Officials in prison systems across the United States have banned certain books as a way to prevent the flow of material that they say might incite violence.
In Michigan, the ban has extended to several non-English language dictionaries.
Over the last year, the Michigan Department of Corrections has banned dictionaries in Spanish and Swahili under claims that books’ contents are a threat to the state’s penitentiaries.
“If certain prisoners all decided to learn a very obscure language, they would be able to then speak freely in front of staff and others about introducing contraband or assaulting staff or assaulting another prisoner,” said Chris Gautz, the spokesperson for the Michigan Department of Corrections.
He says allowing prisoners to gain access to language books other than English could encourage them to organize without the knowledge of staff.
“When it’s in a language that we don’t have the ability to read ourselves and understand exactly what it is that we’re looking for, we’re not able to allow it in,” he added.
If staff is unable to find a translation the book request is denied, and the book is placed under the list of banned books – even when these are in Spanish. The second most spoken language in American households.
For Rodolfo Rodriguez getting books in his native Spanish language has been about learning how to communicate in English. Something he says he’s been trying to do since his life sentence in 1993.
“One feels offended. One feels like they are telling you that pure Spanish is worthless, that you don’t need to learn because you’ll just stay here,” he said in a call from Lakeland Correctional Facility in northern Michigan. (NPR)