Why Should Huckleberry Finn Be Allowed In Schools

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Pages: 3

Narratio The Bill of Rights was adopted in 1791 with the intention of giving the citizens of the United States more freedom within their government. In the recent hundred years there have been a multitude of incidents and court cases that have argued the interpretation of these laws, and how they vary,not only communities, but also in schools around the United States, specifically with regards to the first amendment. For instance, the 1969 Tinker vs. Des Moines case, the high school authorities suspended three students for wearing armbands, a peaceful protest against the Vietnam War. The Supreme Court ruled that it was too overreaching for the school to punish the students, as the armbands were causing no distraction to the learning environment (Hudson).
In Mark Twain’s work Huckleberry Finn, the “n-word” is used exactly 219 times. Because of this term that can often be viewed as offensive, many schools have put a ban on the novel, making it one of the most banned books in America (Rawls). In a CBS special based completely around the controversy of the novel, eleventh grader Melvin Elfasela says, “I just kinda think that the constant use of the word in there… is unnecessary.”
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Some believe that young minds need to be exposed to things that might be considered dangerous, such as language, literature, ideas and theories and encourage students to form their own opinions. However, many schools today do not allow debates and/or discussions involving controversial topics such as abortion, LGBT, Religion, police brutality, etc. Some don’t believe minors understand what is acceptable versus things that could be dangerous or illegal, therefore restriction on behavior and actions are