(Miami) A Miami school has restricted access to a poem by African-American Amanda Gorman read during Joe Biden’s 2021 inauguration ceremony, deeming it not appropriate for younger children, an association opposed to book bans said on Wednesday.
A mother of students, Daily Salinas, had asked in late March for the removal of five books from the Bob Graham School library, believing that they were intended to indoctrinate children, according to documents obtained by the Florida Freedom to Read organization. Project and shared with AFP.
Among these works, the poem The Hill We Climbread at the Democratic Presidential inauguration by Amanda Gorman.
The poetess, 22 years old at the time, had caused a sensation, and several of her works had ended up at the top of the sales.
The Hill We Climb was meant to be a message of hope and a call for unity, addressed to a divided country. It was written after the assault on the Capitol on January 6, 2021.
The poem has been moved to the 11+ section at Bob Graham School.
The decision revives a debate on book bans, a particularly sensitive subject in the United States.
In a context of culture wars between Republicans and Democrats, which are fracturing the country, some conservative states are trying to police reading, for example dismissing works they accuse, for example, of promoting homosexuality, progressive ideologies, or be too shocking.
Classics, like Toni Morrison’s novels or Mausby Art Spiegelman, were targeted by school authorities.
Amanda Gorman, the latest to join this list, said she was “appalled”.
For her, this choice amounts to “violating the freedom of expression and speech”.
In its written decision, the school board of the Miami school, however, recognized the educational value of the poem, Amanda Gorman being “the youngest poet in the history of the United States to have read during an inauguration ceremony. presidential”.