The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current, October 14, 1981, Image 12

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' Page 12 THE BATTALION
i , WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 14, 1981
I !.
National
Book ban case to be heard
United Press International
* WASHINGTON
The Sup
reme Court Tuesday agreed to de-
W5AC
MSC ARC
GENERAL MEETING
THURSDAY
OCT. 15 7:30 P.M.
12TH FLOOR
O&M BLDG.
TOPIC:
Austin swapfest & Aggie Cross
Communication.
cide how much authority school
boards have to remove books they
find objectionable from school lib
raries.
The Supreme Court will hear
an appeal by a New York school
board challenging a lower court
decision that ordered a trial in a
dispute over the board’s action to
ban nine books from school
courses and libraries.
The controversy began in 1975,
when three school board mem
bers of the Island Trees Union
Free School District No. 26, of
Nassau County, attended a con
ference sponsored by a conserva
tive group called People of New
York United.
The three board members
obtained “lists of books consi
dered objectionable by some per
sons, together with excerpts from
them containing the more objec
tionable material,” Board Presi-
dent Richard Aherns said.
Several months later, the board
met with two high school princip
als and told them to remove from
libraries and courses nine books
on the list described at the confer
ence. Two other books were later
added to the list.
The books were: “Slaughter
house Five,” by Kurt Vonnegut;
“The Fixer,” by Bernard Mala-
mud; “Black Boy,” by Richard
Wright; “Soul on Ice,” by
Eldridge Cleaver; “The Naked
Ape,” by Desmond Morris;
“Laughing Boy,” by Oliver
LaFarge; “Best Short Stories by
Negro Writers,” edited by Lang
ston Hughes; “Down These Mean
Streets,” by Piri Thomas; “Go Ask
Alice,” anonymous; “A Hero Ain’t
Nothing But A Sandwich,” by
Alice Childress, and “A Reader for
Writers,” edited by Jerome
Archer.
School Superintendent
Richard Morrow objected to re
moving the books and persuaded
the board to establish a committee
to make recommendations.
The committee suggested five
books be returned to library
shelves, but the board voted to
return only “Black Boy” and
“Laughing Boy.” Several parents
filed a civil rights class-action suit
on behalf of pupils, challenging
the ban.
A federal district judge dismis
sed the suit, saying previous Sup
reme Court rulings have declared
school boards have the right to re
move books they find inconsistent
with local values.
But the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court
of Appeals reversed the first deci
sion and ordered the district court
to hold a trial on the case.
Parents opposing the board
argued: “This case presents fun
damental questions regarding the
capacity of a school board to im
pose ideological and cultural
orthodoxy through the control of
school library materials.”
TEXAS A&M UNIVERSITY
COLLEGE OF MEDICINE
OPEN HOUSE
for prospective medical students
and all others interested in the
medical program.
7:30 p.m.
Wednesday, October 14,1981
100 Heldenfels Hall
DIETING?
Even though we do not prescribe
diets, we make it possible for many to
enjoy a nutritious meal while they
follow their doctor's orders. You will
be delighted with the wide selection
of low calorie, sugar free and fat free
foods in the Souper Salad Area, Sbisa
Dining Center Basement.
OPEN
Monday through Friday 10:45 AM-1:45 PM
QUALITY FIRST
Make the World Go Away
Take a Break at
I UNDERGROUND RAILROAD
SNACK BAR
| Open 11 a.m. to 11 p.m.
Basement of Sbisa
* SPECIAL *
| Buy a Hamburger or Cheeseburger
& Fries
Get a Large Coke Free
? P?ay a game while you wait
(Offer good through Oct. 31, 1981)
“QUALITY FIRST”
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INCLUDES
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Attention
Student Organizations
All 1982 Aggieland contracts
must be returned to Student Publications Office
Room 216 Reed McDonald Building
by Friday, Oct. 16
NO EXCEPTIONS!!
Students $2.50
All Others $3.50
Rudder Forum
OCT 13 17
8 p.m.
Curtain Time
Tickets Available at Rudder Box Office and at the Door