It’s been noted since the dawn of cinema that certain countries, states, and groups of people will tend to call for the banning of one piece of work or another depending on their own personal feelings about it. The saddest part of this is that several of those within any given group that calls for the banning of a movie or anything else isn’t entirely united, as many will simply join the call for a ban to avoid being ostracized. But with the current news that the Doctor Strange sequel is being banned in other countries for the simple act of including LGBTQIA+ material, which doesn’t sound that bad in all honesty, it feels important to remind people why censorship is rarely, if ever, a good idea when it comes to movies. There might be times when directors appear to go too far, but banning movies is often more harmful than helpful. Here are five reasons why it’s harmful to a society to ban movies.
5. Censorship becomes habitual.
When does censorship end, and where does it end? The problem with cutting people off from one thing is that those doing the censoring will tend to look for a reason after a while to deny anything that gives a person, or people, pleasure, simply because it might appear to offend their delicate sensibilities. It’s important to respect others and their beliefs, but when censorship becomes petty and carries a far more personal meaning, it becomes a serious issue. Banning something because it threatens the overall health of a populace is one thing, but moving the goalposts tends to become an issue that people can’t quit so easily.
4. People will begin to question the efficiency of their authority figures.
This is far more serious than many people want to believe, since if we can’t keep any faith in the people who are supposed to be our leaders, those that inform us what’s okay and what is deemed as something harmful, then a lot of people are going to find it difficult to know what to do with themselves. It’s saddening to think that folks absolutely need a moral arbiter to help them distinguish between right and wrong, but those that place themselves in positions of leadership sometimes forget that their responsibility is to the people, not their own desires. Censorship at the highest levels is one of the biggest problems around since too many people are willing to step in line and follow what their leaders say without question.
3. In all forms, art is subject to one perspective or another.
What feels harmful to one person might appear to be nothing more than a work of art to another, as perspective can change things in a big way. Trying to please everyone is admirable, but it’s not realistic since the truth is that one can’t please one hundred percent of the people one hundred percent of the time, as the saying goes. But the fact is that allowing people to decide what they enjoy and even allow them to take pleasure from such things can alter a person’s perspective and allow them to realize that art isn’t necessarily meant to offend. Instead, it’s meant to broaden one’s horizons and give different views of the world, even if those views aren’t always agreeable.
2. It strips people of personal responsibility.
In a big way, the banning of movies is a way for those in charge to say that people don’t know what they want, that they can’t handle themselves when watching a movie, and aren’t mature enough to deal with the subjects being shown. Many might deny such things, but banning a movie so that others can’t see it makes the point clear that those in charge don’t believe that others can think for themselves and make the decision as to whether a movie is a pleasing piece of fiction or a serious attack on their sensibilities, religion, and other views when it comes to life in general.
1. Banning anything limits the choices of the people.
Having a choice about what to watch and what doesn’t appear to vibe with your views on the world is a choice that many people all over the world get to make since like it or not, we make choices every day, and we live with the consequences of those choices. But when it comes to the choice of what to watch and what to enjoy regarding cinema, more choices are great since bringing back the idea of perspective supports this, as being able to choose to expand your worldview, even from a fictional standpoint, is important since it creates a desire to learn, to know as much as possible about why a movie went a certain direction, and why it might be culturally relevant. In other words, banning movies is a bad mistake since it doesn’t inspire a thirst for knowledge, but instead attempts to keep people from learning about what inspired such a creation.
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