Efforts to censor Amanda Gorman's poem highlight Moms for Liberty extremism
By: MSNBC (MSNBC. com)
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
May 24, 2023, 11:47 PM UTC
By Ja'han Jones
Backlash toward yet another report of educational censorship in Florida is helping shine light on the far-right group Moms for Liberty.
The Florida-based organization's members often portray themselves as fierce "mama bear" types whose love for children is expressed through efforts to ban books and topics from school curricula. Often, news outlets will cover the group without mentioning its extremist DNA.
But fortunately, progressive watchdog Media Matters has reported on the organization's financial backing, its platforming of conservative extremists and conspiracy theorists, its members being accused of harassment and threats, and the group's rapid rise into a prominent organization touted by right-wing media, including Steve Bannon.
Taken together, the reports offer strong evidence that raises questions about Moms for Liberty's origins and seem to expose the organization's extremist ties.
I've been skeptical from the jump, particularly after Bannon claimed in 2021 (around when Moms for Liberty was founded) that protests against school curricula — which Moms for Liberty helped lead — weren't being driven by right-wing conspiracy theorists, but rather by "mainstream suburban moms."
I tend not to believe Steve Bannon.
On Tuesday, Amanda Gorman added to my suspicion. In a righteous flurry of social media posts, the country's first National Youth Poet Laureate reacted to the news that a Miami-area parent had successfully pressured a school to restrict several books, in addition to the poem that Gorman famously delivered at Joe Biden's presidential inauguration.
The Miami Herald reported Monday that after the parent, Daily Salinas, complained about written works at her children's K-8 school in Miami-Dade County, a school committee determined that Gorman's poem, "The Hill We Climb," and three other titles were "better suited" or "more appropriate" for older students and would be shelved in the middle school section of the school's media center. The other titles are "The ABCs of Black History," "Cuban Kids" and "Love to Langston."
Salinas' attempt to have Gorman's poem banned complains it's "not educational" and that it "indirectly" contains "hate messages." Specifically, the form cites these two pages:
In her response, Gorman highlighted a Twitter thread chock-full of photos appearing to show Salinas both working with Moms for Liberty and protesting alongside extremists linked to white nationalism — such as the Proud Boys' Enrique Tarrio, who this month was convicted of seditious conspiracy for his role in the violent Jan. 6 siege of the U.S. Capitol.
In a tweet Tuesday night, the Miami-Dade school system issued a response we've come to expect from book-banning districts these days, claiming Gorman's poem hadn't technically been banned since it's still available to middle school students. Of course, this ignores that the poem is still banned for many students at the school for no morally justifiable reason.
Gorman vowed to push back.
"Together, this is a hill we won't just climb, but a hill we will conquer," she tweeted.
I agree. And part of the way we conquer this hill is by exposing groups like Moms for Liberty, whose true objectives Republicans try to shroud with talk of maternalism.
America's children deserve to be fully emancipated from such groups. And these self-proclaimed moms could use a timeout.
Ja'han Jones
Ja'han Jones is The ReidOut Blog writer.
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as we can see from this form, the mother wanted the poem not just restricted to certain age groups, but removed from all schools.
The day we acquiesce to a single misinformed, misguided zealot influencing policy is the day we have lost. The disbelief and anger directed toward our ‘leaders’ is not only justified, but necessary…lest we indeed lose the day.
good thing that never happened!
So after days of lying about what happened to the book and the process used by the school, it's now onto attacking the women for offering her opinion.
This might be the all time example of there being absolutely nothing behind a story that generated mass hysteria among the left. But of course, manufacturing anger was the point, not the actual reality of what happened.
The state of Florida should be eternally embarrassed that they acted on the recommendations of this ignoramus.
The State didn't do anything.
The school decided a book of poems was more appropriately housed on the shelves for middle schoolers rather than kids learning to read. Did the author a favor, if the author's goal is to actually have people read her book. Odd she can't figure that out.
You are floundering in a way we have rarely seen here.
Now you are acting like the school did the poet a favor by "restricting" her poem on the recommendation of a far right ignoramus activist.
Her poem wasn't restricted. It's available to all students at the school.
If her poem is for kids learning to read, it should have remained in the section for little kids. Maybe I'm giving her too much credit in thinking she's writing for literate people. If she is, housing the book in the section of the library where the kids who can best understand it is a good thing, no? Do you think 7th graders are going to look for books in the little kid section of the library where it was originally housed?
Maybe her poetry is that basic and simplistic that it would insult the intelligence of 12 years old to read. If that's the case, then you are correct, the book should have remained in the section with Dr. Suess and "poets" of that ilk. Keep kids who can read complicated material from wasting their time on it, I guess.
then please pick up a real book! Start with George Orwell's "Animal Farm"
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Still pushing this ultra moronic bullshit?
The book is not banned. It is not censored.
Anyone can own it. It can be found on the internet. Parents can give it to their children if they are so damn concerned about it. If leftist parents can be bothered to take care of their children.
It simply can't be assigned reading to a certain age child at school; or checked out by a young child at the school library. Oh the horror, how will leftist mighty mental midgets ever survive? How will they ever indoctrinate every damn kid?
Also, anyone that uses Miami Against Fascism- as in post 4.1 should just come out now as an Antifa thug.
It's truly amazing. Despite all the hysteria from the usual crowd of hysterics, a school moved a book from one shelf to another. That's it.
They can't even claim the ultimate placement is wrong, because then they'd be arguing the poet writes simple poems that are more suited to smaller kids learning to read and they aren't advanced enough to be in the area for 11 years olds.
It would seem that many are easily manipulated or unable to comprehend the English language or behind door number three, are just partisan hacks that try to sell losing arguments