Peter Pan has joined the ranks of Harry Potter, becoming a newly added member of the Texas Public Schools banned- and-challenged book list released Monday.
The list of 62 books is compiled yearly by the American Civil Liberties Union. Also on the list are "Brave New World" by Aldous Huxley and "Of Mice and Men" by John Steinbeck.
This is the eighth year ACLU has released a report indexing books challenged by parents, teachers and librarians in Texas schools for containing what they believe to be inappropriate content.
"We're opposed to censorship of any kind in schools," said Lauri Apple, director of the banned books project for the ACLU. "It should be up to the kids to decide what they read. They have to learn about things sooner or later."
Books are challenged due to various reasons, including sexual content, language and mysticism. In previous years, Harry Potter was the most challenged book, but this year no single book outranked others.
Sexual content was the main reason for challenge this year. The report states, "It appears that some religious activists consider that any description of sex, outside the context of abstinence, encourages promiscuity. The increasing trend to oppose books for this reason is disturbing, due to the illustrated need for increased sex education in schools."
The second most common reason for challenge was profanity and inappropriate language.
Just because a book is challenged by a parent or other authority figure, it is not necessarily banned. In Austin schools there is a formal process that begins with a form that the complainant must fill out and sign. The principal then appoints a committee that determines whether or not it should be banned or restricted.
The Austin Independent School District's policy states, "The major criterion for the final decision on challenged materials is the appropriateness of the material for its intended educational use. No challenged library material shall be removed solely because of the ideas expressed therein."
Two books have been challenged in AISD schools this year: "I Saw Esau: The Schoolchild's Pocketbook" and the "Junie B. Jones" series.
"Obviously you can't read every book you put into a library, but our librarians are very sensitive to age-appropriate material," said Elizabeth Polk, director of library services for AISD. "We try to take into consideration the maturity levels of kids and how well the books support the school's curriculum."
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