Banned Books in the Texas Prison System
BANNED BOOKS IN THE TEXAS PRISON SYSTEM HOW THE TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF CRIMINAL JUSTICE CENSORS BOOKS SENT TO PRISONERS © Alan Pogue, via Citizens United for Rehabilitation of Errants A TEXAS CIVIL RIGHTS PROJECT 2011 HUMAN RIGHTS REPORT Maggie Watson, Christopher A. Johnston, Kelly Burns, Lindsey Smith, Jessica Fuselier, Rhea Sen, Crystal Aldape, Janine Wetzel, Nick Buratto, Lauren Conner, Bridgett Mayeaux, Andrew Johnson, Nicholas Jackson, Scott Medlock, and Zaida Riquelme collaborated on this report. Special thanks to Vinson & Elkins and the Inside Books Project, for research assistance, Steve Ely for technical assistance, LibraryThing.com for existing, and to Terri LeClerque for assistance with copy editing. Texas Civil Rights Project The Michael Tigar Human Rights Center 1405 Montopolis Drive Austin, TX 78741 Texas Civil Rights Project Board of Directors Pablo Almaguér, Roxann Chargois, Ouisa Davis, Leona Diener, David A. Grenardo, Chuck Herring, and Renato Ramirez www.texascivilrightsproject.org (512) 474 5073 (phone) (512) 474 0726 (fax) © Texas Civil Rights Project, 2011 All Rights Reserved 2 Executive Summary What do William Shakespeare, Jenna Bush, Sister Helen Prejean, Sojouner Truth, Juan Williams, 50 Cent, John Grisham, Noam Chomsky, Stephen King, John Updike, Kurt Vonnegut, Jack Kerouac, George Carlin, Gore Vidal, George Orwell, Gustave Flaubert, and Jon Stewart have in common? They have each written at least one book banned in Texas prisons. The Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) arbitrarily censors books and magazines sent to Texas prisoners. Though cultivating literacy has obvious rehabilitative benefits, TDCJ prevents prisoners from reading many books, including works by award- winning authors, literary classics, and books about civil rights and prison conditions.
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