For those just joining the conversation: Wesley Scroggins, a professor of management at Missouri State University, is attempting to ban Laurie Halse Anderson's SPEAK from his area schools (he's already succeeded in banning books by others), which he calls "soft pornography" for its portrayal of a teenage girl's rape. Local decisons of banning, like this one, are bad news for for defenders of free speech and expression everywhere. They set a precendent of close-mindedness and proposed tyranny that can spread like a wildfire on a hot Southern California day. A campaign entitled #SpeakLoudly has begun all over the internet to prevent people like Scroggins from spreading their myopic perspective of conservatism (for which who uses the shield of Christianity to justify, thus, enraging Christians everywhere) to justify the outright removal and banning of important books everywhere. Books that can spark conversation, provided comfort, and remind the hopeless that they are never really alone.

Originally, I wrote an angry letter (see below) full of spit and fire for people, including Scroggins, who use the badge of censorship as an excuse for what I consider to be the necessity of active parenting or mentoring. But more important than my outrage, or yours, are the facts. The dismal numbers that can tell a story more loudly than words alone.

 Now, it's time to let the statistics SPEAK LOUDLY for themselves. (All stats according to RAINN):

• "1 in 6 women, and 1 in 33 men will sexually assaulted in their lifetime." Take a look around your office, your classroom, your church, your book club, your gym. Someone in there knows the unimaginable pain of sexual assault.
• "Every 2 minutes someone in the U.S. is sexually assaulted." EVERY 2 MINUTES? Did you hear that?
• "60% of assaults are not reported to police." That's 60% of the nearly 250,000 assault victims in estimated in 2007 who remained silent. Who may have felt alone or scared or ashamed or even dirty for something that was done to them without their consent. Something that can never be taken back. Never. That's 60% of victims who could have benefited from reading a book like SPEAK or any other number of creative arts devoted to telling the truth, even when the truth isn't very pretty, because in honesty there is freedom. In SPEAKING LOUDLY there is hope.
• And the most heart-breaking statistic of them all (in my opinion): "73% of rape victims KNOW their assailants." That's thousands of people who went on a date with the cute guy from class, or, simply tucked themselves into their own bed for a good night's sleep only to be raped by someone they know and trust. That's right, someone they know.

That's almost 250,000 victims a year who need a voice; 60% of whom are too scared, or broken, or ashamed to say something and 73% of whom never thought it could happen to them. Mostly, it's 100% of people (especially teenagers) who could have benefited from hearing Melinda's story. From learning to be on-guard, to trust their own instincts, to know that it's not their fault and that they do not deserve to be raped or assaulted no matter how they dress, where they live, who their friends are, or even if some know-it-all guy claiming religious conservatism as his shield decided that he'd rather they remain ignorant than empowered.

Now, don't get me wrong. I'm not saying SPEAK will 100% stop this type of thing from occurring, but neither will ignoring it. There is power in knowledge and truth, even if that truth is ugly or painful. And if SPEAK or 20 BOY SUMMER or SLAUGHTERHOUSE FIVE change ev

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