People are worrying about what seems to be a sudden spike in proposed book bannings and book burnings. After a Tennessee school district banned the graphic novel “Maus,” which tells the story of a Holocaust survivor, people have been up in arms about banning books. Every year, communities and school districts challenge and ban books for various reasons. Whether the book is harmful or not is up for debate.

There has definitely been a major rise in media coverage over school districts and libraries getting rid of banning books. The decision to ban “Maus” in a Tennessee school district sparked quite a debate. The supporters claim that the book is too graphic for readers while the people against the ban have more to say. They claim that banning “Maus” is a form of history erasure and n*zi sympathizing. Also “Maus” is very obviously a book about the Holocaust which is one of the world history’s biggest tragedies. None of the content is the graphic novel is surprising; the reader knows what the Holocaust is and what went happened during that time. “Maus” is a very toned down version of what really happened during WWII. 

Looking over lists of recent years most commonly challenged/banned books, most are literature about minorities. Jason Reynolds, a black author who shows his activism in his books usually written in the perspective of a child of color, has had a number of challenged/banned books. He often shares his experiences with constantly having to deal with people opposing his books. It’s not just Reynolds who deals with this. Authors of color or books addressing racial issues are some of the most common books taken off the shelves. 

Another group of people that is facing censorship is the LGBTQ+ community. Books written from the perspective of a trans person are usually taken down very quickly. There are many books with queer characters that are stripped from the shelves because being queer is a “sensitive topic.” Queer people are everywhere and aren’t something that needs to be hidden. Almost every person in America knows at least one person who identifies with the LGBTQ+ community. 

A huge problem with banning books is historical erasure. “Maus” is a perfect example of how people are trying to shield and cover up historical stories. Learning history is vital to our progression as a society because it shows us what not to do and helps societies avoid repeating mistakes.  Erasure and denying of the Holocaust has been a problem for decades. It happened. Yes it makes people uncomfortable and it was grotesque but that’s why we can’t pretend it didn’t happen. Holocaust survivors didn’t share their experiences so they could be censored and shut down, they shared their experiences to educate and prevent people from creating another genocide. 

No matter what your beliefs are, censoring books that have opposing opinions is not how it should be handled. Exposing yourself to media of varying perspectives is very important so that we can broaden our horizons and educate ourselves. Books that are dangerous, such as The Anarchist Cookbook, which teaches readers how to make at-home explosives, have valid reasons to be banned, but trying to shelter people from different perspectives is not. One thing we have to learn is that we don’t have to agree with what we read and see. Exposing yourself to differing views is a good thing that educates us.