Read Banned Books: They Called Us Enemy
- Dan
- 1 hour ago
- 2 min read
Read Banned Books
Read the books "the man" says are dangerous. Be a rebel! Read banned books! Think dangerous thoughts!
Previous entries in this series:
Read Banned Books: They Called Us Enemy
Why do they ban books? To erase history. At least, that is the case for George Takei's (a.k.a. Lieutenant Sulu from Star Trek) autobiographical graphic novel They Called Us Enemy. The tale follows Takei and his family as they are relocated, along with many others, to a prison camp during World War II, solely because of their Japanese heritage. Most of these people were long-standing U.S. citizens or had been for their entire lives. Regardless, they were imprisoned based on race.
Takei's story is powerful, a fact that is heightened because, as I read the words on the page, I could hear his distinctive voice in my head. His testimony bears witness to the cruelty perpetrated by the U.S. government: the struggle and anger of the adults, the children believing living behind barbed wire fences was normal, the fear of being murdered by their fellow Americans when the war ended, and the battle (for some) to restore their citizenship after being coerced into renouncing it. Eventually, many had their citizenship restored (including Takei's mother), but others were deported to Japan. Some forty years later, the U.S. government formally apologized and paid restitution to the former internees. Takei's father did not live to see that day. You can say it was a time of war, and that somehow justified what happened. To that, I simply ask, would you want your child or loved one imprisoned for years during a time of war for being different? Such questions, which are at least tangentially related to social justice, are precisely why book banners don't want this story, and those like it, told.
The problem with erasing history is not only that we are doomed to repeat it, but also that we deny the lived experiences of our forebears. The book banners attempt to expunge history because if the past is forgotten, it is easier for the powerful to repeat it at their convenience.
You can listen to Takei speak on the banning here: https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=2777934519073649