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A family uprooted in grief a year on from Uvalde
A family uprooted in grief a year on from Uvalde
The Ramirez's life changed forever a year ago when a gunman shot and killed their daughter alongside 20 others.
2023-05-24 08:06
Valorant Champions 2022 Drops: How to Claim, Rewards
Valorant Champions 2022 Drops: How to Claim, Rewards
Here's a breakdown of everything you need to know about the Valorant Champions 2022 drops.
1970-01-01 08:00
Penguin Random House sues Florida school district over ‘unconstitutional’ book bans
Penguin Random House sues Florida school district over ‘unconstitutional’ book bans
A school district and school board in Florida’s Escambia County were sued in federal court by free expression group PEN America and Penguin Random House, one of the largest book publishers in the world, and several prominent authors and families following dozens of challenges to books and materials discussing race, racism and LGBT+ people. The lawsuit filed in US District Court on 17 May argues that school officials have joined an “ideologically driven campaign to push certain ideas out of schools” and against the recommendation of experts. “This disregard for professional guidance underscores that the agendas underlying the removals are ideological and political, not pedagogical,” the lawsuit states. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has ushered through sweeping laws to control public school education and lessons and speech he deems to be objectionable while characterising reporting on the impacts of such policies as a “hoax” and a “fake narrative” manufactured by the press. In Escambia County alone, nearly 200 books have been challenged, at least 10 books have been removed by the school board, five books were removed by district committees, and 139 books require parental permission, according to PEN America. Challenging such materials is “depriving students of access to a wide range of viewpoints, and depriving the authors of the removed and restricted books of the opportunity to engage with readers and disseminate their ideas to their intended audiences” in violation of the First Amendment, according to the lawsuit. The lawsuit also argues that singling out materials by and about nonwhite and LGBT+ people is an intentional violation of the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment “This is no accident,” according to the lawsuit. “The clear agenda behind the campaign to remove the books is to categorically remove all discussion of racial discrimination or [LGBT+] issues from public school libraries. Government action may not be premised on such discriminatory motivations.” Two Penguin Random House Titles – Toni Morrison’s The Bluest Eye and Push by Sapphire – have been removed. And several other Penguin titles – including Khaled Hosseini’s The Kite Runner and Kurt Vonnegut’s Slaughterhouse-Five – are currently under review. “Books have the capacity to change lives for the better, and students in particular deserve equitable access to a wide range of perspectives,” Penguin Random House CEO Nihar Malaviya said in a statement. “Censorship, in the form of book bans like those enacted by Escambia County, are a direct threat to democracy and our Constitutional rights.” Suzanne Nossel, CEO of PEN America, added that “children in a democracy must not be taught that books are dangerous.” “In Escambia County, state censors are spiriting books off shelves in a deliberate attempt to suppress diverse voices,” she added. “In a nation built on free speech, this cannot stand. The law demands that the Escambia County School District put removed or restricted books back on library shelves where they belong.” Titles from authors who joined the suit – including Sarah Brannen, David Levithan, George M Johnson, Ashley Hope Perez and Kyle Lukoff – have either been removed or faced restrictions for students to access them. “As a former public high school English teacher, I know firsthand how important libraries are,” Ashley Hope Perez, author of Out of Darkness, one of the books targeted by the school district, said in a statement. “For many young people, if a book isn’t in their school library, it might as well not exist.” The book removals followed objections from one language arts teacher in the county, and in each case the school board voted to remove the books despite recommendations from a district review committee that approved them. The teacher’s objections appear to be lifted from a website called Book Looks, founded by a member of Moms for Liberty, a right-wing group aligned with Governor DeSantis to pressure school boards and libraries to remove content it deems objectionable, largely around LGBT+ rights, race and discrimination. The basis for that teacher’s challenges “are nakedly ideological,” according to the lawsuit. In one instance, she admitted that she had never heard of the book The Perks of Being a Wallflower but included the title and a “parental book rating” and excerpts that appear to have been lifted from Book Looks. Her challenge to Race and Policing in Modern America, a nonfiction book for middle school readers, claims that the book promotes “the idea that all police are bad” and that “non-blacks are racist” and its purpose is to “race bait”. She did not include any specific examples of objectionable content, and “her sole objection was that the book addresses a topic – the intersection of race and policing – that she did not consider suitable for discussion in schools.” The Independent has requested comment from Escambia County school board members. The district is unable to comment on pending litigation. There have been at least 1,477 attempts to ban 874 individual book titles within the first half of the 2022-2023 school year, according to PEN America. The figures mark a nearly 30 per cent spike from book challenges over the previous year. Last year, a record high of more than 1,200 attempts to remove books from schools and libraries were reported to the American Library Association. More than 100 bills in state legislatures across the country this year threaten to cut library budgets, implement book rating systems, regulate the kinds of books and materials in their collections, and amend obscenity definitions that preempt First Amendment protections, according to a database from EveryLibrary. Read More The book ban surge gripping America’s schools and libraries The school librarian in the middle of Louisiana’s war on libraries ‘They were trying to erase us’: Inside a Texas town’s chilling effort to ban LGBT+ books John Green on book bans, bad faith, and the ‘history of folks trying to control what other folks can read’
2023-05-18 00:33
Fed's Kashkari sees one more rate hike this year
Fed's Kashkari sees one more rate hike this year
Minneapolis Federal Reserve Bank President Neel Kashkari on Monday said that given the surprising resilience in the U.S.
2023-09-26 09:46
Canadian autoworkers go on strike at GM plants
Canadian autoworkers go on strike at GM plants
More than 4,000 autoworkers in Canada are on strike against General Motors after the Unifor union and the company failed to agree to a deal similar to the one the union previously reached with Ford.
2023-10-10 19:37
William Saliba reveals what new-look Arsenal may be capable of
William Saliba reveals what new-look Arsenal may be capable of
William Saliba states his ambition to win everything possible at Arsenal after signing a new four-year contract.
2023-07-08 19:35
Overtime Megan reveals school crush while giving sneak peek into her life in New York: ‘Wake up and survive the day'
Overtime Megan reveals school crush while giving sneak peek into her life in New York: ‘Wake up and survive the day'
Overtime Megan opened up about her professional and personal life in an interview with Kate Mackz
2023-09-29 17:52
US national crosses into North Korea during border tour: UN Command
US national crosses into North Korea during border tour: UN Command
A United States national entered North Korea during a tour of the heavily-fortified border and is believed to have been detained, the...
2023-07-18 18:51
Israel calls on 1.1 million Gazans to evacuate south in order UN warns is 'impossible'
Israel calls on 1.1 million Gazans to evacuate south in order UN warns is 'impossible'
Israel's military has warned 1.1 million people living in northern Gaza to evacuate their homes, amid signs Israel is set to ramp up its retaliatory offensive against Hamas following the group's October 7 terror attacks.
2023-10-13 15:26
Buddy Holly the petit basset griffon Vendéen wins best in show at Westminster Dog Show
Buddy Holly the petit basset griffon Vendéen wins best in show at Westminster Dog Show
Buddy Holly the petit basset griffon Vendéen has earned the top spot at the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show.
1970-01-01 08:00
XREAL (formerly Nreal) Air AR glasses are so cool, but need some serious work
XREAL (formerly Nreal) Air AR glasses are so cool, but need some serious work
Shop Prime Day deals: Save on the XREAL Air glasses at Amazon When I was
2023-10-10 21:24
Drivers shocked by 'obscene' prospect of one-million euros fines
Drivers shocked by 'obscene' prospect of one-million euros fines
George Russell declared increased fines of up to one million euros ($106 million) for Formula One drivers who breach sporting regulations as "obscene" and unrealistic, confirming that the drivers will meet...
2023-10-20 20:12