What if I told you that there was a movement going on right under our noses to actively harm kids? An anaconda slithering around thousands of kids' necks crushing them slowly. I am talking about book bans. Just this last year there has been almost double the amount of cases against books in the U.S. So why? The people who are getting these books banned aren't working for the better, despite what they might say. Here’s what’s happening.

In current times book banning hasn't been focused on protecting kids but on retaining and keeping away knowledge that will be crucial to them as they grow up and banning books that have characters that a lot of kids can relate to. With no access to stories and characters that could help them, kids will undoubtedly feel lost and alone. “Levin-Sheldon is the Virginia chapter president of the conservative parents-rights group No Left Turn in Education. Her organization compiles a list of books it says are ‘used to spread radical and racist ideologies to students’ and ‘divide us as a people to indoctrinate kids to a dangerous ideology’...Other works, however, particularly ones that touch on human sexuality in explicit detail, should be outright prohibited, the group argues.’When it comes to pornography and pedophilia,’ Levin-Sheldon says, ‘that's when we want those books removed.’ (Why Are Certain Books Being Banned in the U.S. by Anthony Zurcher. BBC) But the thing is the books on that list do not contain pedophilia or pornography. Many of the things they are claiming are pedophilia and pornography are simple stories of LGBTQ+ people. Calling LGBTQ+ people pedophiles is untrue and downright offensive and will send a message to kids that are gay or transgender that they aren't "normal” and they are “sick”.

             From what conservatives say you might think that the books are harmful but one of the books people are trying to get banned is “And Tango Makes Three'' This book is about two penguins Roy and Simon who are in love and the zoo they live at gives them a baby penguin. The book is about a family of penguins yet it has been banned because a school teacher in Florida has objections to it that include a second grader could read it, “and the idea would pop into their mind that these are two people of the same sex that love each other." (Last Week Tonight with John Oliver Episode 10.2 Ron Desantis) It's horrifying that people think this but sure enough “And Tango Makes Three'' was banned. In fact “This book was the most challenged book in 2006, 2007, 2008, and ultimately the 6th most banned book between 2010 and 2019 according to the  American Library Association.” 

                      Furthermore, the novel “Beyond Magenta” which is a collection of trans and gender non-conforming peoples stories was also banned. This book could have helped a lot of kids wondering about their gender identities but now kids will be cut off from any source that could help them, making many people isolated and depressed in the states where this book has been banned.  Even more, evidence that shows how they are trying to ban books that don’t contain any of the stuff on the many lists they have, “Another Republican, Henry McMaster, the governor of South Carolina, asked for an investigation into what he called ‘obscene and pornographic;’ materials in the state’s public schools, specifically mentioning the book “Gender Queer: A Memoir,” by Maia Kobabe, which the library association said was the most frequently challenged book in the country last year.”( Book Banning Effort Surged in 2021. These Titles Were the Most Targeted by Elizabeth A. Harris and Alexandra Alter New York Times) These quotes all show how they don't want to ban books with “obscene and pornographic material”; they want to ban books about LGBTQ+, gender identity, and minorities because they don’t like it and want to keep people from learning about it. “This week, Tennessee lawmakers went further and passed a bill that would subject book publishers and distributors to criminal prosecution and hefty fines for providing public schools with material that is deemed to be obscene. In a statement, PEN called on Gov. Bill Lee to reject the bill, arguing that it serves no purpose other than to intimidate publishers into self-censorship. Similarly, after Tennessee passed the ‘; Age Appropriate Materials Act,’ which required schools to catalog all the books in their classrooms and libraries to ensure there was no inappropriate content, some teachers chose to remove or cover up their entire classroom libraries rather than risk violating the law.”( Book Bans Rising Rapidly in the U.S, Free Speech Groups Find by Alexandra Alter. New York Times)

                         The books they are trying to ban and at the rate they are banning them shows how much the politicians want to control what people know, but why? As the last paragraph shows, most of the books they are trying to get banned aren't bad. The reason they are trying to ban them is because of small-minded bigotry. If you have read some of the books that have been banned you will see a common theme among them. They talk about racism, misogyny, homophobia, transphobia, xenophobia, and more. Conservatives are afraid that kids and teens will see characters like them and feel less alone and afraid to be themselves and once they don’t feel ashamed or afraid to be themselves the people banning the books will feel threatened and I honestly see why, the republican solution is to make sure kids and teens feel as isolated and alone as possible so they remain afraid and more likely to confine themselves into what conservatives want them to be, not who they are. It is not just a war on books; it's a war on knowledge and not just kids and teens are feeling the awful effects of the bans “It's not just teachers. Librarians have come under attack, too. In a Michigan town, librarians were targeted with a torrent of abuse after residents learned that the library contained books on LGBTQ themes; the town then decided to defund its only library.” (Opinion: Conservatives think that education is a threat. They’re right by Paul Waldman. The Washington Post) It is crazy that people would get rid of an entire library to keep a few books out, so many kids will be cut off from not just LGBTQ+ books but tons of books. People who are trying to get books banned might think they are helping end a war of indoctrination and saving kids but from the evidence so far that is very misaligned with the truth.  

The right-wing organization No Left Turn in Education’s website states “...Find out who are the organizations who are poisoning our children's minds, assaulting our families, turning us against each other, attacking the very foundation of human society and are set to destroy our nation from within.” Now you might see this and think about terrorist groups or people harming people but the organizations they cite are 

Newsela
The Human Rights Campaign Foundation
GLAAD
Southern Poverty Law Center 
All of these organizations want to improve people's lives and most have articles and places to go to get information, one of the main reasons the conservatives hate them. “...the Human Rights Campaign strives to end discrimination against LGBTQ+ people and realize a world that achieves fundamental fairness and equality for all. HRC envisions a world where lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer people plus community members who use different language to describe identity are ensured equality and embraced as full members of society at home, at work, and in every community.” These organizations want to give kids the education they need that's why conservatives hate them. 

Book bans have been going on forever from the time of 213 BCE when tons of Confusius’s writings were burned to when Shakespeare's Richard the Third was banned in England. For all time book bannings have benefited the leaders who have sought to oppress people's freedoms, but this shouldn't be happening now. It will have a serious impact on lots of people's mental health. Books bans are not working for good and are doing so much harm and that's the point of them. So why are we letting them continue? There are measures we can take to combat these waves of hate. People aren't angry enough about book bans but they should be. So don’t immediately forget what you read in this essay. We need to combat the insanity that is these bans or else.