Progressives are resisting rightwing book banning campaigns - and are winning

[babylonsister]

https://www.theguardian.com/education/2022/mar/22/educators-resisting-rightwing-book-banning


Progressives are resisting rightwing book banning campaigns – and are winning
Advocates defeated a reactionary measure in Indiana, suggesting a growing backlash against education censorship
Many censorship efforts are backed by rightwing donors.
Adam Gabbatt
Tue 22 Mar 2022 03.00 EDT
Last modified on Tue 22 Mar 2022 03.02 EDT


The right wing in America has spent the past 18 months waging an increasingly vocal war on education, banning books and restricting the discussions teachers can have in classrooms, usually when it comes to issues like racism or sexuality.

That could be starting to change, however, as progressives have won a series of victories in some states, suggesting a backlash against education censorship could be on the way.

So far in 2022 the left has forced Republicans in Indiana to abandon legislation that would have placed severe restrictions on what teachers can say in classrooms, while in New Hampshire liberal candidates won sweeping victories against conservative “anti-critical race theory” candidates in school board elections. Critical race theory is an academic discipline that examines the ways in which racism operates in US laws and society, but it has become a catch-all buzzword on the right.

The progressive wins are a development that looked unlikely as the right wing, often through organizations with connections to wealthy Republican donors, has introduced bill after bill in states across the country. The campaign has successfully banned books, predominantly pertaining to issues of race or sexuality, from school districts, while some states have already banned discussion of the modern-day impact of historical racism in the US.

snip//

“Public education is a bedrock of democracy, and so many people are aware of that and I think the things that are happening now, talks of banning books and other things like that, that’s got a lot of people paying attention, and frankly this GOP strategy of trying to drive a wedge between parents and communities and their public schools is going to backfire in a major way.”

[intheflow]

1. 15 recs and not a single kick?

Let me be the first to change that!

I agree, the book-banning and racist suppression of US history is going to backfire on the GQP.

[phylny]

2. Even in my red county in Virginia, the

book ban effort failed.

[Caliman73]

3. The REAL "Freedom of Speech" fight!

Right wingers always whine about "Freedom of Speech" when they lose a book deal or their podcast loses fans. Meanwhile School Boards, actual government entities are banning books.

They may inflict some pain here and there, but they won't win this fight.

[FakeNoose]

4. It's futile for individual states to ban certain books, don't they realize that?

I don't live in Indiana - thank God! - but if I did I would have no problem getting any publication I wanted. These fake "book bans" are just for the RWNJs to get a little free TV time, to make it look like they're doing something meaningful.

When certain books are banned in schools, well it's a dead certainty the kids will find them and read them anyway. Maybe they won't write a book report for school credit, but does that really matter? Teenagers will go right out and do whatever adults tell them they CAN'T do, just to prove they CAN.

[Hekate]

5. That's encouraging! TY for the post, babylonsister

[Wounded Bear]

6. K & R...nt