banning Banned Books Week Brochure.”Anne Proffit Dupre writes about different instances of free speech in the classroom. The book Speaking Up: The Unintended Cost of Free Speech in Public Schools (Cambridge, MA, Harvard University Press, 2009) includes an essay, “Banning Books from School: The Right to Receive Speech, or Not,” covers legal matters as found in the Pico v. Board of 9
Education case. Pico v. Board of Education, Island of Trees Union v. Pico
To understand this matter of school library book removal, take into consideration the past legal cases. Law Library Journal has articles available in their online databases on the case. This was the first instance of handling censorship in the classroom with legal involvement. “The Right to Receive Information: The Ramifications of Supreme Court Decision of Board Of Education V. Pico” by Susan Nevelow Mart encaptures the decision to allow librarians the sole right to distinguish the appropriate age for titles and the right to remove titles that were not appropriate. Mapping the Ban
For educators interested in viewing how far censorship travels across the country there are maps that illustrate its demographic influence. Reviewing maps, such as these, opens the point of view and does not limit one to where censorship can occur (i.e., only small towns). Observing the places where books are challenged helps provide a new perspective about why the book would be held in question of appropriateness. Through the ALA and the Kids’ Right to Read Project, a map of all places that have banned books from 2007 ­ 2011 has been created and uploaded onto Google Maps. Each town list titles and grounds for censorship. Should ALA continue to update this tool, one can keep track of how recent these bans take place. For instance, in Illinois by 2011 there had been five different disputes in the state. One dispute includes, the New York Times Bestseller The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini which was not successfully banned by parents, due to strong objections to the book’s removal. In 2012, Chris 10
Peterson who created the original Banned Books Map, updated a sleeker and detailed map. Working with an updated list from ALA and a Banned Books Resource Guide (2012), Peterson tacks on books to a map of the United States. Peterson includes a legend to read the difference between the multi­colored dots. Peterson points out these maps should be used to track where challenges occur and should be observed that there is no trend or stereotype to be found where books are banned. Ultimately, they are banned everywhere.
The Persepolis Problem
To gauge public opinion of the current Persepolis debate there are several media outlets that have written their own articles, or uploaded news pieces on YouTube. International periodicals like The Guardian have also had their interest piqued by this event. Articles will generally give an overview of Persepolis’s plot, as well as background information on the author Marjane Satrapi. Most sources have uploaded the CEO of Chicago Public Schools, Barbara Byrd­Bennett’s, letter (Figure 1) explaining the removal of the book from school libraries. Byrd­Bennett makes claim that material is inappropriate because of images of torment (Figure 4) and, sexual imagery (Figure 2) language not fit for seventh graders. Many other librarians, educators, parents and students feel that though this may be valid, complete removal from libraries until a concrete lesson plan is provided is unnecessary. It should also be noted that the film version was banned in 2007 in Iran. There have also been reactions on part by parents that written letters to Byrd­Bennett through the website for Raise Your Hand for Illinois.
Other Graphic Novels Banned
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This entry is going to briefly mention what other graphic novels have also been challenged. Graphic novels are accumulating­­therefore their impact is much stronger in impressions on the students and concerns of the parents.
There are some authors who have illustrated their sentiment about the pressure that graphic novels receive. One novel Americus by MK Reed and Jonathan David Hill tells the story of 14­year­old Neil Barton, a shy kid that loves to read about fantasy. Most of the novel centers around his mother’s disapproval of such a genre (Figure 5). Robert Crumb has always been held under scrutiny (Figure 3). The rejected image is purposively inappropriate and provocative. Rebecca Greenfield wrote an article for Atlantic Monthly which can be accessed easily through a word search. The article, “Robert Crumb’s Invented Gay New Yorker Cover Scandal,” discusses how Crumb, in the New Yorker’s opinion, had gone too far with the illustration that was made to be pro­gay marriage. In lieu of this there are several titles dealing with rejected New Yorker staff that should be looked into by the reader. ALA provides a list of banned books via their website. These titles include most that are known, Catcher in the Rye, To Kill a Mockingbird, and most recently The Hunger Games. ALA also published a list of banned graphic novels, an article through The Huffington Post, provides the list of novels and the reasons for their challenge. Moore Collection: Underground Comix
Available through the New York Public Library database is a collection of comic books collected by comic book publisher Michael Moore. The collection spans from 1907 ­ 1993. Most of the material is adult dealing with issues of feminism, marijuana, gay and lesbian issues, abortion, and anti­war.
Conclusion
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The overwhelming opinion of the public and what can be gathered from censorship and intellectual freedom rights is that the ban on Persepolis in Chicago Public Schools should not be continuing. As pointed out in the Library Bill of Rights, that the reason for the ban should be justified, other than a distaste for the material. From the readings it can be gathered that people are very forthright about protecting their children from anything obscene but not at the expense of liberty. There remains to be a sufficient amount of education on how to approach new ideas as well as how to approach censorship in a healthy manner. Included below are the images mentioned throughout the essay with annotations. A paper on the banning of images would need to have images to exemplify the matter.
Figure1 (Barbara Byrd­Bennett’s letter to Principals of Chicago Public Schools)
Letter sent out by, CEO of Chicago Public Schools, Barbara Byrd­Bennett to all principals. Byrd­Bennet’s letter was circulated by news media outlets and contributed to Chicago community’s outrage that Persepolis was being removed from classrooms, but not banned as Byrd­Bennett states. 13
Figure 2 (Persepolis, Marjane Satrapi) The two cells (above) displays images of what would be the foul language carried on throughout the novel.
Figure 3 (New Yorker, Robert Crumb)
Illustrator and provocateur Robert Crumb’s drawing for the New Yorker when they requested a cover 14
drawing for the Same­Sex Marriage Issue. Figure 4 (Persepolis, Marjane Satrapi
Most exemplary display of torture from Persepolis. Image not included is the man being tortured, has later been cut up by the interrogators. 15
Figure 5 (Americus MK Reed, Jonathan David Hill)
Americus is a graphic novel about banning books that might be of interest to readers. 16
Reference
● Association for Library Service to Children.(2000) Intellectual Freedom for Children: The Censor is Coming. ALA. ● ALA. (2010, September 28). [Web log message]. Retrieved from http://www.huffingtonpost.com/american­library­association/banned­books­2010­graphic­nove
ls_b_740726.html
● de Vlaming, K. (2009, October 28). [Web log message]. Retrieved from http://thefablerblog.com/kevins­column/the­fabler­blog­presents­four­famous­comic­book­real­
life­witch­hunts
● Dupre, A.P. (2009). Speaking up: The unintended costs of free speech in public schools. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press
● Foerstel, H.N. (1994) Banned in the U.S.A. : A Reference Guide to Book Censorship in Schools and Public Libraries. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press.
● Geller, E .(1984). Forbidden Books in American Public Libraries, 1876­1939: A Study in Cultural Change. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press.
● Greenfield, R. (2011, November 11). Robert crumb's invented gay new yorker cover scandal.The Atlantic, Retrieved from http://www.theatlanticwire.com/business/2011/11/robert­crumbs­invented­gay­new­yorker­cov
er­scandal/44889/
● Hasall, P. (1998, May). Modern history sourcebook: index librorum prohibitorum, 1557­1966 [index of prohibited books]. Retrieved from http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/mod/indexlibrorum.asp
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● Karp, J. (July 2011). The Power of Words and Pictures: Graphic Novels in Education. American Libraries, 42 ( 7 & 8), 33­3. ● Katten, W. [Web log message]. Retrieved from http://ilraiseyourhand.org/content/letter­barbara­byrd­bennett
● Mart, S. (2003). The Right to Receive Information. Law Library Journal, 95(2), 175­189.
● Nye, V., & Barco, K. (2012). True Stories of Censorship Battles in America’s Libraries. Chicago: ALA Chicago Press.
● Peterson, C. (2012, October 19). Mapping banned books. Retrieved from http://civic.mit.edu/blog/petey/mapping­banned­books­2012
● Robbins, L.S. (2000). The Dismissal of Miss Ruth Brown: Civil Rights, Censorship, and the American Library. University of Oklahoma Press, 2000. ● Satrapi, M. (2000). Persepolis: The story of a childhood. New York: Pantheon.
● Satrapi, M. (2004). Persepolis: The story of a return. New York: Pantheon.
● Schultz, C. (2013, March 18). [Web log message]. Retrieved from http://litreactor.com/news/chicago­public­schools­deems­persepolis­inappropriate­for­7th­grad
ers
● Serchay, D.S. (2010). The Librarian's Guide to Graphic Novels for Adults. New York: Neal­Schuman.
● Yang, G. (2008). Graphic novels in the classroom.Language Arts, 85(3), 185. Retrieved from http://www.ecu.edu/cs­lib/trc/upload/Gene_Yang_article.pdf