WHAT'S APPROPRIATE? WHO DECIDES?

Some often-challenged books. Photo by Mihir Kumar, 12

A 10-year-old girl and her mother were browsing in a library's children's section. The little girl began to read "It's Perfectly Normal," a sex-education book written by Robie H. Harris and published by Candlewick Press.

After reading the chapter on child abuse, the girl looked at her mother, pointed to the book and said: "That's me." The girl's abuser, her father, is now serving a 60-year prison term.

The book that led to his conviction is the most challenged book in American libraries.

Judith F. Krug, one of the country's foremost experts on book censorship, shared this story in a recent interview with Y-Press. She was in Indianapolis last month to speak at a conference and dinner sponsored by the American Civil Liberties Union of Indiana.

Krug's point was that no one should censor what others want to read, particularly because everyone has different life experiences.

"Some of the less palatable parts of life include the fact that young people are abused, and they're abused in many ways," Krug said. "They can be abused mentally, emotionally and physically. And very often when that happens, young people go to librarians, go to their local library, to find out information."

Krug is a key player in the fight against censorship in public libraries. She is the director of the American Library Association's Office for Intellectual Freedom, and co-founder of the Freedom to Read Foundation.

Public libraries have long been places where a community can find information of all kinds. Krug advocates access to information for all library patrons.

But Micah Clark, executive director of the American Family Association of Indiana, has a different point of view. He doesn't see banning books as pure censorship and believes that sometimes children need to be protected from reading adult material.

"We believe that kids should not have access to everything under the sun," he said. "There's certain things as a parent I believe are appropriate and certain things that aren't."

The problem arises with the question of what is appropriate, especially for children.

Some people think children should be protected from certain subjects. Krug believes that if children are curious about a subject and ask questions, they are ready to learn about it. And if they can understand the topic, then they are ready for it. If they don't understand it, it won't hurt them.

'Fluff' rarely challenged

"The kinds of materials that are challenged are materials that say something about humankind," Krug said. "There is rarely a book that's challenged that is a fluffy book."

Clark said protesting certain library material is not the same as censorship or book banning.

"A lot of times, I don't think it's a book that they object to having in the library, unless it's pornographic," he said. "What they tend to object to is having a book that they believe is inappropriate in the children's section. "

Krug disagreed.

{mosimage}"To me, that's a degree of censorship because the material is being removed from the area of the library for which it was written, produced and acquired," she said. "And if you move it out of there, then the people who were supposed to have access to it are not going to be able to find it."

Every Indianapolis-Marion County Public Library location has "Request for Reconsideration" forms that users can fill out if they want to challenge a book's suitability.

The forms are sent to Elaine Drew, director of collection management for the library system. She evaluates the material and responds to the patron about her decision.

No material has ever been removed from the library after a request for reconsideration, she said. But once, a videotape available to children was moved to the adult section.

The most recent reconsideration request at Indianapolis libraries concerned the book "Looking After Murphy," a children's picture book by Jamie Rix. It includes a habitually lying grandma who loses her grandchildren's hamster and tries to lie her way out of it by buying them a look-alike.

Other books recently challenged:

"The Bad Driver's Handbook," by Zack Arnstein. This tongue-in-cheek adult nonfiction book presents itself as a guidebook on how a driver can annoy, frustrate and endanger those around him or her.

"The Lonely Doll," a children's picture book by Dare Wright first published in 1957. It includes a picture of a doll being spanked by a teddy bear.

"A Million Little Pieces," by James Frey. The adult nonfiction book is about Frey's drug abuse and recovery; he later admitted that he fabricated parts of the book. {mosimage}

"Prom," by Laurie Halse Anderson. This teen fiction book includes cursing, sex and a math teacher who steals money intended for the prom.

"Slow Death," by Jim Fielder. This nonfiction adult book is filled with the kidnapping, rape and torture of women.

With the more than 2.1 million items that the Indianapolis-Marion County Public Library provides, there is bound to be material that is inappropriate for some children.

Parental guidance required

Krug said parents are responsible for instilling in children certain values and principles, including what is appropriate and inappropriate.

"You need to talk to your children, because they will understand what you don't want them to read," she said. "And if you're really concerned, go to the library with them."

Librarians aren't babysitters, she said.

Clark concurred. Dropping the kids off at the library is like placing your kids in front of the TV or the computer without supervision, he said.

But Clark also believes that the libraries are partly responsible for shielding kids from inappropriate material. Many people believe that society has a responsibility to protect children, and the library is no exception.

"That's what the purpose of library boards are, and that's why I believe it's best to have citizens who are representative of the community on the board, such as parents, a minister and a school teacher," he explained.

Krug countered that people have no right to decide what may or may not be appropriate for other people.

"We had a 16-year-old in the library looking at breasts when the librarian went over to her and said 'That's inappropriate behavior!' " Krug said. "But the teenager thought she had a breast tumor and wanted to check out the site. And she left the library in tears and never came back."

Krug said that keeping kids uninformed about topics won't stop them from being interested. If they're interested in sex, they have questions about it, she said.

"The way to protect children is education. I am a firm believer in education. You can't educate kids without telling them about the problem," said Krug, who has been the director of the library association's Office for Intellectual Freedom since it was founded in 1967.

"We govern ourselves effectively only if we have information," she said.

Censor your own reading but not that of others, Krug said.

"In a public library, if you don't like what you're reading, or your mother or father doesn't like what you're reading, put the book down," she said, "and pick up something else, because there might be somebody out there who reads that work or who thinks it's important or who gains something from it."

ASSISTANT EDITOR: Ben Dorson, 16

REPORTER: Jake Thornburgh, 13