I know the news is dark, and I have no desire to add to that darkness, so I’ve waffled for a few weeks about writing this blog post. In the end, I couldn’t not write it. I will, I promise, write something a bit lighter in the future. But not today.
Book censorship and book banning is a very real threat right now, not just in the US but also here in Canada. It’s growing at an alarming rate, it’s impacting schools and libraries in particular, and it’s directly affecting writers and readers I know. Free speech is an integral cornerstone of democracy. Free speech and democracy are increasingly under attack and I believe we ignore that fact at our peril. That’s why I decided to write this post.
A library in Valleyview, Alberta is poised to close and reopen elsewhere with a diminished budget and far fewer books, primarily because a small group of LGBTQ+ youth meet there. The issue is complex and nuanced, and deserves more space than I can give it here. So, if you have the time and inclination (and can manage more disturbing news) I urge you to read this CBC interactive report that will explain things further: https://www.cbc.ca/newsinteractives/features/a-shadow-war-on-libraries
The Canadian Anti-Hate Network (CAHN) has been following and reporting on this story, and they issued a call out for letters of support for library staff and the kids who gather there. https://www.antihate.ca/sending_love_canadians_standing_up_for_the_valleyview_library
If issues like this concern you, CAHN is an organization worth noting. They are a nonprofit dedicated to exposing and countering hate promoting movements, groups, and individuals in Canada and elsewhere. Their board includes well-recognized experts on hate crimes, lawyers with decades of experience, people who stood up to the neo-Nazi Heritage Front in the 1990s, and leaders in communities that are being targeted by hate. https://www.antihate.ca/
Books have been challenged, censored and banned for many years. That will probably never go away. But right now, the hate that’s accompanying censorship is frighteningly high. That hate needs to stop. And that should be something we can all agree to ban.
Thanks for posting this Laura, I had no idea this was happening. I will be following up on the links and objecting to censorship! I’ll also repost this.
Thanks, Carol-Anne. Oh yes, censorship is alive and thriving here in Canada, too, and it’s impacting writers and readers. Robin Stevenson’s book, PRIDE PUPPY, is being challenged all the way to the US Supreme Court. Stevenson lives and writes in Victoria. Scary times.
These are very difficult times we live in, Laura. And I agree, we ignore them at our peril.
Thanks for commenting, Debra. I believe shutting our eyes/looking away/focusing only on good news is part of the problem because it allows all kinds of hate to proliferate. There IS good news in the world and I believe we DO need to recognize and celebrate it, but I also think we need to speak up and out against all kinds of discrimination and hate.