Un-banned
Our literature continues to come of age; the educational merit of Canadian books are being challenged at home and abroad. Bookslut’s blog has closely followed a story in which Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale was the subject of a challenge and a shortlived ban by the Judson Independent School District near San Antonio, Texas. The superintendent banned it after a complaint from a parent. But in a stunning turn of events, reported masterfully by San Antonio Express-News reporter Jenny Lacoste-Caputo, the board members voted 5 to 2 to reinstate it.
A senior named Craig Gagne spoke in defense of the book and his speech drew applause. (In Other Media can only hope that it began with one brave applauder and then spread quickly through the room.) What did Gagne say? “If we do ban The Handmaid’s Tale because of sexual content, then why not ban Huckleberry Finn for racism? Why not ban The Crucible for witchcraft? Why not ban The Things They Carried for violence and why not ban the Bible and argue separation of church and state? …All the books I just mentioned are part of the 11th-grade Judson High School English curriculum. I read and appreciated all of these books and would like future classes to have the same privilege.”
The reaction from the board’s vice-president Richard LaFoille is classic. The Lacoste-Caputo story makes it sound as though LaFoille just threw up his hands in the face of freedom-lovers like Gagne, who, based on his quote, has probably watched too many courtroom dramas. Says LaFoille: “I don’t see how we can ban this book…. You kids want this book, I’m going to give it to you.”
The piece de resistance, though, is the quote from Kwon Pyo, the husband of the woman who objected to The Handmaid’s Tale on the grounds that it was sexually explicit and offensive to Christians. “I’m appalled by this trash book…. When garbage goes in, garbage comes out. This is trash and it will corrupt the American youth.”
From sea to shining sea.
Related links:
Click here for the San Antonio Express-News
