Is Censorship Justified

On May 10, 1933 censorship was being poured out in its fullest extent all over Germany. What is the definition of censorship: the control of information and ideas circulated within a society. It is an occurrence that has been used for centuries: the burning of books. From the Catholic Church burning Martin Luther’s 95 Thesis, to new Braille books being burned in Paris in 1842, from the Nazi book burnings, to the comic book burnings in 1948 which occurred in a few states in America. It doesn’t matter the location nor the situation censorship has been and is an issue and will continue to be unless recognized as one. So many governments or dictating powers use censorship to invoke indoctrination. But the only thing that is truly thought provoking, depending on how you look at it, is how well governments or dictating powers manage to enforce censorship so efficiently, so quickly, so prodigiously and all the while keeping it under the rim until the time is right.

But why? Why have censorship at all? What in the world would provoke one to such drastic measures? Greed, power, evil, the truth perhaps? What ideas, can ideas be so threatening that it would be enough of a reason to endorse censorship? In the Nazi’s case books contained information, sometimes information that went against what they were trying to enforce; books helped people think. The Nazi’s didn’t want them to think, they wanted them to be completely oblivious. Books also, sometimes, could have supplied an escape, even though momentary, it was still a second of peace, tranquility and above that… hope. The Nazi’s didn’t want the people to have peace but fear, not tranquility but turmoil, not hope or strength but hopelessness and apathy. When there’s apathy there’s permission. When there’s permission there’s a quicker, faster route to whatever it is the opponent wants. And if they crush everything that offers the slightest bit of life then they get that route and so much more.

During WWII there