What are your children are reading?

 

The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison.
Pulled from school shelves in Keller, Texas

This morning I posted my weekly cooking blog, Gourmet on a Hot Plate. Normally, that would have done it for me for the day. But the following is a continuation of yesterday’s blog and something I really wanted to say. I realized a bit of it is date-limited—the Rushdie readings—so two blogs in one day. Maybe I’ll take a vacation tomorrow, depending on what my little world and the larger world offers.

In a hangover from my publishing days, I subscribe to an online newsletter for booksellers called Shelf Awareness. Today’s edition had a large serving of irony. The opening story was about a planned reading tomorrow on the steps of the New York Public Library in support of Salman Rushdie and his continuing battle for artistic freedom, for writers to be able to speak their minds, share their thoughts. Several of his close friends, all authors, will read selections form his work. It will be livestreamed on Friday, August 19, 11:00 am – 12:00 pm ET. https://www.nypl.org/about/locations/schwarzman. The authors are all from PEN America, and most names were unfamiliar to me. Rushdie obviously moves in more elite circles than I do, but I certainly applaud the effort. Calling this a “watershed moment for the freedom to write, a cause that is synonymous with Salman's life and work,” Suzanne Nossel, CEO of PEN America. said, “We are gathering as friends, associates and admirers to amplify Salman's words and convey our warm wishes, but also to rise in defense of principles that will not be extinguished by violence."

I have never read Rushdie though of course I have followed his career as many of us have. But since the attack on him, I’ve learned a lot more, not just about his writing but about his dedication to freedom of the arts. I’m going to try (yes, that’s the verb) to read some of his work now. I’m even fascinated that he was married to Padma Lakshmi who has many facets to her career, but who I always think of as a food writer.

So much for Rushdie. The very next article in the newsletter highlights the increasing effort to control what students in our schools read. The statistics are appalling. Educational gag orders--state legislative proposals to restrict the freedom to learn and teach—have increased by 250% compared to last year and have become law in 19 states, affecting 122 million Americans.  According to a report from PEN America, 137 gag orders have been filed in 36 states so far in 2022, compared to 54 gag orders in 22 states through all of 2021. Only a small percentage of those proposals are signed into law, but the trend is disturbing.

Racism is behind the majority of gag orders, but LGBTQ and identity issues are not far behind. And the consequences are getting more severe—fines and now even some jail time. And the move that first began in elementary schools is now moving even into higher education. To quote Nossel, PEN America CEO, again, “Lawmakers are undermining the role of our public schools as a unifying force above politics and turning them instead into a culture war battleground. By seeking to silence critical perspectives and stifle debate, they are depriving students of the tools they need to navigate a diverse and complex world."

Some incidental notes: Maryland Representative Jamie Raskin spoke last week on the Chautauqua platform where Rushdie was attacked and told the audience that one of his books is banned in Iraq—and in Texas.

Meanwhile in Keller, administration seems to be feeling the heat. The superintendent of the Keller ISD said today he expects some of the books pulled from shelves to be available again very soon. The question is: which books will be banned?

Censorship is like freedom of speech and abortion rights and a lot of other battles we thought we’d fought and won years ago, and now they are rearing their ugly heads again. I don’t mean to sound dramatic, but all of us need to pick up arms—or books and words—and enter the fray again. We cannot let authoritarianism win—that means you, Ron DeSantis, and you, donald j. trump, and you, Greg Abbott.

Peace my friends. Go read a good book.