Banned Books 2022 – The Color Purple

Marshall University does not ban books! The information is provided to let people know what has been banned/challenged elsewhere.

2022

The Protect Nebraska Children Coalition brought an extensive list of books to the Wauneta-Pallisade (NE) Public Schools board meeting and wanted the books removed from both the elementary and high school libraries. The list of more than 30 titles included The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie, Ghost Boys by Jewell Parker Rhodes, Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher, Go Tell It on the Mountain by James Baldwin, Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson, Dear Martin by Nic Stone, The Color Purple by Alice Walker, The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini, Beloved by Toni Morrison, The Undefeated by Kwame Alexander, Pink Is for Boys by Robb Pearlman, and Harbor Me by Jacqueline Woodson. The books were removed for evaluation.

2014

Challenged, but retained as a Brunswick County (NC) Advanced Placement English eleventh-grade assignment. Language and sexuality or “obscenity” were most often cited as the reason for the majority of the unofficial complaints and criticisms, as was whether or not the book, a Pulitzer Prize winner that deals with issues of racism, violence against women, and rape, has literary value that was age appropriate for the students.

2010

Challenged and or banned for offensive language, being sexually explicit and unsuited to age group

2009

Challenged in Burke County schools in Morgantown (NC) by parents concerned about the homosexuality, rape, and incest portrayed in the book

2008

Banned for sexually explicit and offensive language and homosexuality.

2003

Challenged in Fairfax (VA) school libraries by a group called Parents Against Bad Books in Schools for “profanity and descriptions of drug abuse, sexually explicit conduct and torture”.

On These Pages

A Banned book has been removed from a library, classroom, etc.
A Challenged book has been requested to be removed from a library, classroom, etc.

For additional information contact

Ron Titus, titus@marshall.edu
304-696-6575

Last updated

September 28, 2022