On Oct. 10th, in Biloxi, Mississippi, the classic American novel To Kill a Mockingbird was banned from 8th grade curriculum due to it’s “uncomfortable language.”

Due to the often controversial content of the award winning novel by Harper Lee, it is not surprising that it would face restrictions and censorship when exposed to younger minds. Most parents believe that such “adult” content should’t be introduced to students at such a young age, while others argue that 8th grade is the perfect time to introduce these topics, because at that time the children are blooming into young adults and about to go to high school where they will start talking about more serious life problems, thus why the novel To Kill a Mockingbird should be read in 8th grade. Not the first time it has been pulled from a schools’ curriculum, but the most recent occurrence happened in Biloxi, Mississippi. The book was pulled from the 8th grade curriculum because it simply “made people uncomfortable.”.

What is interesting is the fact that the book has continued to be banned, but for different reasons over the years it has been published. Last time it was challenged solely for its depiction of sexual intercourse, rape, or incest was 2006, in Brentwood, Tennessee. Since then, all five challenges – in 2008, 2009, 2010, 2012, and 2016 – have involved parents or children made uncomfortable by the use of the “N-word” or the book’s depiction of racism, which connects to the racial tension we face today. In the past decade, alongside To Kill a Mockingbird, Hucklebery Finn by Mark Twain is among the most frequently challenged books in modern school curriculum. Largely due to the fact that both novels have racial slurs in them. Racial issues are a very pressing issue right now, and that is why the books are being censored for their racial slurs, rather than other controversial topics also covered in the novels. The reason the novels remain dubbed as classics over the years is because they make you think about what you’re doing, a retrospect on society as well.

Since the banning directly affects the students and their perception of such content, I collected various student opinions:

“I don’t think it should be banned, in fact, I believe reading it should be a requirement in order to graduate high school.” Tahamin Doha, senior, said.

“The book itself shows that it is corrupt, it is not supposed to be offensive at all. The point of it is to educate readers about topics that are hard to approach, but should still be talked about.” Billy Kolouvaris, senior, said.

“A book shouldn’t be banned merely because of the usage of words to better portray a message.” Jeff Garcia, sophomore, said.

In my opinion, if you are uncomfortable reading the book, you are the target audience. Every reader should approach books with an open mind and ready to learn. The reason classics like To Kill a Mockingbird are still relevant, is because they talk about timeless problems. It is unlikely these problems will ever be solved, all the more reason books like this should continue to be written, read, and learned from.