Don't Be a Fascist, Support Banned Books!

by Loyal Pham

You remember that Adolf Hitler guy? He wasn’t an exemplary example of a good human being. Of course, when you think of him, you’ll think of The Holocaust, but have you ever thought about how he managed to get the power to spearhead such a heinous event? Well, there’s a plethora of factors. The Siberian Black Hand assassinating Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria-Hungary leading the first world war, Germany losing and getting all the blame. the Treaty of Versailles causing a great depression in Germany, then political distress and economic turmoil curating the social environment for Hitler to manipulate the people into blaming Jewish people (as well as other groups). I’m not going to go into everything because that’s a bit of a doozy, but I will highlight that one of his tactics was targeting literature.

Literature holds the knowledge gathered from the vast length of time humanity has existed in. The influence and importance novels have had over lifetimes cannot be overstated for a number of reasons, but one of the most important is their ability to tackle societal issues and invoke change through the power of storytelling and language. Novels like Uncle Tom’s Cabin by Harriet Breecher Stowe exposing the cruelty of slavery or A Vindication on the Rights of Woman by Mary Wollstonecraft becoming a foothold for women's rights and equality are just two examples. Literature is a cornerstone for society and education as a whole. But since it is a medium in which an exorbitant number of ideas and topics can be discussed, it often falls within the crosshairs of those who want control.

According to PEN America in 2025, they’ve documented nearly 23,000 book bans nationwide in public schools since 2021. This is a statistic no other generation of Americans has ever seen. The Nazis are just one example, but all fascists across history target books. This is because banning books allows them to have control over education and ideas. Having control over education allows oppressive governments to indoctrinate the youth into their beliefs, control what is told about history, block out opposing ideas, and silence diversity. Going back to the Nazis, the German Student Union in 1933 went on a book burning campaign. The literature chosen for the pyre targeted Jewish authors, leftist ideals, democracy, pacifism, subject matter that involved sexuality, or anything they deemed un-German. This allowed for progress towards remodeling German culture with Nazi ideology. Fascists want conformity because getting rid of outside forces allows for unquestioned authority.

To be clear, I am not saying we are in as bad of a position as Nazi Germany or the Soviet Union under Stalin because of a mass influx of book censorship. Due to the internet, the time it takes to do research is incredibly more efficient and accessible to the common person. But books are still at the foundation. I am simply pointing out that we should be aware of these patterns because it's a slippery slope.

So, just make sure you read banned books.