33. More Thoughts on Censorship

In a perverse way, the backlash against the librarians who posted on the LM net objecting to "scrotum" will itself have a chiling effect on free speech.

The LM network is designed for librarians and educators to ask questions, air concerns, and get helpful suggestions in their jobs as school, public and private librarians. The controvery started when a librarian wrote a simple question about reading THE HIGHER POWER OF LUCKY aloud to grade school kids who might focus on the word scrotum for its titilating value. She expressed the opinion that the whole 'rattlesnake bites dog scrotum' scenario added little to the book and just made it harder for her to read aloud.

This prompted others to express opinions on THPOL and brought the debate into sharper relief.

I do think Americans tend to get side-tracked by all things that can be construed in any way as sexual. But I also think that sites where people can ask questions or express opinions are important. They can help librarians and educators share insights about books, about coping with rowdy kids who will disrupt a read-aloud, about dealing with parents' concerns, and most importantly about having the spine to stand up for words.

We need to make sure that, in our rush to defend free expression and guard against censorship, we don't inadvertantly make the same mistake.