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Kids have First Amendment rights—and kidSPEAK helps kids fight for them! |  |
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The History of kidSPEAK! In November 1999, the superintendent of schools in Zeeland, Michigan, banned classroom readings from J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter books. The first protest of the superintendent's ban came not from free speech advocates but from fourth graders who wrote letters to the superintendent asking him to restore Harry Potter to the classroom. They were not the only angry kids. Harry Potter books were being challenged in school districts all over the country, and many kids were learning for the first time about the danger of censorship. They were outraged that someone would try to ban books that they loved, and they actively defended them. They organized clubs to support Harry Potter, circulated petitions among their friends and on the Internet, wrote letters to the editor and spoke at school board meetings. Thousands of kids joined Muggles for Harry Potter, an anti-censorship group. But the battle over Harry Potter is only one of the fights that are currently raging around the question of what kids should see, read and hear. Harry Potter books were challenged 23 times in 13 states in 1999, making them the most challenged books of the year, according to the American Library Association. But nearly 500 challenges were reported to the ALA that year, (646 in 2000) and most occurred in schools. Books are not the only targets of the censors. In the aftermath of the shootings at Columbine High School in 1999, many adults called for restrictions on the ability of kids to see or hear violent material in any electronic medium, including TV, recordings, movies, video games and the Internet. Missing from the debate over "protecting kids from harmful material
have been the kids themselves. kidSPEAK will provide a means for kids to enter this
discussion, which so vitally affects their rights. But kidSPEAK is about more than talk.
Kids have a right to freedom of speech. In the United States, that right is protected by
the First Amendment, and there are similar protections in other countries. These rights
are not as broad as the rights of adults because they have been limited by courts in the
United States and elsewhere. However, where these rights exist, kidSPEAK will help kids
fight for them. Joining kidSPEAK! Any kid can join kidSPEAK. There is no charge
for membership. Nor is membership restricted to kids. Parents, teachers, librarians,
booksellers and others play an important role in defending the rights of kids, and we
welcome their support. kidSPEAK Sponsors American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression Association of American Publishers Association of Booksellers for Children National Coalition Against Censorship National Council of Teachers of English People for the American Way Foundation
Read our Privacy Statement
Kidspeak is a registered trademark of Brighams, Inc Copyright © 2001 American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression |
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