I’m torn on this one because these books are smut, and not particularly good smut. but Porn is different, it’s visual. The distinction between school libraries and public libraries is important, and school libraries cannot be infinite, so choosing to remove books like the ACOTAR series in favor of other, more relevant books for kids is fine. but in High School I had access to some gruelingly violent books in our school library, I struggle to see how violence should be considered acceptable but sex shouldn’t be.
In HS, as part of the official curriculum decided on by the lit teachers in my school, I read “Staying Fat for Sarah Byrnes” which contains discussions of many controversial topics, landing most of its focus on abortion. The teachers correctly understood that we were old enough to take in and have out own thoughts on the topics discussed in the book. It seems insane to try to gate keep topics that teens are definitely aware of and discussing and seeking out on their own. I’d rather my kids read stuff in text and ask questions about it and make decisions about it on their own than fully block it out so they just seek out actual porn. I think ACOTAR, which I’ve read the first 4 in the series, is fine for a teenager to read, and shouldn’t be banned. And I think if a 5th grader tried to read it, they’d probably reject it for being a bit tough to read anyway.
I struggle to see how violence should be considered acceptable but sex shouldn’t be.
I think that’s a fair distinction to take issue with.
I don’t think that any one person should dictate what schools can or cannot have. It’s a collaborative decision. And I think that maybe if society puts more emphasis on limiting children’s exposure to violence like they do sexual content, that’s how a cultural change happens. And that’s all well and good. People having different views are fine, encouraged even. But getting mad that their fringe views aren’t immediately adopted by the majority… feels a lot like one person trying to dictate for the majority based on their personal views…
I’m torn on this one because these books are smut, and not particularly good smut. but Porn is different, it’s visual. The distinction between school libraries and public libraries is important, and school libraries cannot be infinite, so choosing to remove books like the ACOTAR series in favor of other, more relevant books for kids is fine. but in High School I had access to some gruelingly violent books in our school library, I struggle to see how violence should be considered acceptable but sex shouldn’t be.
In HS, as part of the official curriculum decided on by the lit teachers in my school, I read “Staying Fat for Sarah Byrnes” which contains discussions of many controversial topics, landing most of its focus on abortion. The teachers correctly understood that we were old enough to take in and have out own thoughts on the topics discussed in the book. It seems insane to try to gate keep topics that teens are definitely aware of and discussing and seeking out on their own. I’d rather my kids read stuff in text and ask questions about it and make decisions about it on their own than fully block it out so they just seek out actual porn. I think ACOTAR, which I’ve read the first 4 in the series, is fine for a teenager to read, and shouldn’t be banned. And I think if a 5th grader tried to read it, they’d probably reject it for being a bit tough to read anyway.
I think that’s a fair distinction to take issue with.
I don’t think that any one person should dictate what schools can or cannot have. It’s a collaborative decision. And I think that maybe if society puts more emphasis on limiting children’s exposure to violence like they do sexual content, that’s how a cultural change happens. And that’s all well and good. People having different views are fine, encouraged even. But getting mad that their fringe views aren’t immediately adopted by the majority… feels a lot like one person trying to dictate for the majority based on their personal views…