Excerpt from "The Bluest Eye" by Toni Morrison for Banned Books Week 2022

Recommendation: "New Kid" by Jerry Craft

Whenever white racist fascists object to a book, I immediately move it to the top of the my to-read list.

NBC News on October 6, 2021 (archived) reported that:

A school district near Houston canceled the appearance of an award-winning children's illustrator and author, whose books tell stories about Black children struggling to fit into unfamiliar settings, amid claims of critical race theory.

The writer, Jerry Craft, had been set to appear virtually Monday before students and staff members at Roosevelt Alexander Elementary School until the Katy Independent School District pulled the plug after some parents objected.

Are Muslims Going to Join Calls for Censorship in Public School Libraries? I Hope Not

In Columbia County, Georgia, where I live, the daily newspaper in neighboring Augusta, Georgia reported that a resident has been advocating that the Board of Education remove Drama by Raina Telgemeier from its middle school libraries and update its media policy to inform parents that "Media Centers and Teacher Libraries may provide material containing sensitive topics such as sexuality, homosexuality, and/or transgender ideology."

I have previously reported on my county's censorship of reading materials in public schools (more here). I oppose discrimination against LGBTQ people and don't believe the party line in our religion about a lot matters related to sexuality. I'm also opposed to the people who typically advocate for imposing morality. Nevertheless, before spouting off, I bought and read the book.

Most of the book is about drama programs in school, i.e. putting on plays. The characters work hard, do varied tasks and cooperation and teamwork are essential. I had for some reason disliked the drama students in high school. Reading this made me regret my prejudices and wish I'd at least given it a shot.

Comments on "Dear Martin" by Nic Stone

My county's Board of Education decided to exclude Dear Martin by Nic Stone from the list of novels literature teachers can choose to assign to students to read and from its media centers. Upon checking it out from my local library and reading it, I have a lot to say about why I think my county's board of education made a mistake. For the purposes of this blog, however, I urge parents and guardians of every background to read and discuss this book with their children.

The interactions of the characters pose better, more pressing questions than any other piece of Young Adult literature I know. For non-black children growing up in majority white suburban areas, it hopefully will prevent them from asking the first black person they meet when they go to university about their standardized test scores or where they can score weed.

Walls of Freedom: Street Art of the Egyptian Revolution

Egypt officials seize books on revolution street art http://t.co/1aD8mTN3E2 #NewsfromElsewhere pic.twitter.com/XF0fjOkyAx
— BBC Monitoring (@BBCMonitoring) February 19, 2015

To purchase the English version of the book, visit the publisher's web page. The book has its own website. The Facebook page has ongoing developments, including the Egyptian government's efforts to erase the graffiti.

This article reports that the copies were seized in Alexandria over a fee dispute, not censorship.

Censor says Walls of Freedom book does not incite rioting but simply documents Egypt's revolutionary graffiti http://t.co/hhZkoVZPNI

— Mada Masr مدى مصر (@MadaMasr) February 23, 2015

"Xenophobic racists ... [have] compiled a MUST READ list."

Updated September 2, 2017 - Interview with Dr. Curtis Acosta, an early plaintiff in the lawsuit which ended in the overturning of this ban.

Look, the xenophobic racists over at Arizona has compiled a banned books MUST READ list. Take this time to read these books. There’s a reason they’re banning them. They’re trying to erase our culture. [Archived web page of original source: AZEthnicStudies.com]

The only book I've read off of this list is Bless Me Ultima, by Rudolfo Anaya. It was excellent.



Updated July 24, 2016. Hear Tony Diaz (@LibreTraficante) & Roque Planas (@RoqPlanas) & Jose Gonzales, a teacher from Tuscon, talk about this issue.

Updated July 4, 2021: I've also read and reviewed Into the Beautiful North by Luis Alberto Urrea.

Updated July 4, 2021: Texas: Hold my karkadeh! 

Texas museum cancels book event examining slavery’s role in Battle of the Alamo | The Texas Tribune https://t.co/7AAAaIjUk8

— Edward T. O'Donnell, Historian-at-Large (@InThePastLane) July 3, 2021