The Self-Censored School Library: Safe Haven or Arid Philosophical Wasteland?“You don't have to burn books to destroy a culture. Just get people to stop reading them,” surmised Ray Bradbury, author of the acclaimed Fahrenheit 451 which details a society characterized by regular book burnings and a complete suppression of ideas. This quote exemplifies the threat that censorship poses to the reading habits of young people, a threat that is ever-present in the school library. School media specialists face the challenge of cultivating a collection of materials that appeal to young readers who, on average, resist reading. Add to that a librarian who self-censors, chooses not to include popular but controversial books, and there's the potential to alienate teenage student readers altogether. Books have long been a safe environment in which students can explore, through literature, complex questions regarding morality and ethics with less risk than real life. If censorship becomes a mainstay of the school library, whether imposed by the community or the selective librarian, there is great potential for the student body to suffer its effects. To understand the effects that censorship has on students we must first consider its definitional effects and a brief exploration of its root causes in school libraries. Defined as “the modification, suppression, or prohibition of speech or writing condemned as subversive of the common good,” censorship is not a new idea. Fortunately, in the enlightened 21st century, there are procedures in school and public libraries that can be followed to request a book be removed from circulation. The content that most attracts the ire of worried parents and... at the center of the paper... mission for an ethical future." Library Student Journal 5 (January 2010): 13. Library, Information Science & Technology Abstracts, EBSCOhost (visited 7 November 2013). Plato, The Apology: An Electronic Classics Series Publication, ed. Jim Manis, trans. .psu.edu/faculty/jmanis/plato/apology.pdf.The Times Book of Quotations. Glasgow: Times Books.Whelan, Debra Lau. “A Dirty Little Secret.” February 2009): 27-30. Library Literature & Information Science Full Text (H.W. Wilson), EBSCOhost (accessed 24 October 2013). 2013. http://www.slj.com/2009/02/collection-development/slj-self-censorship-survey/.