Censorship Sucks

“If America was a woman, America would be a big-tittied woman, and everybody loves a big-tittied woman.” – Chris Rock

As it so happens, Chris Rock was unfortunately wrong on this issue. This was something that I would find out on that day in Mrs. Long’s high school Honors English class.

Just as I sat down on that day, my classmate, Amanda, told me, “I want you to turn your shirt inside out, because I find it offensive.”

The shirt that Amanda was offended by features a voluptuous woman sucking on a Bomb Pop that has the words, Censorship Sucks emblazoned on her shirt. The Bomb Pop represents freedom of speech, that of which is particularly American due to The First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. It should also be noted that the Bomb Pop itself was invented in Kansas City in July of 1955.

America is also the only country in the world with this strong of a level of protection for free speech written into its Constitution. The point of The First Amendment is to protect speech that we don’t agree with. It’s not needed for speech that we agree with. This was also something I explained to Amanda, as she continued to push back against the shirt.

The woman on the shirt is also carrying a stack of books, although they are not just any books. She is carrying some of the most banned books of all-time, which include Romeo & Juliet and The Catcher in the Rye.

The background of the shirt also features a dizzying array of other famous banned books, some of which include, Madam Bovary, The Canterbury Tales, Leaves of Grass, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, & Ulysses. As you may of noticed, some of the greatest works of all-time, have also been some of the most controversial.

After explaining the significance of the shirt to Amanda, I told her that I wasn’t going to turn the shirt inside-out. After all, turning the shirt inside-out went against what I believed in. The principle of freedom of expression is one that is also foundational to what America stands for, and likewise what it means to be American.

However, what Amanda failed to understand was that it was my right to offend Amanda and the fact that she was offended didn’t give her a right to silence me. I found it offensive that Amanda was anti-American, although it was Amanda’s right to express that she was anti-American. Though I am against those who are anti-American, it’s not my place to silence those who express these ideas. I however, was not going to support these beliefs by turning the shirt inside-out.

I also told Amanda about how the shirt was a Comic Book Legal Defense Fund shirt. This organization provides legal defenses for writers, artists, and other creative professionals who others attempt to silence—no matter what the reason is. It was exactly because of people like Amanda that this organization existed in the first place.

Unfortunately, my explanations had no effect on Amanda, as she continued to demand that I turn the shirt-inside out.

Above: Sighted at a concert in Des Moines. Is there anything more American than an American flag bandana made in China?

By this point, several classmates had started watching the argument, or more accurately, Amanda’s demand to turn the shirt inside-out, which I continued to ignore.

There was a tenseness brewing in the classroom, and I didn’t know what was going to happen next. Was Amanda going to escalate the situation? We were at an impasse. Just then, the bell rung, and class had officially begun. I didn’t know what to do then, but then Mrs Long intervened.

“Is there a problem?” Mrs. Long asked us. She was glaring at both of us now, along with the rest of the class.

I then looked over at Amanda and then she said, “No, we’re O.K.”

I wasn't surprised at the outcome, as I thought it was unlikely that Amanda was going to go up against Mrs. Long. I didn’t think she was going to explain to Mrs. Long why she thought that censorship was a good idea, and why someone wearing a shirt against banning books should not be allowed to wear that shirt at school.

There was an additional level of absurdity on top of this, since we were also in an Honors English class having this argument. However, I think Mrs. Long would have appreciated the irony of Amanda telling me I wasn’t allowed to wear an anti-censorship shirt. The situation was so outrageous, and so unbelievable, that it’s impossible to make it up. It could have been a teaching moment, but I guess that’s why I’m writing this story now.

Fundamentally, we need to stand up against people attempting to silence those that they disagree with, because it’s not who we are as Americans, and it’s also one of the main things that differentiates America from the rest of the world.

I should also note that Amanda was Mormon, which is a religion that I don’t subscribe to. With that said, I have never made an attempt to prevent anyone from practicing Mormonism, including Amanda, as this goes against The First Amendment, and the freedom of expression that it grants us.

Ultimately, no American is above The First Amendment, and that even includes The President of the United States of America. Freedom is about knowing that we don’t have to agree on everything, and that’s O.K. As for Amanda, I can only hope someday that Amanda thinks back on that day in Mrs. Long’s Honors English class, and that she realizes that she was wrong.