Five books were banned in Rapid City, South Dakota, the site of Mount Rushmore National Memorial, in an action that was made possible when four new school board members were elected after right-wing non-profit organizations funded their campaigns.
Quickly after these officials were sworn into their positions, conservative parents and private citizens came out of the woodwork complaining about books in the public schools and libraries. Despite outcry from students and teachers, this ban was allowed to persist lawfully.
MSNBC Films’ new documentary To Be Destroyed explores this situation through the eyes of Rapid City educators and students, as well as Dave Eggers, the author of the banned book The Circle. Viewers watch Eggers’ campaign with his publishers and educators to reverse the ban and bring these books back to willing readers. As heartwarming as it is to see students and teachers coming together in the community, it is also distressing that they have to in the first place.
This is not the only instance of book banning in the United States. Since its inception, book bans have been prevalent in the United States, prohibiting titles such as The Decameron and Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales for lurid and grotesque depictions and humor. Many authors we consider among the greats, like Earnest Hemingway and F. Scott Fitzgerald, had their works banned in the 1920s in Boston, over nuanced critiques on war and romantic relationships.
More recently, of course, we’ve seen the rise in book bans for content teaching or referring to racism, LGBTQ+ topics or socialism. Most of these bans are in Texas, Florida, South Carolina, Utah, and Missouri. The most banned books are Gender Queer: A Memoir by Maia Kobabe, All Boys Aren’t Blue by George M. Johnson, This Book Is Gay by Juno Dawson, The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky, Flamer by Mike Curato, The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison, Me and Earl and the Dying Girl by Jess Andrews, Tricks by Ellen Hopkins, Let’s Talk About It: The Teen’s Guide to Sex, Relationships and Being a Human by Erika Moen and Mathew Nolan, and Sold by Patricia McCormick.
Even more distressing is under another Donald Trump presidency, should they implement Project 2025, these kinds of books will be classified as pornography, pornography they intend to outlaw and, therefore, educators and public librarians who are reported shepherding any kind of sex education or LGBTQ+ material will be sentenced and registered as sex offenders. So, they are not just book bans, but they intend to create new ways to criminalize marginalized groups through information and education.
What’s fascinating to me about this, personally, is that I was raised by an elementary school teacher librarian, and my sister now works as a librarian in Toronto, Ontario. I understand how much pressure is put on educators and librarians and wholeheartedly agree with Rapid City High School English Teacher Sean Bradley when he said, “I don’t have time to indoctrinate students.” Because, of course, that’s what the far-right conservatives think is happening when teachers introduce material dealing with racism or LGBTQ+ identities. In reality, teaching isn’t just 1+1 or the difference between there, they’re, and their; it’s about the little things they discipline daily that encourage better conflict resolution, emotional control, manners, time management, etc.
And librarians? Do you have any idea how much of society they serve? The fundamental basis of the library system is freedom of information. That means low-income families use library computers and books to do homework, file taxes, and participate in society. Unhoused people can use library services to change their circumstances. Librarians offer free family time services, tech support, educational seminars, second language conversation circles, etc. These are vital services, and they do not have time to indoctrinate students. Their job is to help facilitate access to what people need, no matter what it is. It’s all about freedom and access.
What hits so hard in To Be Destroyed is watching these high school students defend their teachers and talk about how these books that the school board banned had made them feel seen or given them the ability to see a perspective they’d never seen before. Then, we see how the argumentative far-right groups dismiss their arguments and feelings. It’s an unpleasant scene depicting just how divided the United States is, despite that these kids are the future. No matter how poorly you treat them, they will be heard.
To Be Destroyed airs Sunday, August 11 at 9PM ET on MSNBC.
Published: Jul 23, 2024 02:01 pm