Republican senator reads explicit passages from LGBT+ memoirs in misleading stunt at book ban hearing Neither of the books are shelved in library children’s sections in John Kennedy’s state The Independent UK · Sep 13, 2023
Drew Barrymore dropped as National Book Awards host after her talk show resumes during strike The TV host has resumed production of ‘The Drew Barrymore Show,’ drawing the ire of striking members of the Writers Guild and Screen Actors Guild. Chicago Sun-Times · Sep 13, 2023
Virginia library at risk after rightwing push to defund it over LGBTQ+ books Samuels Library set to close on 1 October after far-right community members claimed LGBTQ+ books were pornographic The Guardian - US · Sep 2, 2023
Ohio's Issue 1 Doesn't Mention Abortion. But That's Why People Are Voting Today. Plus: What media gets wrong about "book bans," Yellow Corporation to default on $700 million pandemic aid loan, and more... Reason · Aug 8, 2023
Texas county moves to restrict ‘explicit’ and ‘objectionable’ books at public libraries The book ban occurs alongside the closure of dozens of school libraries in the Houston public school district The Independent UK · Aug 1, 2023
A Texas A&M professor was suspended for allegedly criticizing lieutenant governor Joy Alonzo was suspended and investigated after she allegedly criticized Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick at a lecture on the opioid crisis. Free speech advocates call the probe "blatantly inappropriate." WEKU · Jul 26, 2023
The Solution to Chinese Censorship Is Not Show Hearings Government bullying won’t fix censorship caused by government bullying. Reason · Jul 9, 2023
'Crumbling' Putin's reaction to Wagner rebellion shows he's 'weak' says Zelensky Volodymyr Zelensky has called the Russian President "weak" and said the "power he used to have is just crumbling down" in scathing new comments about the Wagner rebellion Daily Mirror · Jul 3, 2023
Award-winning Ukrainian writer dies of injuries suffered in Russian missile attack on restaurant The PEN America rights group says award-winning Ukrainian writer Victoria Amelina has died from her injuries suffered after a Russian missile attack on a popular restaurant last week The Independent UK · Jul 3, 2023
States fight to save books from growing number of bans across U.S. Illinois this week became the first state to pass a law penalizing libraries that ban books. Axios · Jun 21, 2023
‘And Tango Makes Three’ penguin picture book authors sue Florida over ban under ‘Don’t Say Gay’ law School district restricts access to a picture book about the true story of a penguin family with two fathers The Independent UK · Jun 20, 2023
Elizabeth Gilbert and the debate over cancelling Russian culture Elizabeth Gilbert has withdrawn her forthcoming novel “The Snow Forest” from publication amid increasingly vociferous fallout over her decision to set the narrative in Russia while the war in Ukraine is ongoing. The Week · Jun 14, 2023
Biden condemns ‘hysterical’ threats to LGBT+ Americans as White House pushes back on book bans ‘It’s an appeal to fear and it’s an appeal that is totally, thoroughly unjustified and ugly’ The Independent UK · Jun 8, 2023
Arkansas librarians are suing to block state law that threatens them with jailtime Booksellers and library workers face unconsitutional restrictions and ‘extreme punishments’, plaintiffs argue The Independent UK · Jun 2, 2023
The Independent UK · May 25, 2023 Florida mom who tried to ban Amanda Gorman’s book has ties to far-right groups A woman at the centre of a widely derided complaint attended rallies and protests with extremist groups and posted antisemitic content as she joined far-right book ban activism, reports find
The Guardian - US · May 24, 2023 Amanda Gorman ‘gutted’ after Florida school bans Biden inauguration poem Poet, 25, vows to fight back after single complaint, which wrongly ascribed The Hill We Climb to Oprah Winfrey, prompts removal
Los Angeles Times · May 24, 2023 Amanda Gorman on her inauguration poem being banned from Miami school: 'I am gutted' Bob Graham Education Center, a K-8 school in Miami-Dade County, restricted access to Amanda Gorman's acclaimed poem "The Hill We Climb," which she read at President Biden's inauguration, for elementary-aged students after a parent issued a formal complaint on the grounds that the poem was "not educational" and included indirect…
The Conversation · May 23, 2023 Salman Rushdie renews fight against book-banning -- 3 essential articles on right-wing challenges to what schoolkids can read No one needs to tell Salman Rushdie about the cost of free speech.
The Guardian - UK · May 19, 2023 Salman Rushdie makes first public appearance since attack, praising ‘heroes’ who saved him A surprise speaker at the Pen America gala, the author said ‘if it had not been for these people, I most certainly would not be standing here’
France 24 · May 19, 2023 Salman Rushdie accepts PEN America award in first appearance since stabbing Salman Rushdie made an emotional and unexpected return to public life Thursday night, attending the annual gala of PEN America and giving the event’s final speech as he accepted a special prize, the PEN Centenary Courage Award, just nine months being after being stabbed repeatedly and hospitalized.
The Times of India · May 19, 2023 Salman Rushdie makes his first public appearance after a brutal attack in 2022 On August 12, 2022, the news of Booker-winner Salman Rushdie being brutally stabbed during an event at the Chautauqua Institute in New York shocked everyone. The attack was so severe that the author lost vision in one eye. And now, nine months after the brutal attack, Rushdie made his first…
WEKU · May 19, 2023 PEN America gala honors Salman Rushdie, his first in-person appearance since stabbing Rushdie, whose attendance had not been announced beforehand, spoke briefly, and dedicated some of his remarks to those who came to his help last August while on stage at a New York literary festival.
The Independent UK · May 19, 2023 Salman Rushdie makes first in-person public appearance since stabbing Salman Rushdie has made an emotional and unexpected return to public life, attending the annual gala of PEN America and giving the event’s final speech as he accepted a special prize, the PEN Centenary Courage Award
The Conversation · May 19, 2023 Penguin Random House, PEN America, authors and parents sue Florida county for removing books on race and LGBTQ themes A new lawsuit against a Florida school board marks a “first-of-its-kind challenge to unlawful censorship”.
WEKU · May 18, 2023 Penguin Random House and 5 authors are suing a Florida school board over book bans Officials in Escambia County, Fla., removed 10 books from school libraries and restricted access to more than 150 others. Writers' advocacy group PEN America calls the lawsuit the first of its kind.