Black Women Are Spearheading The Fight Against Book Bans
Amanda Gorman
The inspiring young poet made headlines earlier this year for her efforts to increase awareness around the rise of book bans and the censorship of queer and non-white voices. When she spoke out on the issue, she claimed that the book version of her inaugural poem, The Hill We Climb, was made difficult or impossible for young readers to access at a K-8 school in Miami-Dade County. In March 2023, a parent filed a complaint that wrongly listed the poem’s author as Oprah Winfrey and claimed that The Hill We Climb would confuse and “indoctrinate students.”
In a post shared on Instagram May 23, Gorman said, “Robbing children of the chance to find their voices in literature is a violation of their right to free thought and free speech.”
On the specific topic of race-related and LGBTQ+ titles being targeted by the ban, the poet told CBS News the following:
“I have to think about what messaging that sends to young readers. It’s as if you’re saying, ‘You are inappropriate if you’re African American. You are inappropriate if you are gay. You are inappropriate if you are an immigrant.’
And there’s this huge argument that it’s about protecting and sheltering our children from ideas that are just too advanced for them, but when you look at the majority of the books that have actually been banned, it’s more about creating a bookshelf that doesn’t represent the diverse facets of America.”
The school at the center of the controversy, Bob Graham Education Center, reportedly later denied that it banned the poem. In a statement to CBS News, the school claimed the book was moved to a section for middle schoolers.
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