Let’s be perfectly clear about censorship in our school libraries. Book bans are taking place across the country specifically aimed to remove books that are by & about LGBTQ people, communities of color & other marginalized groups & Massachusetts is no exception. There has been a rise in calls by a vocal minority in the Commonwealth for schools to remove library books from their shelves. The ACLU & GLBTQ Legal Advocates & Defenders (GLAD) have sent a letter urging Massachusetts public school districts to protect students’ legal rights by rejecting censorship in school libraries. Carol Rose, Executive Director of the ACLU of Massachusetts sated, “Across the country, there is a coordinated attack on students’ right to learn. Book bans in school & public libraries—places that are central to our abilities to explore ideas, encounter new perspectives & learn to think for ourselves—are misguided attempts to try to suppress that right. We applaud the communities that have resisted such attempts in Massachusetts & call on schools to protect all children’s access to an equal & safe education.” Mary L. Bonauto, Senior Director of Civil Rights & Legal Strategies at GLAD concluded, “We are witnessing an organized, targeted campaign across the country to ban books centered on people of color & LGBTQ+ people & it is students who are being harmed. Parents & school officials in many communities have come together to resist these censorship efforts because they understand access to a diversity of books & ideas is fundamental to growth & learning. Our laws protect students’ rights to access books in which they can both see themselves & their families reflected and can engage with different perspectives and different people in the world around them & our communities are all better off for it.”
No comments:
Post a Comment