“Harry Potter,” “Adventures of Huckleberry Finn,” “Captain Underpants” and “Fifty Shades of Grey” all have one thing in common: they have been challenged and banned from the shelves of schools.

As the campus celebrates Banned Books Week, it is important to remind students that it is up to our generation to keep literature uncensored and to be engaged in literacy. We cannot allow others to tell us what we may or may not read; that decision is our own. We must not leave books and stories forgotten on a dusty shelf because reading helps us learn and grow. Literature brings us to another world and opens the mind up to imagination.

If we allow censorship in libraries, that implies that some stories are not worth sharing, and, of course, the act prohibits free speech. Sure, there are books with heavy sexual content and graphic violence, but they should not be forbidden from readers. There are young adult sections in a library to hold books that are targeted toward a young adult audience, and the parent can take responsibility to encourage their children to read books with their certain values, but they should not be in control of what other children read.

Many books that have been banned from libraries and school curriculums are considered classics and are highly popular. Some are simply children’s books, such as the “Captain Underpants” series, which was banned in some schools because it taught children to disobey authority, according to the American Library Association.

Our society should be raising children to question rules and make decisions for themselves as to what they want to read. The most important thing is that they are reading rather than sitting inside glued to the screens of various electronics.

According to the American Library Association, the “Harry Potter” series was on the top of the list of most challenged books in the early 2000s because the premise of the book revolved around the main character being a wizard. These books were actually not allowed in schools because their communities deemed them inappropriate for children to read. Children were not allowed to read one of the world’s most popular book series. Occurrences like this are the reason why we need to fight against censorship and those who wish to take choice away from people.

Eventually, many college students will have children, and it is up to our generation to encourage them to love to read. It is so vital to keep literature in our lives uncensored, so pick up a book and dive into another world. Read the books that have been banned because most of the time, they are the best books.