"Someone Ate the Baby"

I really enjoyed going to the ACLU event on Monday night. It was fun and inspiring to be in a crowd of people who so obviously cared about the freedom to speak, sing, and read. Kristen and I were noticing that the crowd was generally middle-aged people or older, with only a few exceptions (like us!). That was a little surprising to me, especially because so many instances of banned and challenged books are relevant to a younger generation.
The event was held in honor of Judith Krug, who founded Banned Book Week. I didn’t know that she was a Pittsburgh native (and went to University of Pittsburgh) – that was neat to find out. At the event I was impressed by the large range of presentations and readings – there was a dramatic piece, Shel Silverstein’s poetry, songs, children’s books. It really made an impression on me in how censorship is present among all media, and I admired that even during a week dedicated to banned books, the planners of the event made the effort to make this clear.
The presentation I really enjoyed was the reading of Shel Silverstein’s poem “Paul Bunyan.” I grew up having these poems read to me, and this summer I revisted them as I read them at night to my campers at the overnight camp I worked at. It never once crossed my mind that they would be banned or challenged. In “Paul Bunyan” there is brief mention of an untraditional heaven and hell, and in other poem’s Shel writes of childhood disobedience, rebelliousness, or (my favorite) cannibalism. This particular reading made an impact on me because it made me see how something I associate with my childhood and innocence can be seen as threatening to others – how fascinating (and scary).
One of the most interesting points that were made during the evening was the cartoonist Joe Wos’s comment that nonsense in literature is dangerous because it leaves space for critics and censors to impose their own meanings on the language. I think this is an interesting view that highlights the degree to which censorship can manipulate or frame a piece of literature. Also, Sheila Jackson, Assistant Director of the Main Library of the Carnegie Libraries of Pittsburgh, said during her opening greetings that “we must always try to be neutral.” I think she meant that we must always try to be open to new ideas in books, even if they don’t align exactly with our personal beliefs. However, her statement made me think. Perhaps it is just as dangerous for us to be neutral as for others to censor or challenge books. After all, all the people at this event were not being neutral – instead they were coming out to support a cause, coming together to celebrate the freedom to read. This is the last point I would like to make. At first I was a little taken aback by the lightheartedness of the evening (since we were talking about what I see as a serious issue). But I soon realized that these readings were meant as a celebration, and that’s what this night truly was. It was a very neat feeling to be a part of that.

I will admit, I sang along to banned songs enthusiastically with the rest of the crowd, but please don’t make me demonstrate in class. Just take Kristen’s word for it.