Examining Patterns within Challenged or Banned Primary Elementary Books

Devanne R Lawson,John Holden Bickford

doi:10.46303/jcsr.02.01.2

Devanne R Lawson, John Holden Bickford

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.46303/jcsr.02.01.2

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Abstract

Public schools and public libraries often receive challenges—suppression or removal requests—to particular books, which can lead the book being banned. Research has examined challenges to books with multicultural themes and individuals, noted that authors of color are disproportionally targeted, and recognized the remarkable number of challenges to books deemed to be classic. This qualitative content analysis research utilized both with inductive and deductive elements—open coding and axial coding—to examine challenged books intended for primary elementary students. The theoretical framework blended critical multiculturalism, gay and lesbian identity, and radical politics in children’s literature. Findings included patterns based on era, frequency and location of challenge, demography of challenger, and oft-challenged themes, specifically sexuality (sexual reproduction and diverse sexualities), inappropriate humor, danger, death, racial and religious diversity, mysticism and wizardry, racially or culturally insensitive elements, concerning interpersonal dynamics, and evolution. Meaning is extracted for teachers, librarians, administrators, and researchers.

Highlights

Leslea Newman’s (1989) Heather has Two Mommies, in which homosexual characters first prominently appeared in American children’s literature,1 sparked affirmation and condemnation
Research has examined challenges to books with multicultural themes and individuals, noted that authors of color are disproportionally targeted, and recognized the remarkable number of challenges to books deemed to be classic. This qualitative content analysis research utilized both with inductive and deductive elements—open coding and axial coding—to examine challenged books intended for primary elementary students
The American Library Association (ALA)’s website reports commonly challenged books compiled by year and historically, known challenges by year and decade, by grade range, of books deemed classic by Radcliffe Publishing (n.d.), and of books with diverse themes and uncommon individuals

Summary

INTRODUCTION

Leslea Newman’s (1989) Heather has Two Mommies, in which homosexual characters first prominently appeared in American children’s literature, sparked affirmation and condemnation. The Office of Intellectual Freedom (OIF) of the American Library Association (ALA) compiles lists of challenged or banned books using news sources, court documents, and other credible contemporaneous records. The ALA’s website reports commonly challenged books compiled by year and historically, known challenges by year and decade, by grade range, of books deemed classic by Radcliffe Publishing (n.d.), and of books with diverse themes and uncommon individuals. Diverse themes— which OIF and ALA articulated as people of color and of various sexualities, identities, physical. A gap appears both in the research literature and within OIF and ALA websites. No one has examined patterns within challenged or banned books intended for the youngest readers. This article examines patterns within challenged or banned books intended for primary elementary readers

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