Think About the Children! Ban the “Filth” from Libraries!

Recently, my daughter and I started a podcast, Classics & Coffee, where we drink coffee and discuss literature. We do five books per season, one joint selection and two book selections apiece. One of my books selections for season one was Toni Morrison’s The Bluest Eye. I chose this book, partly, because I am teaching it this semester. I also chose it because it pairs well with Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s Americanah. Both books deal with, in various ways, representation and Western ideals of beauty. Over the years, Morrison’s novel has been one of the most banned and challenged books, according to the American Library Association. Individuals challenge The Bluest Eye for its depiction of sexual abuse and because they claim it is sexually explicit.

Doing a Twitter search for “The Bluest Eye” pulls up a myriad of posts from people listing, as Tressie McMillian Cottom does, the novel as foundational in their lives. Along with these posts, others claim the book should not be made available, especially in school libraries. The Bluest Eye is written at an eighth grade reading level, but I’d…