Pensacola, FL– Aren’t you glad the archaic days of book banning and burning are behind us? Oh wait, they’re not.
In efforts to groom high school students into complacent drones, Booker T. Washington High School banned the acclaimed novel Little Brother due to “concerns that some parents might object to scenes involving sex and violence and the idea of questioning authority.”
Teens questioning authority? What a foreign concept. The book, which was intended for the summer reading program, centers on four teenagers who rebel against the Department of Homeland Security in the wake of a terrorist attack.
Author Cory Doctorow discussed the issue with the school’s principal, Dr. Michael Roberts. Doctorow wrote on his blog that Roberts “made it clear…the book was being challenged because of its politics and its content.”
In response, Doctorow sent 200 free copies of his novel to the high school students, “because it’s the first school where any of my novels has been challenged by the school administration.”
Despite the ban, Doctorow believes his book creates an opportunity for resolution. “The right way to address controversial subjects is through discourse. Students and schools around the world have had fruitful discussions that started with Little Brother.”
[about_faith]
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