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School districts around North America have been relentless in their ban on manga. From popular series likeAttack on TitanandJujutsu Kaisento classics like Osamu Tezuka’sUnico: Awakening, nothing is being spared by the school committees.
In the past two months alone, two Tennessee school districts have listed various manga that they have removed from school libraries already. Other school districts in Tennessee are also considering complying with a new state law to limit books in school libraries.
The Suffocating List of Manga That Have Been Banned in Tennessee School District
On November 11, the Rutherford County Schools removed over 150 titles from school libraries after they were flagged. Thefirst eight volumes ofAssassination Classroomand Volume 1 ofFire Forceare currently under review. Caleb Tidwell, a board member, cited the state obscenity laws under which the titles were flagged. A supporter of Tiddwell commented that the books had pornographic material.
Manga Industry’s Unfair Treatment Might Finally Come to an End with Shueisha’s First Step Towards Improving Mangaka Work Conditions
The Age-Appropriate Materials Act of 2022 underwent a few changes on July 1, which expanded the definition of obscenity. With the amended act, any materials “containing nudity or describes or depicts sexual excitement, sexual conduct, excess violence or sadomasochistic abuse” are prohibited.
Wilson County Schools, another Tennessee school district, listed around 400 titles on October 24 that have been removed from school libraries.The list includes:
Other Manga Removals and Ban in the USA and Response from the Free Speech Center
Richmon County Schools, North Carolina, removedUnico: Awakening,a classic manga by “the Father of Manga,” Osamu Tezuka. The step was taken after a complaint was filed by the parent of a first-grade child who was shocked by the depiction of gun violence and animal abuse in the work.
South Carolina’s Horry County Schools also removedAssassination Classroommanga after the mother of a ninth grader complained about its contents. Gifford Middle School and the Elmbrook School District also undertook a similar ban against the series.
“There’s girls in lingerie hopping on top of men”: Assassination Classroom Manga Pulled from American School Library for Being Too Mature
Sasaki and Miyano,the popular boys love manga, had its first volume banned in Florida’s Brevard Public Schools Board after a person in the district pointed out that “sexual orientation should not be encouraged, suggested, or implanted.” The complaint also included that there was “no value in making homosexual books available at school.”
Following the numerous banned book announcements, Ken Paulson, the Director of the Free Speech Center,released a statement.
Never in the history of America has the Supreme Court or any federal court concluded that a book was obscene because it had excessive violence, and the books banned in Rutherford County are not porn. And the notion that they are somehow written to capture the same audience as something like Hustler magazine is nonsense.
The incessant ban on manga is bound to infuriate anime fans and the community. This might even adversely affect the sales of manga in the USA. But the biggest question is whether all of the banned manga deserved the treatment and if it’s just aparanoid steptaken by school committees.
Aaheli Pradhan
Anime Content Writer
Articles Published :1556
Aaheli is an Anime Content Writer at FandomWire with 1300+ published articles. With five years of experience under her belt, she is a living, breathing encyclopedia for anime and manga. From Shonen and Shojo to the most niche anime, nothing escapes her radar. Her poisons of choice are Assassination Classroom, Gintama, Ouran High School Host Club and every Ghibli movie ever. She believes in living a slow life, surrounded by incomplete art projects and her beloved cats.
