Two counties in southern Mississippi have banned Jon Stewart’s America (The Book). The ban affects eight public libraries in Jackson and George counties in Mississippi.
Wal-Mart is also refusing to carry the book.
The controversy lies in a single page of the book, which features the heads of the nine Supreme Court justices superimposed over naked bodies. On the opposite page are cutouts of the justices’ robes, and the caption asks readers to “restore their dignity by matching each justice with his or her respective robe.”
“I’ve been a librarian for 40 years and this is the only book I’ve objected to so strongly that I wouldn’t allow it to circulate,” said Robert Willits, director of the Jackson-George Regional Library System.
Full story from AP, CBC or Google News
Update 11 Jan: The ban has been lifted thanks to the local, nationwide and even worldwide attention.”It was a difficult decision to withhold the book from circulation (initially), but we felt there was so much public interest in it (recently) that the community might be better served if we made the book available,” said library board chairman David Ables.
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Azzurra
Jan 11, 2005
Hi, Michael — just wanted to let you know that from LJ if you click on the links it doesn’t get you anywhere, but from your blog it does. Hell, for all I know, you’re doing this on purpose — this way, we have to come to your site to follow the links.
thud
Jan 11, 2005
Saw the link on Slashdot – Just thought you should know that the book has now apparently been un-banned in this Mississippi library after much well-deserved ridicule. This was reported on local talk radio in Jackson this morning.
foooo
Jan 11, 2005
If I were a book seller I might not sell this book due to the nude picture. Additionally if I were a public library I might not want to put this book out there for children to view.
Personally, I have nothing against Jon… his show is really funny and I’m definately not a prude. But I think that there is room for this kind of decision in public libraries… and certianly a business is allowed to sell or not sell whatever book it chooses.
As for your choice of words, the use of the word BAN is a little inflamatory. It would be more apropriate to say that the library will not be circulating the book. (Which is the actual quote from the librarian.) It should be noted that under your definition the magazines Playboy and Only Eighteen are “banned” from many libraries. Not because of government censorship… but because it just doesn’t make sense to circulate this kind of … erm… literature. You could also say rare, out of print or obscure books are “banned” just because they aren’t in circulation.
Essentially I believe your headline is misleading. I read that and I started thinking… oh that’s silly why would someone ban a liberal policital/comedy book?? But digging deeper I realized it was because of the perhaps distasteful picture.
A better headline might have been: Jon Stewart’s New Book Banned for Naked Pics
=)
If you have a problem with communities making choices about what books they want in their libraries, perhaps you should take a more libertarian tack and simply call for the elimination of public libraries. Then we won’t have these problems. Stores or private libraries will simply stock what ever material they please and the government won’t even enter in to it.
Michael Hampton
Jan 12, 2005
The use of the word “ban” is correct. It was banned, by one single government bureaucrat who is at retirement age. And then after the community heard about it, they decided they wanted the book in their libraries. If I had a problem with that, I’d probably be a right-wing fundamentalist Christian wacko. And while I might call for elimination of public libraries, at the moment there are bigger fish to fry.
pubiclibary
Jan 15, 2005
Last I checked I can buy several magazines w/ scantily clad models sitting on cars I will never own. At the grocery store. Get over yourselves.
Feb 12, 2007
anotherpanacea » Walmart: A sufficiently advanced capitalism is indistinguishable from socialism
rambunctious07@aol.c
Nov 29, 2007
Jon Stewart is not funny and for sure is no genius. Hell, his real name is not even Jon Stewart. So, why are all of you wasting your time drooling over nothing more than a greasy headed purveyor of dirty pictures and filthy words?