Texas: Let the banning of books commence!

[Nevilledog]

Texas House committee to investigate school districts’ books on race and sexuality

https://www.texastribune.org/2021/10/26/texas-school-books-race-sexuality/

A Republican state lawmaker has launched an investigation into Texas school districts over the type of books they have, particularly if they pertain to race or sexuality or "make students feel discomfort."

State Rep. Matt Krause, in his role as chair of the House Committee on General Investigating, notified the Texas Education Agency that he is "initiating an inquiry into Texas school district content," according to an Oct. 25 letter obtained by The Texas Tribune.

Krause's letter provides a 16-page list of about 850 book titles and asks the districts if they have these books, how many copies they have and how much money they spent on the books.

His list of titles includes bestsellers and award winners alike, from the 1967 Pulitzer Prize-winning novel “The Confessions of Nat Turner” by William Styron and “Between the World and Me” by Ta-Nehisi Coates to last year's book club favorites: “Hood Feminism: Notes from the Women that a Movement Forgot” by Mikki Kendall and Isabel Wilkerson's “Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents.”

*snip*

[Ocelot II]

1. Seems to me that one of the most important reasons for the existence of literature

of any description is to make people feel uncomfortable. There's no crying in Lit Class!

[CJW]

2. Oh, wow! Book burnings!

Book burnings

[Jim__]

3. Here's a link to the 16 page list

The list

[Nevilledog]

6. Thanks!

[vercetti2021]

4. Becoming quickly Germany 1930s

How soon until Abbott dawns a red armband and the stache?

[TomSlick]

5. I suggest she read her Bible, particularly the Song of Solomon.

Some really racy stuff there.

[malaise]

7. There is not a single book that can be banned in this technological age

Fuck this fool

[Nevilledog]

8. If I was in high school I would read every single book they wanted to ban.

Must be good stuff if the adults don't want me to read it.

[malaise]

9. My mother let us read any book we wanted to read

Dad had a lovely library and mum took us to the city library very early in life. One day when I was all grown up she told me that if she told us not to read a book, we'd do what she did and read it to find out why. Still we knew which ones to read because many of our friends weren't that lucky. Mum just wanted us to read - period.

When we started reading all the silly romance novels she told us to read them as entertainment because real live was nothing like Mills & Boons.

[Ms. Toad]

12. Correct, but some students only read the assigned books -

so limiting the books assigned as part of the curriculm leaves a lot of minds unchallenged by ideas that are different from their own.

[malaise]

13. That's true

and it is frightening

[Wounded Bear]

10. Ach! Du Lieber!

[Igel]

15. Surely.

https://ici.radio-canada.ca/nouvelle/1817537/livres-autochtones-bibliotheques-ecoles-tintin-asterix-ontario-canada

Une grande épuration littéraire a eu lieu dans les bibliothèques du Conseil scolaire catholique Providence, qui regroupe 30 écoles francophones dans tout le Sud-Ouest de l’Ontario. Près de 5000 livres jeunesse parlant des Autochtones ont été détruits dans un but de réconciliation avec les Premières Nations, a appris Radio-Canada.

Une cérémonie de purification par la flamme s’est tenue en 2019 afin de brûler une trentaine de livres bannis, dans un but éducatif. Les cendres ont servi comme engrais pour planter un arbre et ainsi tourner du négatif en positif.

Une vidéo destinée aux élèves explique la démarche : Nous enterrons les cendres de racisme, de discrimination et de stéréotypes dans l’espoir que nous grandirons dans un pays inclusif où tous pourront vivre en prospérité et en sécurité.

"A literary purging happened in the library of the Providence Catholic School Council which includes 30 French-speaking schools in the SW of Ontario. Nearly 5000 children's books about the Indigenous were destroyed with a view towards reconciliation with First Nations, Radio Canada has learned.

"A ceremony of 'purification by fire' was held in 2019 to burn some 30 banned books, for education purposes. The ashes would serve as fertilization for a tree that was planted, thus turning a minus into a plus.

A video for students explained: We bury the ashes of racism, discrimination, and stereotypes in the hope that we will grow up in a country that is inclusive, where all will be able to live in prosperity and security."

Been a while since I had to translate French, but it's not that off.

Nazis, to a one. Against racism and stereotypes. Cog. Dissonance. Nitive.

[Wounded Bear]

11. Wherever they burn books....

[Atticus]

14. If you review the 16 page list of these books suspected of "making students feel discomfort", you

will probably not recognize more than a couple names. You may, therefore, not really have any idea just how terribly inappropriate they are---or aren't. I can help with that.

The two names I recognized on the those pages were Ta Nehisi Coates and Amy Klobuchar.

Ladies and gentlemen, if the writings of Coates and Klobuchar can be prohibited reading, what does that tell you about the nature of this proposal by Republican Chair of the House Commiittee On "GENERAL INVESTIGATING", for cryin' out loud?

Mr. Coates is a black man and Senator Klobuchar is a smart strong woman and neither one of them "know their place"! THAT is what makes MR. KRAUSE "feel discomfort!"

How long before non-fascists will have to register with local officials and wear visible badges to identify them so "decent real Americans" can shun them---or worse?

[Ocelot II]

16. "The Confessions of Nat Turner" is on the list, FFS!