Are we really all censors?

“Is it possible, I find myself asking now, that the calm with which I, at that moment, proclaimed that there is 'nothing a person should be prevented from saying or writing', including 'anything sexist or racist', has become stemming from my lack of personal experience, as an old, white man, of encountering these kinds of stereotypes about people like me in children's books?” Perry Nodelman

This book is a small treasure, the first text – We are all censors, from 1992 and a classic in the bibliography on the subject – is accompanied by an unpublished reply, from the author himself. This is a rare example of scientific honesty and rigor, which makes both works a reference to be followed, as they subvert, to a certain extent, the current academic logic. The effects of the intensification of ethnic-racial and gender conflicts in recent decades affect the writer's convictions. In the argument against any censorship, sustained at the end of the 20th century, Nodelman points out traits that were hitherto unsuspected, ranging from racism to prejudice. This shift from an abstract defense of censorship to a call for adults' committed responsibility for the serious social problems of contemporary times changes the focus and relativizes the role of adults as censors. Discussing censorship refers to the most controversial aspects that concern the criticism of books for children: what is the role of political correctness? What is the role of reading in shaping the values ​​of future social agents? What is the basis for dividing readers into age groups? Is every selection a censorship? In a world where censorship returns as the protector of traditions and the maintenance of the status quo to restrict the voices that break the silence and gain visibility, these reflections are not only necessary, but essential.
Lenice Bueno