My scrotum isn't dirty

Some librarians and teachers are on a crusade this week to ban an award-winning children’s book from their shelves. The 2007 Newbery Medal recipient (the most prestigious award for children’s literature) “The Higher Power of Lucky,” by Susan Patron, is under attack because of one word: “scrotum.”\nIn the first pages readers encounter the following line: “Sammy told of the day when he had drunk half a gallon of rum listening to Johnny Cash all morning in his parked ’62 Cadillac, then fallen out of the car when he saw a rattlesnake on the passenger seat biting his dog, Roy, on the scrotum.”\nPatron argues that the central theme of the book motivated her word choice: the title character, Lucky, is preparing herself to be a grown-up. Learning about language and body parts is an important part of that process. Patron believes providing children with accurate information is better than leaving them to unscramble “half-truths” and “overheard tidbits.”\nBut apparently many teachers aren’t up to the job of education. “I don’t think our teachers ... want to do that vocabulary lesson,” said one book-banner. A male librarian argued, “I wouldn’t want to have to explain that (word).” He needs to get more comfortable with his own scrotum. A teacher and librarian from Colorado claimed, “Because of that one word, I would not be able to read that book aloud. There are so many other options that the author could have used instead.”\nWould they prefer that Patron used playground euphemisms for human anatomy? I doubt “balls,” “cojones,” “nuts,” “nads,” “sack,” or “tea bag” would have received a warmer reception.\nIt’s a good thing the book didn’t use other dirty sounding, yet medically accurate, body terminology such as “sternum” or “clavicle.” We wouldn’t merely ban the books – we’d burn them, too!\nWhat’s wrong with children knowing accurate terminology for their body parts? Thankfully my 3-year-old niece knows what her “vagina” and “vulva” are, and she knows her baby brother has a “penis.” She doesn’t run around saying “noodle” or “hoo haw” or “privates,” which gives her far more maturity at the age of 3 than some of these librarians who refuse to read the word “scrotum” aloud.\nBut even more disturbing is the underlying message of this censorship. The hoopla over censoring “scrotum” and the hush-hush attitude that prevents mature conversations about sex and sexual organs sends a message that such things are dirty and offensive. Teachers ought to demystify sex and give children accurate information, rather than give kids psychological baggage that will produce negative body attitudes and make puberty even more difficult and uncomfortable.\nKids naturally will question their bodies. Why not equip them with appropriate vocabulary instead of overprotecting children from simple (and accurate) facts and making natural, human organs seem dirty and bad?\nPatron should keep producing this important educational writing going, so I have a recommendation for her next work that’s sure to be a hit with prudish, censor-happy teachers.\n“The Scrotum Monologues.”